Villa Celimontana: Rome’s jazz festival is a nightly series of concerts in the grounds of this historic park near the Baths of Caracalla, a short walk from the Colosseum, through to mid-September. It has the best Italian musicians and a few international names. Most concerts are at 10pm, but night owls may prefer the later offerings at 11.30pm.

villacelimontanajazz.com; from £7

Villa Ada lakeside: in this rambling park, in the Parioli district of north Rome, concerts billed as Rome Meets the World feature artists from every corner of the globe. Among the 50 concerts running from June to August 8, highlights include Patti Smith (July 6) and Nitin Sawhney (July 31). The concert area opens at 8pm, in time for a lavish picnic, and the concerts begin at 10pm.

villaada.org; from £7

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THE ANCIENT BATHS

Opera at the Baths of Caracalla, where Shelley once sat sucking his pencil, is one of the great events of the Roman summer. Archeologists complain that the high notes are detrimental to the stability of the old walls, but the public’s passion for outdoor opera has over­ridden their anxieties. There are three new ­productions this year — A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Tosca and Carmen.

9pm from July 1 to August 9; 00 39 06 481 60255, operaroma.it; £24 to £107

THE ROMAN THEATRE

With the remains of restaurants, shops and apartment buildings, the old ­Roman port of Ostia Antica is often compared to Pompeii. Among the ruins is a reconstructed Roman theatre that hosts Cosmophonies, an eclectic festival of music, theatre and dance. Watch out for Goran Bregovic’s Wedding & Funeral Band, fusing popular music, tango and traditional Balkan sounds (July 11), Welcome to the Machine: The Pink Floyd Musical (July 18) and the Argentine dance troupe Pasiones in Divino Tango (July 22).

Take Metro B to Piramide or Magliana, then the Ostia Lido train from Porta San Paolo station; trains every 30 minutes. Shows at 9.15 pm; 00 39 348 304 3042, cosmophonies.com; £21 to £64

THE RENAISSANCE COURTYARD

The International Chamber Ensemble holds concerts in the courtyard of Sant’Ivo alla Sapienza, not far from Piazza Navona, from July 4 to August 11. Designed by Borromini, the magnificent courtyard is alone worth the price of ­admission. The concerts include works by Albinoni, Vivaldi and Barber. ­Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro is performed on July 21, 22, 24 and 25, and an evening of music from the Great American Songbook by Gershwin, Porter and Kern is on July 30, 31 and August 4.

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