A to JazZ Festival to go ahead following public support and state response

The A to JazZ Festival will go ahead following public support and a response from the state.

Organisers will refund the donations made by the public within the next 14 days, after it became clear that the Council of Ministers has secured funding for the National Cultural Calendar, the festival team said on May 13.

According to them, the 15th edition will take place in full, with its planned international programme. “After last week the organisers warned of a critical funding shortfall due to delayed state financing, the issue has found a positive resolution. At its latest meeting, the caretaker cabinet approved a decision to allocate an emergency budget for the National Cultural Calendar. This covers 56 approved projects for May and June, including the missing amount needed to secure the artistic programme of A to JazZ. The wave of solidarity following the launch of the donation campaign proved decisive. Thousands of jazz supporters responded to the appeal for help, proving that the festival is not just an event, but a cause,” the A to JazZ team said.

“The unconditional support you gave us turned into a huge wave that completely changed the picture. At the end of last week, the impossible became possible. The support gathered from you — the audience — is much more than money. We will keep the emotion and your love from it,” said the founder of the festival, Peter Dimitrov.

From 2 to 5 July in Sofia, Grammy award winners Dee Dee Bridgewater and drummer Nate Smith will perform, alongside the “Miles Electric Band” project dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Miles Davis’ birth, as well as more than 20 other musical acts.

The programme will also feature The Simon Grey Collective, led by producer Simon Grey, and vocalist Tony Momrelle (Incognito), rising New York star Tomoki Sanders — son of saxophone legend Pharoah Sanders — and a special project by West African percussionist Aly Keïta with Malian singer Mariam Koné.

The line-up also includes artists such as Polish pianist Hania Derej, Bulgarian ensembles the Victoria Kirilova Quartet and the Emil Tasev Quartet, as well as a Franco-Bulgarian project led by trombonist Georgi Kornazov.

The festival’s special world music showcase programme, which traditionally opens the event, will present emerging performers from across the globe, including Peru, South Africa, India, Italy, Hungary, Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria. The showcase will feature 12 projects from four continents, highlighting young artists from around the world.

Source: BTA