Blues Alive Festival, the oldest blues festival in the Czech Republic, was established in Sumperk in 1996. In the festival’s first years, performances were limited to Czech blues bands only. Later, acts from Slovakia and Germany and then the rest of Europe and the USA were added to the annual lineup. Soon Blues Alive became a major event not only for Czech blues fans but for blues fans from around the world. The roster of performing artists has included the Holmes Brothers, C.J. Chenier, Louisiana Red, Hubert Sumlin, Cephas & Wiggins, Joe Louis Walker, Sue Foley, Curtis Salgado, James Cotton, Lurrie Bell, Johnny Winter, Guitar Shorty, Shemekia Copeland, Nikki Hill, Maria Muldaur, Billy Branch, Lucky Peterson, Mark Hummel, Anson Funderburgh, Otis Taylor, Rick Estrin, Walter Wolfman Washington, John Németh, Mike Zito, Warren Haynes, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Samantha Fish, Otis Taylor, Jonny Lang, and many more. Beginning sixteen years ago, the festival added a final performance in Chorzow, Poland, to further expand its reach. On this special weekend in November each year, fans from around the world come together to celebrate the blues.
