Sitting in a muddy field is taken as par for the course, and possibly even part of the attraction, at major summer festivals like Fuji Rock. But rain would certainly have put a damper on any jazz festival set in the heart of the capital. Luckily, although the clouds threatened to burst on both Saturday and Sunday, the rain mainly stayed away, and thousands of music fans were able to get the most out of the 13th Tokyo Jazz Festival.

Klezmofobia, Grand Pianoramax and Dimlite performed at the open-air Plaza stage on Friday evening, but the action really got under way on Saturday with two shows in the main Hall venue and a full day's program of free-to-view artists out in the Plaza.

Opening the first set of performances in the Hall on Saturday was Norway's Jaga Jazzist. On stage, the unlikely lineup of instruments — let's face it, they're aren't many acts that regularly use tuba, pedal steel guitar and synths — formed a full-on wall of sound that was incredible to experience in the concert hall setting.