What Is The Vancouver Wine & Jazz Festival?

The Vancouver Wine & Jazz Festival is now recognized as the #1 Cultural Tourism event in Vancouver and Southwest Washington and is “…the largest jazz festival of its kind in the Northwest…”  (KATU Channel 2, Portland, OR).  It is also considered “…one of the most important jazz festivals on the west coast…” (NW Jazz Profile Magazine).  Since 1998, attendees from 17 states and Canada have attended the event to experience the mission of the Festival: “…Hot jazz, great wines, fine art and delicious cuisine, all in one place, in one great city—Vancouver, Washington!”

• Performing & Cultural Arts!  The Festival is a celebration of the Musical, Enological, Visual and Culinary Arts, and brings together the best in the Pacific Northwest...international & local jazz artists, world-renowned wines, fine artists and delicious local cuisine in a 1st-class city: Vancouver, Washington!
• Cultural Tourism:  The Festival draws thousands of visitors and residents alike to downtown Vancouver.  News sources estimated more than 15,000 people attended the 2009 Festival.  55% of those were out-of-town visitors.
• Identity & Image:  The Festival is a world-class event.  The vision and image of the Festival supports the vision and image the City of Vancouver seeks to portray about our community: that it is a beautiful city with a great quality of life---a terrific place to live, work and visit!

What Is The Purpose Of The Festival?

The purpose of the festival is:

• To be a major West Coast festival of the music, visual, performing, enological and culinary arts;
• To draw thousands of residents and tourists to downtown Vancouver and Southwest Washington;
• To entertain, enrich & educate audiences to great music, fine art, enological & culinary arts;
• To promote the City of Vancouver as a great place to live, work and visit;
• To promote the Festival sponsors;
• To be a part of the growth and re-development of downtown Vancouver;
• To be a marketing, fundraising, promotion and season ticket sales opportunity for Bravo! Vancouver.

What Are 3 Long Term Goals Of The Festival?

• ACHIEVED: To be the #1 cultural arts event for the City of Vancouver and Southwest Washington. 
• ACHIEVED: To be recognized as a major West Coast cultural event: a “cultural tourism destination.”
• Ultimately: the Festival has a goal of becoming on par with major festivals around the United States such as: Monterey Jazz Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, Aspen Music Festival, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, etc.  Eventually productions of dance and jazz education may become part of the existing cultural offerings

Vancouver Wine & Jazz Festival History

The First Annual Vancouver Wine & Jazz Festival took place September 26-27, 1998 in downtown Vancouver.  After nearly a year of planning, the Festival premiered to huge weekend crowd.  By all measures, the Festival was an enormous success.  The 1998 Festival was held on the site of the former Lucky Lager Brewery in downtown Vancouver.  International jazz star and vocalist Dianne Schuur entertained a huge Saturday night crowd.  21 wineries, 6 restaurants and fine artists participated in the premiere Festival.

Over 300 people volunteered for the 12th Annual Festival in August 2009.  The jazz lineup included Grammy winners and international jazz, pop and rock icons Arturo Sandoval, WAR, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Judy Collins, Rita Coolidge and Allen Toussaint.  22 bands performed over the 3-day schedule.  More than 250 wines from 30 wineries were featured & 50 fine artists from Washington, Oregon, Idaho and California displayed their fine art.  10 local restaurants cooked up great cuisine.

In 12 years, the Festival has presented such internationally-acclaimed jazz artists including: Allen Toussaint, Arturo Sandoval, Bela Fleck, BeauSoleil, Blind Boys of Alabama, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Bo Diddley, Booker T. Jones, Bobby Shew, Brubeck Brothers, Chick Corea, Chuck Mangione, David Sanborn, Diane Schuur, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Dr. John, Eddie Palmieri, Ed Shaughnessy, Ernie Watts, Four Freshmen, James Cotton, Jean-Luc Ponty, John Pizzarelli, Jose Feliciano, Judy Collins, Kenny Loggins, Los Lobos, Mavis Staples, Melissa Manchester, Nicholas Payton, Poncho Sanchez, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Ramsey Lewis, Regina Carter, Rita Coolidge, Spanish Harlem Orchestra, Spyro Gyra, Stanley Clarke, Take 6, The Gospel Hummingbirds, The Louis Armstrong Society Jazz Band, The 5th Dimension, The Rippingtons, The Temptations, The Yellowjackets, WAR and others; as well as more than 100 local and regional jazz bands.  Various nonprofit organizations have participated in the Festival to raise money or public awareness for their cause.  These have included the Washington State Ballet, Vancouver Fire Department, Clark County Humane Society, American Cancer Society, Jazz Society of Oregon, American Diabetes Association, Susan G. Komen Foundation, Identity Clark County and others.  The Festival is a program of and is produced by Bravo! Vancouver, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization.  Bravo! Vancouver also produces the annual Bravo! Vancouver Concert Series and other arts events, and has presented more than 100 classical, jazz, sacred chamber music concerts in Vancouver since 1993.

The City of Vancouver has been the municipal sponsor of the Festival since 1998.  Our 2009 Corporate Sponsors and Media Partners included: Comcast, iQ Credit Union, US Bank, Entek Corporation, Carrier, Waste Connections, Columbia Resource Company, Vancouvercenter, Boeing, Hilton Vancouver, KATU Channel 2, 1190 KEX, DEX Media, BV Coastal Estates, Canoe Ridge Winery, Edna Valley Vineyard, Sagelands Vineyard, Guinness, Pabst Brewing, Pyramid Brewing, Cascade Ice Sparkling Water, K103 FM, Vancouver Toyota, Miller Nash Law Firm and Albertsons.