George Wein to produce Newport jazz & folk fests

When Wein merged Festival Productions, which he'd founded in 1969 and run ever since, with Shoreline Media the deal was described as a "sale" and thought to pave the way for his eventual retirement. Wein himself and several FP officers remained with the new firm but according to a January 11, 2009 article by Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen in Ticketnews, FN's San Francisco office has been closed and its events in Martha's Vineyard, Miami, Jackson Hole, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, British Columbia, Paris, and Mali are "not on its schedule."

This reporter has queries in to press offices at Festival Network and JVC U.S.A. as well as Ms. McClair, but can't pass up the opportunity to break this story, which would signal a significant shift in the touring plans of top echelon jazz musicians and jazz-loving audiences in the season to come. Watch this space for further info as soon as it becomes available.