Telluride Jazz Festival Under New Management

This is some pretty cool news, The TELLURIDE JAZZ FESTIVAL is now going to be produced by SBG Productions, the organization behind Telluride Blues & Brews Festival, Durango Blues Train and the 2016 Neil Young concerts in Telluride. SBG Productions brings 24 years of event experience to the future of the Telluride Jazz Festival and will bring a fresh look to usher in a new era for the Festival 41st year in the world-famous mountain town of Telluride, Colorado. Following the retirement of the former Executive Director, Paul Machado, the Telluride Society for Jazz, the non-profit student education arm of the Festival, chose SBG Productions to produce the event moving forward.

Located in the legendary outdoor venue in the breathtaking mountain town of Telluride, Colorado, the 41st Telluride Jazz Festival is set to take place August 4-6, 2017. Combining a rich tradition of preserving the American Jazz art form with an unmatched aesthetic experience, SBG Productions brings a new era to the Telluride Jazz Festival, showcasing three days and nights of world class jazz, funk, soul, folk and gospel, with a goal of community engagement and student education. Unmatched scenery and a musically-charged local culture accompanied by a wide variety of special events including artist workshops, daily winery and distillery tastings, panel discussions, children’s activities, cozy late night club shows, and much more will round out the weekend celebration. The historical mining town of Telluride sits nestled in a scenic box canyon at 8,750 feet, surrounded by 13,000 foot peaks, and is a prized gem of the Rocky Mountains.

“Telluride Jazz Festival is an untapped gem which presents an opportunity to build upon a 40 year-old tradition” said SBG Productions President, Steve Gumble. “We are excited to strengthen the overall festival experience as well as the student education programs. Expect a more diverse artist lineup with broader appeal, refined weekend amenities and improved Town Park design plans to offer a better-rounded weekend experience.”

Since 1977, the Telluride Jazz Festival has been widely-regarded as American’s destination Jazz Festival. Combining the finest the US has to offer for pristine natural aesthetics and boundless artistic creativity, the Telluride Jazz Festival ranks among the world’s most scenic music events in the country. SBG Productions is a locally-owned, full-service event and festival production company specializing in unique, multi-faceted live music experiences. Through targeted changes, the company aims to elevate the vanguard of the existing event to a new level. The lineup for the 2017 Telluride Jazz Festival will be revealed in the coming months.

Encompassed within the broad-scale development plans, SBG Productions announces an enriched Patron Experience. The 2017 Patron Experience includes the “Buddy Pass” – a new program featuring complimentary single-day Festival Patron Pass to bring a friend (limited to the Early Bird Patron Experience Pass), unobstructed seated viewing area in front of stage, complimentary bar with beer, wine and cocktails throughout the weekend, catered meals during the festival, private opening concert (new), meet and greet with select Jazz artists (new), private Jazz brunch (new), VIP restrooms (new), access to all Jazz After Dark music venues with early, priority entry and more benefits to be announced soon.

Early Bird Patron Experience Passes ($650) are set to go on sale December 15, 2016. With a $200 savings on the regular-priced Patron Experience Pass, Early Bird Passes offer the highest value of all festival passes and are extremely limited. In addition, a portion of the ticket cost, $200, can be deducted on income taxes as a charitable donation to the Telluride Society for Jazz.

Festival tickets including Early Bird and Regular Three-Day passes, Jazz After Dark (late night shows) passes, Four-Day Camping Passes and related vehicles passes are set to go on sale February 1, 2017. Early Bird pricing will be available while supplies last. Tickets start at $145 for the Early Bird Three-Day Pass. Single-Day Passes will go on sale May 24, 2017. For tickets and festival info, please visit www.TellurideJazz.org

For those looking to stay close to the action, on-site festival camping is being offered in the Telluride Town Park Campground. Other local lodging selections (at local hotel partners) are also available. To view all camping and accommodation selections, please visit www.TellurideJazz.org

It might be winter but it is never too early to begin planning for the Telluride Jazz Festival!

~MTN Town Magazine