For jazz , the best club is Hot Brass , chemin de la Plaine-des-Verguetiers, rte d'éguilles-Célony (tel 04.42.21.05.57; 10.30pm onwards), or there's Le Scat , 11 rue de la Verrerie (tel 04.42.23.00.23), with jazz, rock and funk. If you'd rather a more mainstream disco , head for Le Richelme , 24 rue de la Verrerie (tel 04.42.23.49.29; from 9pm). For pubs with live music, try Key Largo and Bugsy at 34 and 25 rue de la Verrerie, respectively; Pub Solferino , place d'Armenie; or Le Festival , 67bis rue Espariat.

 

During the annual music festivals , Aix en Musique (rock, jazz, experimental and classical; mid-June to first week in July; tel 04.42.21.69.69) and the Festival International d'Art Lyrique (opera and classical concerts; last two weeks of July), the alternative scene - of street theatre, rock concerts and impromptu gatherings - turns the whole of Vieil Aix into one long party. Tickets for events range from 80F/¬12.20 to 800F/¬122 and can be obtained, along with programmes, from the Comité Officiel des Fêtes at Espace Forbin, 3 place John-Rewald, off cours Gambetta (tel 04.42.63.06.75). Details of the Festival International Danse (two weeks in mid-July) are available from the same address.