[Dixielandjazz] "Jazz" Festivals

[Stephen Barbone]

Since the Ken Burns Jazz Program, there has been a marked increase in
the number of "Jazz" festivals in the Philadelphia PA USA area.
Many are like the Media Jazz Festival. Where the local business
association in town gets all the restaurants together and sponsors a one
day, or night, "jazz" festival.

In Media PA, 10 restaurants in town agreed to host jazz bands of all
types. Then the association books the bands and assigns them to a
restaurant. Then they publicize it locally and institute a charge for
the evening to get into all the restaurants. In this case $10 in
advance, or $18 the evening of the event. They sold 3000 tickets at the
Media Blues festival in June and expect at least 1500 ticket sales for
the upcoming jazz festival. (Down because of cooler weather this time of
year).

Then only ticket holders can get into the restaurants after 9 PM or so.
The attendees are 95% LOCAL.

The town makes a "stroll" out of it. Hear a band at venue 1, then stroll
to venue 2, etc. It makes for a very nice friendly evening as people
compare notes over drinks etc. Kind of like a big block party.

The ticket $ pretty much support the bands. (Ten, single to 6 piece
groups). Any shortfall is covered by the booming business the
restaurants do. In summer, the Blues Festival was a huge success.

In this area, 100 mile circle from center city Philadelphia, there are
AT LEAST 50 "jazz" festivals of this type and another 50 MUSIC festivals
of similar type, or freebies sponsored arts groups, townships etc. Close
to where I live are "jazz" festivals in Chadds Ford , Media, West
Chester, New Hope, etc., etc., in addition to the major Jazz Festivals.

A little farther away are 'jazz" festivals in Chestertown MD, and
similar tourist towns all over the map. I'm barely able to keep up with
where all of them are.

Is this happening in your area?  Small GENERIC JAZZ FESTIVALS? If so, by
all means go after them. This is the best environment for the growth of
jazz that I have seen in the last 50 years.

Cheers,
Steve