Founded in 1991 and entering its 20th anniversary season, Jazz Aspen Snowmass (JAS) is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. The mission of JAS is to present and preserve Jazz, American and popular music through world-class festivals, performances and education programs.
JAS has grown from a simple 3-day event in Aspen to a complex set of multi-day festivals in Aspen/Snowmass, Colorado; a sister event, Sonoma Jazz + in Sonoma, California; a summer series of weekly performances; a winter series of small venue performances; and diverse year round education programs with both regional and international reach.
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Founded in 1991 and entering its 20th anniversary season, Jazz Aspen Snowmass (JAS) is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. The mission of JAS is to present and preserve Jazz, American and popular music through world-class festivals, performances and education programs.
JAS has grown from a simple 3-day event in Aspen to a complex set of multi-day festivals in Aspen/Snowmass, Colorado; a sister event, Sonoma Jazz + in Sonoma, California; a summer series of weekly performances; a winter series of small venue performances; and diverse year round education programs with both regional and international reach.
The original June 1991 festival was inspired by its prestigious sister festival in Marciac (southwest) France, a charming village of 1,000 in the rolling hills of Gascogne, near the Basque country. Through the years since its inception, the organization has added a three day Labor Day weekend event, a free summer concert series, an all-scholarship jazz residency program for gifted young artists and a new small venue winter jazz series.
The June Festival, once set underneath a spectacular canopy tent in downtown Aspen at the Rio Grande Park, moved to the more intimate Benedict Music Tent in 2009. The event grew from a four day festival to a ten day format with an opening weekend of world-class performances at the Benedict Tent, followed by a week of both public and private performances from the JAS Academy Bands and a closing weekend celebration including jazz shows at the Little Nell, free public performances at the Cooper Street Mall Stage and a collaboration with the AMFS at the Benedict Tent.
The Labor Day Festival is an open air, dance oriented extravaganza of popular, R&B, rock, funk, blues, world and soul music, taking place at Snowmass Town Park, with the spectacular Elk Mountain Range as a backdrop, catering to crowds in excess of 8,000 daily. The festival is currently a three day event.
JAS has been consistently recognized for its unique marriage of world-class music to an unparalleled natural and intimate setting, and its impeccable hospitality for artist and audiences alike. Its corporate and VIP tent programs have no peer in the international world of live music events with recognized star talent. The festival attracts a high end demographic of visitors from throughout the Rocky Mountain region and beyond.
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