6 live music in Milan, editor-picked by TableJourney. All Milan nightlife.
Blue Note Milano ★ 4.7
Isola · Via Pietro Borsieri 37, 20159 Milano
Blue Note Milano opened on Via Borsieri in 2003 as the European branch of the Greenwich Village jazz franchise, programming around 350 shows a year across contemporary jazz, Latin, R&B and brasilian residencies in an Isola dining room paired with two nightly sets.
Tip: Two shows nightly Tuesday through Saturday at 21:00 and 23:00, weekend later sets at 23:30; dinner reservations get you the closest tables to the stage.
Circolo Magnolia ★ 4.6
Citta Studi · Via Circonvallazione Idroscalo 41, 20090 Segrate
Circolo Magnolia has run since 2005 in a green pocket on the Idroscalo lake east of Linate, programming indie rock, electronic, funk, soul and hip hop across an indoor stage and a sprawling outdoor stage that owns Milan's summer concert calendar.
Tip: ARCI membership card required at the gate; the outdoor stage runs from May through September with shuttle buses to and from the centre on weekend nights.
Santeria Toscana 31 ★ 4.5
Porta Romana · Viale Toscana 31, 20136 Milano
Santeria Toscana 31 fills a former car dealership on Viale Toscana with a 1,500-capacity live room, restaurant, courtyard and bookshop, the second venue of the Santeria cultural project that runs jazz, indie, comedy and electronic across a near-nightly programme.
Tip: Sunday brunch and the courtyard aperitivo run alongside the headline shows; the Jazz in the Corner residency through autumn books the smaller stage. Tickets via the site.
Fabrique ★ 4.3
Citta Studi · Via Gaudenzio Fantoli 9, 20138 Milano
Fabrique opened in 2014 in a former Mecenate industrial shed with a 3,200 capacity and a touring booking calendar that places it alongside Alcatraz as Milan's primary mid-size concert hall, running indie, rock, electronic and rap bills almost year-round.
Tip: Tram 27 stops at Via Mecenate Via Fantoli a 200 metre walk from the door; the standing pit is the floor for headline acts, and the balcony gives sightlines for taller patrons.
Spirit de Milan ★ 4.5
Isola · Via Bovisasca 59, 20157 Milano
Spirit de Milan runs across 1,500 square metres of the former Cristallerie Livellara glassworks in Bovisa, programming live swing, jazz, blues, tango and cabaret nightly alongside a Lombard kitchen, with a dance floor that hosts the Holy Swing Night every Wednesday.
Tip: Bovisa FNM is the closest train stop. The swing nights pack out for the lindy hop crowd; book a dinner table to lock in a seat before the first set.
Bar Magenta ★ 4.1
Cinque Vie · Via Giosuè Carducci 13, 20123 Milano
Bar Magenta has run on the corner of Via Carducci near Sant'Ambrogio for over a century, with an Art Nouveau room, tiled floors and a late-running counter that hosts small live music nights, songwriter sets and a student-heavy aperitivo through the week.
Tip: Open into the small hours daily; the live music programme is small-stage and acoustic-leaning. Coffee, beer and tramezzini are the daytime stock.