To many people in Toronto (and afar), the Toronto Jazz Festival is one of the highlights of the summer concert season, so why has the Ontario government decided that this year they aren’t worthy of a grant from Celebrate Ontario? You’d think that at least some of that $11-million of funding could have been sent their way, especially since the goal is to boost tourism.
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Looking at the list of organisations that were granted funds, there are plenty of worthy suspects. For example, we’re quite happy they saw fit to give NXNE $206,250, and the X Avant Festival of experimental music probably needs every bit of funding it can secure. But does the Lake of the Woods Armed Forces/RCMP Musical Ride really need more tax dollars? Is the Toronto 4×4 Festival really a big tourist draw?
It doesn’t seem to be a case that their TD Canada Trust sponsorship is the problem, as they’re also slapping their logo all over the Festival of South Asia, the Ottawa International Jazz Festival, and the Kitchener Blues Festival, all of whom did get some dough from the program. And it can’t be the jazz focus that’s the problem, as there are tons of other festivals on the list, including $75,000 for the Beaches International Jazz Fest.
I have countless fond memories of being dragged around the Toronto Jazz Festival as a child by my father. He would scour the listings for all the free stages, so I got to experience both traditional and avant-garde approaches to the genre (as long as it was free), which undoubtedly shaped my tastes today.
If you agree that the omission of the Toronto Jazz Fest is a mistake, you can click here to send a note to the Ontario Government expressing your disappointment.
