“It’s been quite a ride!”

This month marks one year since Library Bar in Limassol launched its popular Wednesday Jazz nights, with the weekly event having hosted nearly 60 shows to become the most regular and popular jazz event on the island.

“It’s been quite a ride!” says Eirini Sofroniou, co-manager at Library Bar. “A lot of work has been put into this. A new week begins and suddenly Wednesday is back and it’s alive and exciting.”

According to many, “Wednesday Jazz” is creating a new wave of enthusiasm for the genre and a revived Jazz appreciation across the island. The regular house band consists of Irenaeos Koulouras (double bass), Ermis Michail (guitar) and Stelios Xydias (drums), who are joined weekly by some of the leading jazz musicians in Cyprus including occasional visits by international musicians.

So how did it get there?

“We built Wednesday Jazz with care and respect to the small audiences of jazz,” says Irenaeos Koulouras, artistic director of the weekly event and house band double bassist. “Every Wednesday is fresh! We do this by re-inventing ourselves and our sounds and bringing guest musicians. We create a high-quality programme every month which is fun, interesting and challenging.”

Jazz singer Ioanna Troullidou adds: “There is a range of guest musicians each month. It’s not the same band every week; there are new musicians and a lot of variety. A high level of jazz is being played there.”

“It enables us musicians to present our new projects and ideas we’ve been working on.”

According to Ermis Michail, Library Bar also provides an important platform for local Jazz musicians to exhibit their projects and ideas: “It’s nice as a musician to have a stable place to perform. More importantly Library enables us musicians to present our new projects and ideas we’ve been working on.”

The weekly event has proved popular amongst a hugely diverse crowd of all ages, including foreigners, locals and newcomers.

“We get a good crowd, mostly people who come to see high-quality Jazz,” says Stelios Xydias. “It’s really great to see people coming and enjoying your work.”

Jazz singer Sarah Fenwick echoes this sentiment: “Library has created an enjoyable atmosphere for jazz appreciation – the audience truly respects the band by listening carefully. This really helps the musicians to express themselves and improvise.”

Wednesday Jazz would not be possible without the hard work and passion of the team at Library – a bar that has been rocking the Limassol nightlife scene with its innovative cocktail menu and consistently high-quality music repertoire since it opened six years ago.

And the venue’s dedication has not gone unnoticed by the musicians themselves. Popular saxophonist Charis Ioannou attributes a large part of the Wednesday Jazz success to its good working relationships: “One of the most important things is for a venue and musicians to have the same direction. As long as there is good open communication then we will continue to grow and create better nights.”

Jazz Wednesdays are at 21:30 at Library Bar in Limassol, with a tempting menu of live music, cocktails, wine and food.

Entrance is free, with the exception of occasional shows featuring international artists.