Expansion in Programming Across Multiple Venues in Aspen’s Core
Recalling HBO Comedy and Food & Wine Experience In Town, On Foot!
Jazz Aspen Snowmass (JAS) announced today major changes in the format of the JAS June Experience, shifting from presenting a select few Artists at the Benedict Music Tent to a focus on programming multiple smaller venues and a greater variety of Artists and genres across (4) days and nights, from June 20-23, 2019. JAS intends to use 2019 to establish this new format in town and then expand to include both the in-town programming along with select headline Artist performances at the Benedict Tent in 2020, the organization’s 30th Anniversary Season. JAS will still collaborate with the Aspen Music Festival for its annual JAS June closing night event at the Benedict Tent on Sat. June 29, 2019.
Venues who have committed to participate in hosting performances include current JAS Café venues The Little Nell and The Aspen Art Museum, and (potentially) the current Cooking School, as well as the St. Regis, Belly Up and Harris Hall, with other venues and potential collaborations under discussion. The new format recalls in some fundamental ways the early HBO Comedy Fest in Aspen, where the Aspen core becomes the back-drop for a high-quality pedestrian friendly music experience, with most venues no more than a five minute walk apart. The venues will host staggered performances that allow attendees the opportunity to hear multiple artists in a single day/night/weekend. The venues collectively can accommodate a similar capacity per day of attendees as at the Benedict Tent, while spreading them among the multiple locations.
“This evolution is driven by the tremendous success and growth of the JAS Café program and its audiences in the last few years”, stated JAS President & CEO Jim Horowitz. “Our audiences have fallen in love with the quality and variety of the music and the intimacy of the various venues. It fits jazz and related music (soul, Latin, Blues, Funk, World music) so well, especially in a small community like ours. Gradually, the annual attendance at the JAS Café has exceeded its June JAS Experience, so this change is following natural audience attendance trends. We will be able to re-invest resources committed to a very small number of Artists to a much larger number. We project a range of 10–15 Artists will be featured at the JAS June opening weekend now, a big win for attendees. We also plan to program dance friendly bands at specific venues”
JAS will offer a 3-day weekend general admission pass which will allow attendees to access any and all the venues throughout the weekend. Limited single show tickets will be available for each venue performance as well. Performance times will range from late afternoon to night including some special one-off events and locations, including dance friendly bands. In addition to the performances, JAS Listen Up! Artist discussions will also take place over the weekend.
JAS will continue to sell Donor/VIP Passes that will include a hosted cocktail party or dinner taking place at a different location each night prior to guests embarking on their musical journey. Additional VIP benefits will include reserved seating at select venues and private artist meet & greets.
Free performances will also be presented at various venues around Aspen, mimicking the experience of the JAS June “Lawn Party” of recent years, which hosted pre-concert shows on the grounds of Benedict Music Tent.
June Blind Faith pass-holders will be entitled to receive a choice of either a 3-day weekend pass, a full refund, or a credit for one year to any other public JAS event.
JAS plans to announce the full Artist program between mid-February and mid-March.