Intenational JazzFest Kragujevac, Serbia

20th INTERNATIONAL JAZZFEST KRAGUJEVAC, from 24th to 26th October 2019

INTERNATIONAL JAZZFEST KRAGUJEVAC is an annual multi-day music festival held in Kragujevac City, in Central Serbia. It was founded in 2000 as a need for the cultural change in society and transformation process of cultural policy of the City of Kragujevac. From 2005 it’s managed by the Art & Business Agency “Re-kreativno dud”, from Central Serbia. Year after year, the festival became one of the largest and most important music event, not only for the city but the whole region. Starting from 2000 until now, seventeen festival editions of free musical forms of jazz have been organized and eighteen is coming this year. So far the number of musicians participated in the Festival is about 600 (80 bands) from more than 22 countries such as Italy, Germany, Austria, France, Denmark, Holland, Israel, Great Britain, Island, Norway, Ukraine, USA, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Poland, ect.

Festival offers a wide range of practical lessons in the field of music and experience with the world's re-known  jazz musicians. As an indispensable part of the Festival, the master classes have its own place, in which knowledge and experience of eminent local and foreign musicians are to be transmitted to all interested participants. Master classes give participants, mostly students and pupils, the opportunity to supplement their studies through interaction with legendary guest performers whose insight and experience exemplify the highest levels of musical achievement
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After the official program of the Festival and concerts, Jam sessions are usually organized every evening. These are relatively informal musical events in which musicians improvise jazz music without extensive preparation or predefined arrangements. The other purpose of these events is that jazz musicians develop new music materials and find suitable arrangement.  Both styles are used as a social gathering and communal practice session in order to increase artistic commitment and innovative approach.  The holders of the accompanying program are young musicians and artists and some of them are presenting to the public for the first time. Besides all the guests, visitors and other jazz lovers have chance to participate.

The specific objectives of the Festival are:

• Promoting the right values ​​and consistency of the program quality
• Strengthening cultural diversity
• Promotion of the music festival in Serbia and abroad;
• Promotion of Kragujevac cultural tourism and its development;
• Promotion of the public-private partnership in the domain of culture;
• Development of new audiences;
• Searching for new talents and giving them opportunity for presentation at the festival
• Enjoyment instead of just consumption of cultural events
• ​Improvement of education of gifted students - offering a wide variety of musical practical lessons and experience from the best world jazz musicians   

Every year the organizers are trying to expands its offer, to maintain the quality and diversity when it comes to selection of the artists and repertoire, but also all related educational programs and creative character. In addition to regular and loyal audience, each year the Festival attracts more and more  youth supporters in the context of development a new audience, which presence and participation at the Festival, adds a new, fresh note of October's traditional event of our city.