Edmonton Jazz Festival Society

OUR STORY In 2005, a small group of musicians, business owners, and the Edmonton Jazz Society (operating society of the Yardbird Suite) combined to produce the 60-event Yardbird Jazz Festival, and created the Jazzworks Small Creative Workshops as an educational component of the festival directed towards youth and emerging musicians. To ensure the continuation of the work started with the 2005 Yardbird Jazz Festival, the Edmonton Jazz Festival Society (EJFS) was formed in November 2005 to provide the mandate and structure to support the international jazz festival tradition started in 1980 by Jazz City. The Edmonton Jazz Festival Society, under the guidance of the Edmonton Arts Council and the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, collaborated with the Edmonton Jazz Society (Yardbird Suite) to co-present the 2006 Yardbird Jazz Festival. From 2007 and onwards, the Edmonton Jazz Festival Society presents the Edmonton International Jazz Festival. The second major development for the Edmonton Jazz Festival Society was the conception and presentation of the Edmonton Jazz Orchestra, founded by Kent Sangster, which made its debut in the 2006 Yardbird Jazz Festival. The Edmonton Jazz Orchestra consists of 18 Edmonton-based musicians who compose, arrange, and perform big band jazz, drawing from jazz history while creating new works. A small but growing staff and volunteer board, driven by their love for jazz music in Edmonton, are dedicated to providing a first rate international event. With the support and partnership with over 30 Edmonton based organizations, the EJFS is able to ensure the Edmonton International Jazz Festival maintains its flagship status among the many festivals for which Edmonton is so famous for.