Calls to save Ealing Jazz Festival from ‘total decimation at the hands of Ealing Council’ have been made after proposals to reduce its programme were revealed.
A Save Ealing Jazz Festival protest group was set up after the Labour-run administration said it intends to reduce the event, which is part of its Ealing Summer Festivals events, from five days to two.
Plans to jettison co-founder and jazz musician Dick Esmond, who has been the festival’s artistic director and compere throughout the event’s 30 year history, have also been criticised.
A petition calling for the festival to be saved from “total decimation by Ealing Council” has also received more than 1,000 signatures. One campaigner said the move was tantamount to “ripping the heart out of what was a really good festival”.
But the local authority, which outsources the running of Ealing Jazz Festival to The Event Umbrella (TEU), said it was still an important part of its summer programme.
Andrew Butcher is leading the festival fight. He said: “We are very concerned. We’ve only just found out about them and it looks like the cuts are being made to only the jazz festival, which seems odd.”
He said he understood the financial pressure on the council but believed there were other ways to deal with financial problems, and pointed out to loss of sponsorship.
He said: “It’s a local jazz festival, it’s always been conceived as such, even though people come from across the country and abroad to attend. Attendance is growing year on year, It’s a great local event.”
The removal of Mr Esmond from the organising of the event will see increased involvement of TEU, which has limited experience in the jazz world, said Mr Butcher.
“I just feel that to get rid of Dick and to halve the scope of the of the festival, it’s like ripping the heart out of what was a really good festival. It’s an awful shame,” he said.
Event to be 'scaled back' to save money
But Ealing Council said it was trimming nights which were poorly attended, and that the move did not herald the end of the festival. It also hoped Mr Esmond and his band would take up its invitation to headline the Sunday night performance.
A spokesperson said: “The council is being forced to significantly reduce the subsidy for the Ealing Summer Festival events from £122,000 to £72,000 across all the festivals.
“Rather than compromise on quality we have focused the jazz programme to one weekend which has always proven the most popular, with 70% of visitors coming on those days last year. By doing this we are still able to offer visitors a great line up of musicians at this year’s Jazz Festival and a full weekend of Blues in Walpole Park too.”
Ealing Labour MPs sympathised with the position of the council. Dr Rupa Huq (Ealing Central and Acton) said: “I haven’t seen the full detail but understand that the event is to be scaled back. This would be a shame but with local government cutbacks every local authority is trying to do more and more with less and less.
“The Conservative government needs to fairly compensate Ealing council so they are not forced into decisions like this and can effectively serve local residents with arts provision for all.”
Steve Pound (Ealing North) added: “From what I can gather the two nights are poorly attended, but in the ideal world we would have a five-day jazz festival.
"I want the council and the local community to preserve the unique nature of Ealing Jazz Festival, not just as a tribute to Dick Esmond, but as something that puts Ealing on the map across the whole world.”
