The Jazz/World stage is a festival unto itself, run almost as an autonomous organisation within the larger festival which surrounds it.

It's situated between the main markets, theatre/circus area, and the Green Fields on a flat and rather oddly-shaped piece of land, bordered on one side by market stalls and on the other two by major thoroughfares. The band selection policy could be summed up as 'anything with decent rhythm'. So in addition to jazz and world music, you'll hear reggae, roots, trip-hop, drum and bass, and mainstream dance and pop with attitude.

The organisers are also very keen to make sure the sound and visuals are properly looked after. In addition to the main PA system, this year there will be three delay towers in the arena to ensure good quality sound for the whole audience. These towers will double up to provide a platform for a spectacular light show, including, it's hoped, laser lighting used both onstage and as sky projections.

The Jazz/World stage is probably the place you'll be able to see the first and last bands on a major stage at Glastonbury. First, because they'll again be having the traditional Thursday afternoon public soundcheck, featuring four or five bands from the Bristol scene. Last, because they do have a slight habit of over-running, with finishes after 1am last year.

Here's the line-up so far.

Friday
	Portishead
Cornershop	Faithless	Dissidenten
Kadda Cherif Hadria	Bim Sherman	Iration Steppas
Purple Penguin	President Bongo
Saturday
	Reprazent
The Roots	Amampondo	Morcheeba
Common	Outside	James Hardway
Akasha	J-Life	Zoot
Sunday
Herbie Hancock's Headhunters	Dr John	Terry Callier
Trilok Guru	Tortoise	Dr Didg
Hiroki Okanu & Tenkoo Orchestra