Jazz brings out-of-town crowds

Visitors flocked to Wangaratta for the 36th Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues over the weekend, with early data suggesting around 70 per cent of the audience came from out of town and many stayed on to explore the region. Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues president Andrew Nunn said organisers were delighted with the weekend, selling around 1200 tickets across the festival and its Satellite gigs, enjoying strong turnouts and overwhelmingly positive feedback. “We estimate around 2500 tickets were sold to live music shows across the weekend, which is fantastic for the industry,” he said. “We’re really pleased with how this year’s festival unfolded. “The return of the festival pass was a huge success, our venues looked fantastic, and the Satellite gigs had strong turnouts. “The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive and shows we’re heading in the right direction. “It’s incredibly rewarding to hear how much people are enjoying what we’re creating.” Mr Nunn said there were so many highlights, with the Bamboos’ show a fantastic way to end Saturday. “I spoke with them beforehand and they shared how much they love what we’re doing for Australian artists and were ready to give it everything,” he said. “The music across the festival was outstanding. “Serge Carnovale puts so much thought and research into the programming and the variety was incredible. “The transformation of St Patrick’s Hall was also beautiful, and I heard glowing reviews from the sold-out highlight The James Morrison Meets the Wangaratta Symphony Orchestra concert. “Meeting artists and audience members, including people who had travelled two days to be here, was wonderful. “I also loved seeing a young local drummer join saxophonist Paul Williamson on stage, alongside the tribute to local music legend John Bisignano, who turned 80 this week.” The Cathedral Main Stage was a hit and the Tiny Jazz Series in the Old Baptist Church was as popular as ever. Each venue has its own personality and having them so close together allowed festivalgoers to experience multiple gigs across the weekend. Mr Nunn said Monstress, Terry’s Pocket and Iseula were real highlights, while Yunior Terry had everyone moving in the Tiny Church. Planning is already underway for next year, with the committee always experimenting and looking at what they might bring to future festivals. “This is a world-class event and it’s so rewarding to see the incredible stories coming out of the weekend,” Mr Nunn said. “A huge thank you to Allison at St Pat’s, Bishop Clarence (Bester) at the Cathedral and Aaron from the Baptist Church for welcoming us into their buildings. "Our sponsors and contractors have been fantastic, the sound was incredible thanks to Tarv and his crew, and our volunteers worked tirelessly. “Thanks also to the committee for making this year so enjoyable. “We’re building a tight team, the feeling is good and we can’t wait for next year.”

Jazz brings out-of-town crowds

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