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Orangeville Blues and Jazz named Top 100 Festivals and Events in Ontario for 11th time

March 14, 2024   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

The Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival is again among the Top 100 Festivals and Events in Ontario for 2024.

The provincial organization, Festivals and Events Ontario, released this year’s list late last month, determined by an independent panel of judges.

Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival has made the top 100 list for the past 11 years, excluding the years it didn’t run due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Festival founder and artistic director Larry Kurtz said with roughly 2,500 festivals held annually in Ontario, it feels great to be recognized year after year.

“It’s a testament to all the volunteers and the board. It’s called Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival because it is put on by volunteers, and this is just a testament to how enthusiastic people are in this town and how supportive they are of the festival.”

He noted that the community’s unwavering support of the Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival has made it such a success over the years, from its sponsors to the Town of Orangeville and, of course, the attendees.

“The support, even among Town Council, is great. Not every town has this much support. I’ve seen it with other festivals, and some of them don’t last because they just don’t have the support,” said Kurtz. “I feel like our community as a whole has the back of the festival, and it feels good.”

After taking a two-year hiatus from the festival due to COVID-19, there was a chance that it wasn’t going to return.

Kurtz said, “We’re proud of the way that we were able to navigate that because we basically laid off all our staff immediately, but our staff kept volunteering anyways. 

Sponsors continued with financial support even when the festival wasn’t running to ensure it would continue.

“We had enough goodwill built up that we were able to get through it,” said Kurtz. 

He shared that the Orangeville Blues and Jazz is in good company on the top 100 list as it includes other festivals that are his favourites across Ontario.

Kurtz is inviting all residents of Orangeville, and surrounding areas, to stop by the Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival, held May 31 to June 2, for its 20th edition, and see why it’s a top 100 event.

“So many events – music festivals – have fallen by the wayside because it seems like events have a certain shelf life, and after a while, they just kind of play themselves out,” said Peter Ross, the festival’s director of development and marketing. “It’s amazing that Larry’s been able to keep this thing fresh and relevant for 20 years.”

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