Stanford Earth Hour Jazz Festival is now in its third year and boasts a rapid

growth rate due to keen public support.

The festival was first suggested by a group of children in 2008, taking part in

the WWF (World Wildlife Foundation) Eco Schools  educational curriculum

implemented by Overstrand Conservation Foundation, who suggested  a

picnic on the historical Village Green of Stanford for Earth Hour.

Based on word of mouth alone, more than 150 people arrived to take part

and enjoyed a safe and sociable evening together, plunging into the

galaxies when the local stone church bells rang across the valley marking

the big moment of Earth Hour.

The press allowed for good local post event marketing and plans started for

the following year.

AN OVERVIEW Event History and Growth

Due to the Cape Town International Jazz Festival taking place during the same

week with over 40 000 AA income Jazz lovers flying into the Western Cape, it was

decided to add a mini New Orleans styled Jazz Festival which is perfectly suited to

this historical and quaint, everything in walking distance Village on the banks of the

Huckleberry styled  Kleinrivier.

The event further appeals to people in support of environmental bodies, families

and parents who take part in the picnic and star gazing leg and collectively, the

growing AA income conscious consumer in South Africa. 

The event aimed to provide the guests and locals with an exclusive jazz experience

within all of the nine participating restaurants all hosting different jazz and blues

artists which seat forty to fifty on average.

Musicians were sourced both locally, from Cape Town as well as from the UCT

school of jazz including students stemming from the Hawston Jazz outreach

programme.

TARGET MARKET AA income conscious consumer and jazz lover

The event was planned in aid of and in the promotion of

both Earth Hour, environmental awareness and WWF (the

World Wildlife Foundation) Eco Schools project. It was

further committed towards the goal of social upliftment

and provision of role models to local children as well as a

Jazz outreach programme for the Overstrand. An urgent

need for the area which has been repeatedly identified via

organisations such as Hermanus Child Welfare and spatial

development reports.

THE GOAL

The head tourism body of the Overstrand, the DMO, the Overstrand and

Stanford Municipal offices and both the Overstrand Conservation and

Stanford Conservation bodies lent their support along with the local tourism

offices and WWF South Africa. The local radio station, Whale Coast FM,

Whale Talk magazine and media 24 owned Hermanus Times all provided

promotional support.

That the event drew well over a thousand people off a R4000,00

promotional budget donated by the DMO, stands as testimony to its

resounding success. It passed all expectations through word of mouth and

social media marketing in drawing visitors from outside of the region, some

even from as far as Pretoria and is considered an event with immense future

potential.

OFFICIAL ENDORSERS

The high street was closed to traffic and filled with a Mardigra type

fresh country market, showcasing local award winning cheeses and

other local produce with live music.

Visitors were encouraged to bring baskets, to fill  these up in the

Market and then make their way to the bordering Village Green for

the picnic and await the church bells of the Overstrand ringing

across the valley, again marking the moment of Earth Hour when the

whole village plunged into the country galaxies.

It is without doubt a dramatic and well remembered moment

looking up into the country night sky and joining with over a billion

people across the world in the biggest civil society movement the

world has ever known.

 THE 2010 EVENT SCHEDULE

Jazz then started up in each of the different venues along the High

Street and patrons meandered between performances which

culminated in the free jazz jam session in the early hours of the

morning. People danced on tables, walls and gardens and enjoyed

a wonderful and intimate ethos with the performers.

It was considered a great success with very positive feed/back with

letters and messages flooding in from all quarters, some from as far as

Pretoria. Post event promotion took place via Whale Coast FM,

Whale Talk Magazine, Arabella, Media 24 Hermanus Times and

extensive social media marketing.

The social media marketing has continued through out the year.

 We are very excited with the impeding growth of the 2011 Stanford Earth

Hour Jazz Fest with national stars and larger and more facilities being made

available. We are expecting well over 4000 visitors this year and immense

coverage via SABC prime time broadcasting as well as the making of a

documentary to be sold to foreign broadcasters.

 

The event further aims to make use of the massive online presence afforded

via WWF International (the World Wildlife Foundation's) massive YouTube and

online presence and to provide as much promotion to the artists and brands

involved in keeping with the events goal of promoting South African music in

every way.

THE 2011 EVENT SATURDAY THE 26TH OF MARCH 2011

This year, international jazz performer Nomfusi will be visiting local

schools around the Overstrand as well as the Hawston Jazz outreach

programme, giving motivational performances to the local youth.

She will be joined by Steve Newman and UCT jazz artist, Chad Zerf

as well as the SABC film crew. A full day of filming has been set

aside by the SABC for this to be included in the 45 minute long

documentary on Numfusi.

 

A stage will grace the Village Green of Stanford Country Village. The

green will be surrounded by vendors and stall holders providing an

opportunity towards income for all members of the community and

NGO’s as well as the promotion of all local produce such as the

award winning wines, cheeses, flowers and other from the region.

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