You knew it was coming ... RIJF producers announce cancelation of June 19-27 festival due to pandemic. Hope to reschedule to Fall.
April 02, 2020
The CGI Rochester International Jazz Festival producers Marc Iacona and John Nugent announced today that the RIJF's 19th edition, originally scheduled for June 19-27, will be canceled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, but that they are working hard to reschedule the festival to fall of 2020. In their media advisory, Iacona and Nugent said:
In the past two weeks since we announced our 2020 festival lineup, our world has been turned upside down. The health crisis we are experiencing has resulted in significant loss of life and illness, growing fear, and unprecedented disruption in all aspects of our lives.
During this time we have been communicating around the clock with artists and other festivals around the world, as we are all in similar circumstances, trying to determine what we can and cannot do.
Most importantly, we have been closely communicating with the City of Rochester and Monroe County and its Department of Public Health. It is with a very heavy heart that we announce today that we must cancel our 19th edition festival for June 19-27. This is a matter of public safety. We need to do our part to help limit the spread of COVID-19 and keep our community safe.
We are however doing everything in our power to reschedule the festival and present it this fall. That is our objective at this time. We are in communication with all venues. We will be offering all artists in our headliner, club pass and free show series a new slot on our schedule. Artists are anxious to work and perform. This is their life and mission as it is ours. So, during the next few weeks, we will be working hard to rearrange this schedule.
We cannot tell you how devastated we are to have to do this – emotionally, spiritually and artistically – especially at a time when we need music the most.
Although the music is not going to play June 19-27, we are going to do everything in our power to make it play this fall.
As we have been doing throughout this difficult time, we will continue to communicate with you and keep you informed of our progress. We thank you for your support, patience and understanding.
I had held off starting my coverage as it became clearer with each day that the COVID-19/Coronavirus pandemic was likely to make this cancellation necessary. Of course, it's the right thing to do and John and Marc are to be thanked for making the hard decision. Hope they are successful and that we are in some sort of new normal that will allow the festival to proceed in the Fall.
Laura Dubin and her husband are inviting you into their "virtual jazz club" to hear them play have been live-streaming concerts from Laura's Facebook music page every night at 8:30 pm EST. You do not need to have a Facebook account to watch. If you prefer she's also uploading the same videos to her YouTube channel each night after they finish performing and they’re be on