The San Francisco Symphony performs at Frost Amphitheater on June 20, 1941, in the first commercial use of the space. | Baker Graphic Service
Louis Armstrong and his orchestra take the stage at Frost Amphitheater in 1965. | Chuck Painter / Stanford News Service
A 1969 poster advertises a Ray Charles show at Maples Pavilion, with tickets priced at $3.50. | Stanford University Archives
Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald, the “Queen of Jazz,” perform together at Frost on Oct. 31, 1965. | Stanford News Service
A packed Frost Amphitheater takes in a Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald show during Stanford’s Jazz Year in 1965. | Stanford News Service
Santana plays an impromptu concert at Frost Amphitheater in 1971, with Carlos Santana on guitar and Neal Schon at center stage. | David Madison / Getty Images
The Grateful Dead perform at Frost Amphitheater in 1989, one of more than a dozen shows the band played on campus over two decades. | Clayton Call / Redferns
Ben Harper performs at Kresge Auditorium in 1996. | Tim Mosenfelder / Getty Images
Beck performs at Stanford’s Memorial Auditorium in 1997. | Tim Mosenfelder / Getty Images
Stephan Jenkins and Third Eye Blind perform at Stanford’s Memorial Auditorium in 2011. | C Flanigan / FilmMagic
Modest Mouse headlines Stanford’s Frost Revival show in 2012. | L.A. Cicero
Kali Uchis and Jorja Smith headline a Stanford Concert Network show at Frost Amphitheater in 2019. | Stanford University Archives
Hip-hop duo Atmosphere performs at Frost Amphitheater during the Re:SET Concert Series in 2023. | Steve Jennings / Getty Images
Phoebe Bridgers performs at Frost Amphitheater with supergroup boygenius during the Re:SET Concert Series in 2023. | Steve Jennings / Getty Images
Japanese pianist Hayato Sumino performs at Bing Concert Hall in 2025. | Matthew Huang
Grammy Award-winning artist Doechii headlines a sold-out Frost Fest in 2025. | Jack Tse
Coldplay’s Chris Martin opens the U.S. leg of the Music of the Spheres World Tour at Stanford Stadium in 2025 | Steve Jennings / Getty Images
For decades, Stanford’s stages have drawn some of the biggest names in music, from jazz luminaries and rock legends to folk icons and rap visionaries.
Frost Amphitheater opened in 1937 as a site for Commencement and major speakers. Over the following decades, the open-air bowl became a destination for live performances.
Between 1965 and 1966, jazz icons including Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, and Thelonious Monk performed on campus during what’s known as Stanford’s Jazz Year.
Rock soon followed. Santana, Eric Clapton, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Jefferson Airplane all played Stanford, and, between the mid-1960s and late-1980s, the Grateful Dead performed more than a dozen shows on campus, including one on the back deck of Tresidder.
In more recent years, acts like Fred Again.., Glass Animals, Kali Uchis, Modest Mouse, Phoebe Bridgers, and Victoria Monét have come to campus, with many performing at Frost Fest through the student organization Stanford Concert Network. Last year, Doechii played to a sold-out crowd at Frost Fest, just months after making history as the third woman to receive a Grammy for Best Rap Album.
Stanford Stadium made its concert debut last year as Coldplay brought their Music of the Spheres World Tour to campus, drawing 86,000 fans over two sold-out nights. This month, it hosts three concerts featuring K-pop sensation BTS.
Writer
Chelcey Adami
