Jazzbar Bent J

Bent J is a bar and museum space within the open-air museum Den Gamle By in Aarhus, now showing what a typical jazz club looked like in 1970s Denmark. The interior holds the original chairs, tables, lamps, musical instruments and stage setup from that decade.

Bent J Jensen opened this bar in 1973 as a gathering place for jazz lovers and musicians in Aarhus and ran it for over three decades. Following its closure in 2008, the entire room was carefully moved into the museum and rebuilt as a living record of Danish nightlife culture.

Generations of musicians and night-time regulars met in this room where live music and the clink of glasses filled the air until the early morning hours. Today visitors can sense the atmosphere and understand how people spent their evenings and exchanged new musical ideas during that time.

The room can be booked for private events outside regular museum opening hours, with a minimum duration of three hours required. Access is through Den Gamle By museum, so it is wise to check current visiting conditions before planning a visit.

The room was dismantled piece by piece from its original location and reassembled exactly inside the museum, so every detail reflects the 1974 condition. Even the ashtrays, posters and drinking glasses date from the time when the venue was still operating.