Readers' blog: 40 years of success and all that jazz in Cork City
One of Cork Business Association’s top awards went to the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival, which we are told now generates €40m for the city and the regional economy.
That impressive success story reflects the quality of the jazz and entertainment every October holiday weekend since 1978. The festival is a worthy award winner.
It seems like a lifetime since I penned a begging letter to tobacco company John Player for sponsorship for a proposed jazz festival in Cork.
The company saw the raw potential of such an event, and without much ado gave the go-ahead, which was very gratifying for fellow co-founder, Jim Mountjoy, and myself.
Fast forward to 1982, when Guinness donned the sponsorship mantle and, with unstinting support and commitment, expanded the festival to attract wider audiences.
It’s been a privilege to have been associated with one of the country’s most successful and durable festivals, and, no doubt, with the continued sponsorship of ‘Uncle Arthur’, and the guidance of the organising committee, the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival is destined to enrich the city’s cultural calendar for many years to come.
(Jazz Festival co-founder)
Ballinlough
Cork
