Ottawa Jazz Festival 2014

The 2014 TD Ottawa International Jazz Festival is this year planned for 20th June to the 1st July, with an audience of around 300,000 and some 800 performing artists, this is one jazz festival you’ll definitely not want to miss!

Videos

Video Highlights of the Ottawa Jazz Festival

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History

The Ottawa Jazz Festival was founded in 1980 by two local musicians Tony Pope and Bob Misener and was originally a weekend long event of outdoor jazz in Major’s Hill Park.

Jazz was popular in Ottawa at this time but no-one had ever hosted a dedicated jazz festival. Shortly after the original jazz event was hosted a man called Bill Shuttleworth joined the team and went about starting a ‘summertime jazz festival’ to help further promote local jazz in the area.

During the first years the festival grew at a rapid pace and attracted such names as Sonny Rollins, Bob Brookmeyer, Stan Getz, Herb Ellis and Wynton Marsalis. The festival grew at such a pace that the original outdoor venue was no longer big enough to host the event. By the mid 80’s the jazz festival was hosted in numerous indoor venues which were more suited to catering for the growing amount of attendees.

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It wasn’t until 1989 that the Ottawa International Jazz Festival moved to Confederation Park. This has been the venue ever since. In October 2009 marked an important milestone for the festival, it’s 20th anniversary. To mark this special day the Buena Vista Social Club were booked alongside the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra who performed the following year. Tickets for each events were sold out and since that day the festival has been in full swing. 2010 marked the festivals 30th Anniversary and was also the last year that Jacques Émond ran as Programming Manager, this responsibility was later passed down to a man called Petr Cancura. In 2011 the attendace for the Ottawa Jazz Fest stood at 295,000 people. Over the years the Ottawa Jazz Festival has hosted some of the biggest names in Jazz including (but not limited to!): Dave Brubeck, Branford Marsalis, Herbie Hancock, Stanley Jordan, Maynard Ferguson, Salif Keita, Toots Thielemans, Roy Haynes, Kenny Werner, Béla Fleck and Terence Blanchard.

Past Festival Reviews

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Photo Gallery

More Photos in the ‘Gallery‘ Tab below.

Lineup & Schedule

The 2014 Ottawa Jazz Festival lineup is shown below.

Check back regularly for further updates…

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what do you think of this years lineup?

The 2013 lineup was as follows:

Nicolas Repac

Christian Wallumrød Ensemble

The Souljazz Orchestra

David Murray Big Band Featuring Macy Gray

Curtis Macdonald Trio

The Heavy

Mike Reed’s People, Places And Things

Dr. John & The Nite Trippers

Mike Murley Septet

Show Full lineup

Peter Liu Quintet

Florquestra

Erik Lind & The Orchard

Steve Boudreau & Gary Elliott Plus Two

Nicholas Payton Xxx

Marianne Trudel- Trifolia

Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra W/ Wynton Marsalis

Joe Morris/william Parker/charles Downs

Doobie Brothers

Caroline Keating

The Hornettes

Sweet Honey In The Rock®

Lina Nyberg Band

Steve Kuhn Trio With Steve Swallow & Joey Baron

Tin Men & The Telephone

Gilad Hekselman Trio

Scottish National Jazz Orchestra

Chocolate Hot Pockets

Vic Vogel & Le Jazz Big Band

Brad Turner Quartet

Dainius Pulauskas Group (lithuania)

Youth Series

Danilo Perez Trio

Steve Bilodeau Group

Td Jazz Youth Summit And Galaxie Rising Stars

Thomas Enhco Trio

Alfredo Rodriguez Trio

The Flaps

Natalia And Montuno

Lean Left

Los Gringos

Tomas Fujiwara & The Hook Up

Julian Argüelles Quartet

Tyson Naylor Trio

Kurt Rosenwinkel New Quartet

Larry Goldings/peter Bernstein/bill Stewart

Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Rémi Panossian Trio

Quincy Jones Presents: Nikki Yanofsky

The Craig Pedersen Quartet

Cloning Americana

Spanish Harlem Orchestra

Leeroy Stagger

Folk Goes Jazz

Rafael Zaldivar Group

The Rob Frayne Dream Band

Fats Waller Dance Party Featuring Jason Moran And Meshell Ndegeocello

David Byrne & St. Vincent

Tortured Soul

Peggy Lee Band

Patricia Barber Quartet

Glen Hansard

Ben Taylor

Eagles / Mcgowan / Wittet

Chic Gamine

10 Years Of The Triplets Of Belleville

Lal

Courtney Pine Presents House Of Legends

Angèle And The Swingin’ Devils

Hobson’s Choice

Alan Jones Canadian All Star Sextet

Django Libre

Claude Munson & The Storm Outside

Gypsophilia

Kellylee Evans

Wayne Shorter Quartet

Roberto López Afro-colombian Jazz Orchestra

Jenna Glatt & The Boston Connection

Silke Eberhard Trio

Michael Kaeshammer

John Carroll & The Epic Proportions

Go Long (!)

Maylee Todd

Erin Costelo Quartet

Ori Dagan Trio

The James Hunter Six

Young Galaxy

Book Of Clay

Traeben

Chucho Valdés & The Afro-cuban Messengers

Three Little Birds

French American Peace Ensemble

Trondheim Jazz Orchestra

Kim Kaskiw Sextet

Bob James, David Sanborn: Featuring Steve Gadd

Stretch Orchestra

Boi Akih

Nicole Ratté Jazz Quintet

Hutchinson Andrew Trio

Tom Harrell Quintet Plus Strings

Apex Jazz Band

Soweto Kinch Trio

Ken Vandermark & Joe Mcphee Duo

Peter Van Huffel’s Gorilla Mask

Carmen Souza

Td Jazz Youth Summit

Mavis Staples

Sax Appeal

Aoife O’donovan

Tia Brazda

Rick Rangno/yves Laroche Project

Boz Scaggs

The Bad Plus

The Herbaliser

Groove Plus

Willie Nelson & Family

The Relative Quartet

Gregory Porter

The Central Band Of The Canadian Forces

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Tickets

Tickets for the 2014 Ottawa Jazz Festival can be purchased per event or you can buy a festival ‘pass’.

2014 Ticket Information has not yet been announced, the 2013 prices and ticket information was as followed:

Bronze Pass – $185.00

The Bronze Pass allows you access to the outdoor stages at the TD Ottawa Jazz Festival. Admission to indoor venues is based on availability — priority is given to single ticket holders and Gold Pass holders. Youth Pass – $85.00 – only a limited number available

The Youth Pass is for ages 12-25. The pass allows you entrance to all outdoor stages. Admission to indoor venues is also based on availability — priority to single ticket holders, Gold Pass holders, and Bronze Pass holders. Children under 12 are admitted to Confederation Park for free, but tickets are needed for them if you want to go to the NAC performances, Platinum section, Dominion Chalmers and Gold Circle. Gold Pass – $299.00

The Gold Pass allows complete access to the festival, including the exclusive Gold Circle seating area in Confederation Park. Some benefits include: some reserved seating at indoor venues for those who arrive 15 minutes before performance time. Gold Pass holders are admitted after single ticket holders. – Source: http://inside-guide-to-ottawa.com/ottawa-jazz-festival/

Tickets are available to order by phone: 613-241-2633, online at the official festival ticket page, or at the Ottawa Jazz Festival Office:

Ottawa Jazz Festival Office

294 Albert Street, Suite 602, Ottawa (corner Kent)

613-241-2633

$2.50 fee /for phone orders

Hours: Monday-Friday: 9am-5pm

Tickets can also be found on etixnow.com.

Venues

The main venue for the 2014 Ottawa International Jazz Festival is the Confederation Park, Ottawa.

Confederation Park is located in Downtown Ottawa bordered by Laurier Avenue and Ottawa City Hall (at the South edges), Rideau Canal (to the East), Mackenzie King Bridge, the Rideau Centre and the National Arts Centre (to the North) and Elgin Street and the Lord Elgin Hotel (on the West).

It is one of the main parks of Ottawa and hosts numerous events throughout the year including Winterlude and the Canada Day celebrations.

This year the Confederation Park will set up 8 stages and will host in excess of 800 of the best local and international jazz artists currently on the circuit.

Other venues for the 2014 Ottawa International Jazz Fest include National Arts Centre Fourth Stage, Dominion- Chalmers United Church, the NAC Studio, Rideau Centre, Mercury Lounge (in Byward Market), Marion Dewar Plaza (across from Confederation Park at City Hall) and the Options Jazz Lounge at the Brookstreet hotel.

Each year the Ottawa International Jazz Festival attracts and average annual attendance of around 300,000 so it can become quite crowded in the park during popular performances. Reviews of Confederation Park on Yelp.com (outside of festival period)

Food

Whilst there are no official food stalls within the Confederation Park (festival venue) during the jazz fest, there are a number of ‘Partner’ restaurants that help cater for the crowds of the event.

Alternatively, if you’re looking for good food at reasonable prices then make your way over to either Urban Spoon (Downtown Ottawa) or Yelp.ca (Downtown Ottawa) and check out what other people in the area have to say about the best places to eat.

Flights & Transportation

The closest international airport to Confederation Park, Ottawa is the Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport (YOW). Distance from Ottawa International Airport is approximately 16 Kilometers (10 miles). The airport is located due south of Ottawa City.

Currently 13 airlines operate from Ottawa International Airport.



To get the best flight deals I would use SkyScanner‘s official search widget below.

Transport options from to and from Ottawa Airport.

Hotels & Accommodation

The cheapest hotel and accommodation options I could find in and around Ottawa during the Ottawa Jazz Fest (June/July) are shown below (Click HERE for a complete list).

Check out the nicest hotel in Ottawa >>

*** Hotel prices rise exponentially as you get closer to the festival dates. Book early to avoid disappointment. ***

If you are on a super shoe-string budget then search HostelWorld and get a bed in Ottawa for as little as $25.60 – (Private rooms $29.31+)

I would recommend checking Ottawa hotel reviews on TripAdvisor prior to placing any booking. Alternatively, why don’t you try something different and rent someones apartment during the festival period at AirBnB?! Click here for a free £15 credit towards your first booking!

Note that there is NO TENT CAMPING at the Ottawa Jazz Festival. However, if you really did want to camp, either in a tent or your RV/Motorhome, then you can check out the nearby facilities at Ottawa Municipal Campground it seems to be a popular campsite according to the numerous reviews on RV Park Reviews – Ottawa Campground Page.

Interview

We currently have not been able to interview anybody at the Ottawa Jazz Festival, if you work for the festival and would like to answer a few questions for this section of your listing, please contact me so that we can get something arranged, thank you.

Outside of the Festival

If you’ve never been to Ottawa before then you’re in for a shock! This magnificent city has much to offer and if you are coming especially for the jazz festival then I’d recommend taking a couple of days out in order to explore some of the highlights. I’ve put together a short list of things you should do whilst your in Ottawa.

Visit the Canadian War Museum

The Canadian War Museum is probably one of the best and most well known attractions in Ottawa and should be visited even if you’re not especially interested in war or history. The museum is unlike many others and offers a vast collection of various artifacts, photography, personal stories and other media that accurately depict the conflicts that have shaped Canada over the years. It’s suitable for children of all ages and adults. The quality of the exhibits are world class and price of enterance is very reasonable (discounts offered for students, OAP’s and vets). There is an onsite cafe for the peckish. It can get busy during the afternoon and weekends so get early for the most enjoyment.

Watch the MosAika Lightshow at Parliament Hill

“Canada through the eyes of it’s people”. Discover the history of Canada and it’s people through dance, music and visual perfomances all for free. The MosAika is held every night from July – September. Make an evening of it and take a blanket and picnic and sit back and enjoy. If you are Canadian, after watching the performances you’ll feel so proud!

Notre Dame Basilica

The Notre Dame Basilica is a fantastic Gothic-style church which is both a Minor Basilica and Cathedral in the heart of Ottawa. It’s free to enter but donations are welcome. The architecture is amazing with some 12,000 gold leafs covering the ceiling and many golden statues offering a warming feel when walking around. It’s well over 100 years old but still in amazing condition. Keep a lookout for the intricate stained glass windows and stone carvings in the walls.

If you require any further information on this festival or would like to leave a message for others then please use the comments section below.

NB. You also find photo galleries, live festival news, transport information in the tabbed section below. All festival listings are changing continuously, check back regularly.

Additional Resources