Attendance at Jazz festival falls 500,000

Date: Mon, 5 May 2003 10:59:39 -0400 (EDT)
Newsgroups: rec.music.gdead
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Attendance at Jazz festival falls 500,000
NEW ORLEANS - More than 450,000 people attended this year's New Orleans
Jazz and Heritage Festival, down from more than 500,000 in 2002,
organizers said.
The drop in attendance was cheered by many music fans who enjoyed the
extra elbow room and shorter lines for food stands and bathrooms.
"This has had the feel of a more traditional Jazzfest," said Carolyn
Hennesy, a New Orleans lawyer.
Smaller crowds concerned many groups that rely on the event's draw to
feed the coffers of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, the
nonprofit beneficiary of Jazzfest. The foundation uses festival proceeds
to support and promote the city's musical culture.
"The foundation is 365 days a year," said Wali Abdel-Raoof, executive
director of the foundation. "We're basically the purpose for the party."
Abdel-Raoof said he doesn't expect the lower attendance to have much
effect on the foundation's efforts.
If anything, the foundation might not choose to expand much this year
but will likely be able to maintain its annual $700,000-plus support for
programs ranging from housing subsidies for musicians to instrument
grants to local schools.
"We hope for super super attendance so that we can expand, but if we
don't get that, we just maintain what we are doing," Abdel-Raoof said.
bbb wrote:
**The drop in attendance was cheered by many music fans who enjoyed the
extra elbow room and shorter lines for food stands and bathrooms**
That sounds beautiful. I have to get down there to check out the jazz
festifals that they have down there. Anyone on this newgroup ever go
down to that festival?
**extra elbow room and shorter lines for food stands and bathrooms**
I love that. Maybe it will be like that for the up and coming Dead tour.
one could hope.
booie.............
.
.
Have you checked these sites out today?
http://www.jambase.com
http://www.jambands.com
http://www.pauserecord.com
http://www.jambase.com/festivals
http://www.jambase.com/search.asp?day=today&dispall=1
.
Find out where your favorite band is playing.
http://www.pollstar.com/news/viewlist.cgi?ListID=682