Hope for the Fest

However, given that Kenny Gorelick and Spyro Gyra have mass appeal, they’ll likely help attract corporate sponsors which, according to the festival’s executive director, Frank Malfitano, are in short supply and great demand. Malfitano announced that he and the festival’s executive board have raised $200,000 this year, still $80,000 shy of how much he predicts he will need within the next three to four weeks in order to maintain the local scholastic performances and main-stage events that the fest has showcased in the past.

Asked whether or not the festival would be able to continue with its 2009 run if Malf and his cohorts aren’t able to squeeze together some more dough, he replied, “Truthfully, no. We need the $280,000. For people who don’t know how we operate, we raise the money and it all goes back into the event. We {use} less than 10 percent {of our budget} for administration. I don’t get paid, and we don’t have a staff. We’re still very short, although that number is not a huge number.”

The list of sponsors thus far includes Onondaga County itself, which has contributed $71,000 to Malf’s operating budget. Last year, JGB Enterprises chipped in toward the $350,000 bank roll as a naming sponsor, but this year no such entity has come forth to carry the torch.

Reed my lips: Along with the 2009 lineup, Syracuse Jazz Fest executive director Frank Malfitano announced that the annual event is still short $80,000.

According to County Executive Joanie Mahoney, the county’s contributions are made with the county itself in mind, although she only offered a vague plan as to what the County Legislature might do as a backup plan. “{The Syracuse Jazz Fest} is not going to end under my watch,” she declared. “We are going to help any way we can. We’re doing our part in county government and Frank is always doing his part. People need to understand that if we let this go, it won’t come back. We haven’t even entertained the thought on the county level.”

In light of the lack of funding, Malfitano is offering entities in the area a chance to grab a more manageable piece of the sponsorship pie by renting any of 13 tents arrayed in a horseshoe around the festival’s outdoor site at a cost of $20,000 each. Additionally, contributors may chip in $60,000 to sponsor the fest’s main stage, or $40,000 to sponsor the scholastic stage.

“Yes, of course we’re pursuing a title sponsor,” Malfitano said about the missing $100,000 naming rights. “{But} this model doesn’t really rely on one sponsor: It really spreads it out over a number of sponsors, and that’s, I think, better for the festival in the long term in terms of sustainability. But if we found a sponsor who would pony up $100,000 we would certainly accept it.”

As for the remaining artists who will perform at this year’s fest, Malfitano announced that Randy Brecker and Bill Evans’ Soulbop Band will both return, along with Creatchy & the Cats, a group led by keyboardist David Garfield, who particularly amped up last year’s crowd. Those musicians, in addition to Spyro Gyra and a tribute performance featuring a variety of stars who will honor festival dedicatee Hiram Bullock, will comprise Friday’s festivities. Bullock passed away in July, but had performed at the Jazz Fest in 2007. Garfield and friends will then return on Saturday to open for Kenny G. However, three performance spots spread out between those two days are yet to be determined.

Among other tidbits discussed during the press conference, WSTM-Channel 3 president Chris Geiger announced that the station will air another one-hour television special on the Friday of the festival, while Dinosaur Bar-B-Que stated that it will be pedaling its delectable wares in the circle of food vendors.

In the meantime, Malfitano remains in the trenches, attempting to get that final bit of funding to make the festival happen despite the fact that the national economy doesn’t appear conducive to the quest. “I’m not going to call anybody out,” Malfitano said. “It’s just up to others to step up and follow this lady’s {Mahoney’s} lead. All of our partners understand. We all understand what Jazz Fest is all about. Anybody who’s ever been there—the 50,000 to 60,000 people who show up—understand. We just need a little more help.”

—Matt Mumau