The programme for the 40th Birmingham Jazz & Blues Festival has been unveiled, thanks to crucial sponsorship from Westside BID.
There are more than 230 concerts and events going ahead between 19 and 28 July despite major financial concerns.
Organisers of the annual music festival were dealt a serious blow when Birmingham City Council withdrew its regular sponsorship due to the local authority’s £300 million budget deficit.
However, the ‘show’ is still going on, with a total of 233 performances taking place – 226 of them free admission – across 112 venues. This is largely thanks to finding from Westside BID and other lead sponsors.
And, in keeping with previous years of the music festival, more than 60 of the performances will be held at 23 venues in the Westside are, all of which are free to attend.
Westside is also host to the official Festival Information Centre, which is in its new home of Snobs nightclub on 200 Broad Street. Festival programmes can be picked up from Snobs, as well as from participating venues.
Jim Simpson, festival organiser, said: “For the last 39 years, the city council has been the festival’s major sponsor, so unsurprisingly, it was a massive loss when they were unable to support us.
“But this is our 40th, we couldn’t just let it drift with 20 or 30 shows. So, rather than go away we decided to work extra hard and produce an even bigger and better Jazz & Blues Festival.
“It is our biggest festival for years, with 233 performances compared to 181 last year.”
Musicians will be taking part from the USA, France, Spain, Italy, Estonia, Singapore and Norway.
As well as live music, there will be a number of other events such as workshops, a Meet the Author session, and a chat at Snobs with the grandson and nephew of acclaimed bluesman Snooky Pryor, who pioneered the amplified harmonica in the 1970s.
Gerald Manton, a member of the Jazz & Blues Festival board, and chairman of Westside BID, said: “I am thrilled to welcome music enthusiasts from the region, across the country, and from abroad, to this year’s Birmingham Jazz & Blues Festival, now celebrating its remarkable 40th consecutive year.”
Mr Manton said the festival continued to showcase some of the finest musicians.
He added: “This year is shaping up to be our biggest festival yet and, as always, we are eagerly looking forward to welcoming everyone to Westside. We promise it will be an unforgettable celebration of music, culture and community.”
The festival is being supported by three students, who will be taking on key roles in support of Sarah Yang and her team at organisers Big Bear Music. Carole Arif is an intern from University of Limoges, France, and Katie Garratt and Issy Tidball are on placement from the University of Birmingham.
- A GoFundMe campaign has already raise more than £1,100 towards the cost of staging this year’s festival following the loss of the city council’s sponsorship. It can be supported here.
Main photo caption: Sarah Yang (left) with University of Birmingham students Katie Garratt (middle left) and Issy Tidball (right) and University of Limoges intern Carole Arif (middle right), proudly displaying this year’s posters and programmes.
