THE NEW ORLEANS JAZZAND HERITAGE FESTIVALAND FOUNDATION, INC.

The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation was established in 1970 to be the nonprofit owner of the New Orleans Jazz &

Heritage Festival presented by Shell, with a mission to sow the seeds of our unique culture for generations to come.

2015 ANNUAL REPORT

When the festival is over, our work is just beginning.

Today, the Jazz & Heritage Foundation is a pillar of New Orleans cultural community, offering a wide range of programs in education, economic development and cultural enrichment.

AFRICAN DRUMMING WORKSHOPS: Led by Baba Luther Gray, these weekly sessions promote and preserve the influence of African music on New Orleans culture by passing to the next

generation the tradition of African drumming.

The Foundation is continually expanding and improving its outreach into the community with new programs.

LIFT EVERY VOICE: Building on the success of the Class Got Brass contest, Lift Every Voice is a competition for school-based a capella vocal groups. Competing schools will be awarded gift certificates to support their schools’ music programs.

THE JAZZ & HERITAGE FILM FESTIVAL: New Orleans has a rich history of producing documentary films about

various aspects of our unique culture. Many of these films have received funding from our Community Partnership Grants. With this new film

festival, we’ll provide a showcase opportunity for new projects as well as classic films that rarely have been seen.

SONGWRITING WORKSHOPS FOR KIDS: Led by the Grammy Award-winning, New Orleans native PJ Morton, this series of classes helps young people develop song craft – the bedrock of

the music industry.

MARDI GRAS INDIAN BEADING WORKSHOPS: Led by Chief Howard Miller of the Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indian tribe, these weekly workshops help to preserve a unique New Orleans

tradition by teaching children and adults the essentials of making beadwork patches fit for making a carnival “suit.”

NEW INTIATIVES

Some of our newest initiatives include:

2015 BOARD OF DIRECTORSOFFICERS

Demetric M. MercadelPresident

Donna SantiagoFirst Vice President

Kathleen TurnerSecond Vice President

Jeffrey GoldringSecretary

David FrancisTreasurer

Jay H. BanksDorian BennettDr. Sid BhansaliGerald BillesCecil “C.J.” BlacheSkipper BondJames B. Borders, IVMickey CaplingerJudge Sidney H. Cates IV

Richard CortizasRachel CousinDavid FrancisDr. Beverly Guillory-Andry Douglas S. HammelDeborah D. HarkinsNadir HasanBarbara HermanTara Carter Hernandez

Clifford V. JohnsonAllison H. Pena’Rafael PeralesCarol SolomonKaren Bourgeois SolomonParker SternberghSuzette ToledanoDavid Torkanowsky

Marc BarnesDubravka GilicDavid A. KersteinEllen M. LeeRonald P. McClain

Katy RoubionJeff RubinLeonard Smith, IIIKathy Cobette SaloyBruce Wainer

Virginia MillerJoseph MoranJulie Wise OreckJ.R. PeguesHoward L. Rogers III

Judge Gerald Federoff (deceased)Sarah Allen FreemanMarion GreenupNancy MarinovicChief Warren McDaniels (deceased)David W. Oestreicher II

D. Joan RhodesWilliam “Bill” RouselleJoel SellersJudge Ronald J. SholesDan WilliamsRoxy WrightDon T. ErwinArthur Pulitzer

Judge Michael G. BagnerisGaric “Nikki” Barranger (deceased)Johann BultmanArthur Q. Davis, Sr. (deceased)Earl G. DuffyEmilo “Monk” Dupre

PAST PRESIDENTS SENATE

MEMBERS

ADVISORY COUNCIL

Penny Randolph-BiagasMichael J. GourrierJohnny Jackson, Jr.

Don Marshall, Executive DirectorMarsha A. Boudy, Chief Administrative OfficerSarita Carriere, Director of Finance and Human ResourcesScott Aiges, Director of Programs, Marketing & CommunicationsRachel Lyons, ArchivistJarrod Remetich, Senior Accounting ClerkShanna E. Hudson-Stowe, Development AssociateKia Robinson, Programs, Marketing & Communications CoordinatorDolores Hooper, Associate ArchivistJason Doyle, Production Manager

THE NEW ORLEANS JAZZ & HERITAGE FESTIVAL AND FOUNDATION, INC., IS A 501(C)3 NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION. THE FOUNDATION USES THE PROCEEDS FROM

JAZZ FEST – AND OTHER RAISED FUNDS – FOR YEAR-ROUND PROGRAMS IN EDUCATION, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND CULTURAL ENRICHMENT.

STAFF

HONORS COUNCIL

Dr. Gabou MendyBill RuckerSteve TujagueDr. Henry Lacey

THE NEW ORLEANS JAZZ & HERITAGE FESTIVAL PRESENTED BY SHELL Jazz Fest is much more than one of the premier music festivals in the world. It is a signature cultural event for its home city, rivaled only by Mardi Gras as a New Orleans calling card. A major showcase for the music, food and art that define Louisiana’s unique and varied culture, Jazz Fest is also a principal driver of our region’s economy with an annual impact of over $300 million. As the main fundraising event for the Foundation, Jazz Fest generates much of the revenue that allows the Foundation to pursue its mission of perpetuating the music and culture of Louisiana.

ASSETS OF THE JAZZ & HERITAGE FOUNDATION

THE JAZZ & HERITAGE GALA Now going into its 18th year, the Gala kicks off the Jazz Fest season with a star-studded event that offers top-notch entertainment - often featuring artists not appearing at Jazz Fest. Past headliners have included Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, B. B. King, Nancy Wilson, Fats Domino, Smokey Robinson, Bonnie Raitt, Natalie Cole, Dr. John, Al Jarreau, Little Richard and many others. Proceeds benefit our free music education programming. As they dance the night away, Gala patrons feast on a sumptuous supper prepared by some of New Orleans’ finest chefs. Sponsors of the Gala enjoy a wealth of benefits, including the Gala itself, special passes to Jazz Fest (with unlimited re-entry), public recognition of their support and the pride of having contributed to one of New Orleans’ most active and generous arts institutions.

THE GEORGE AND JOYCE WEIN JAZZ & HERITAGE CENTER This recently-opened, state-of-the-art educational and cultural facility is the new home of the programs that serve our youth and the wider community. Located in the Tremé neighborhood, this 13,500-square-foot building is a state-of-the-art education and community center with seven classrooms and a 175-seat auditorium, all equipped with the latest in digital media technology. The Center now serves as the first permanent home of our main education program, the Don “Moose” Jamison Heritage School of Music. Many of our other programs now occur there, such as the Sync Up conference that we host during Jazz Fest, film festivals, African drumming workshops and much more. The building also is available to community organizations whose programs reflect our mission of promoting Louisiana’s unique musical culture.

ASSETS OF THE JAZZ & HERITAGE FOUNDATION

RADIO STATION WWOZ WWOZ 90.7 FM is the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Station, a community outlet that is listener-supported and volunteer-programmed. Now more than ever, WWOZ’s signal is our spirit. The station’s beloved disc jockeys mix a potent cocktail of Louisiana sounds – from the oldest

to the latest. What they spin fills the airwaves of the Crescent City and reaches a global audience via the Web. The award-winning station beams our signature beams our signature sounds to world over the air and the Internet. Live broadcasts from Jazz Fest are just the start. Community radio the truest sense, WWOZ is the heartbeat of New Orleans.

THE JAZZ & HERITAGE ARCHIVE THE ARCHIVE is the guardian of our history. The Archive houses photos, videos, audio recordings, posters, signage, business records and other artifacts from Jazz Fest and all of the Foundation’s other programs and activities. A large portion of the collection is recorded Jazz Fest interviews with the primary creators of Louisiana’s unique culture. These materials

are made available for scholarly and other types of research. The Archive also manages the Voluntary Photography at Jazz Fest program, coordinates exhibits in the Jazz & Heritage Gallery and manages a fellowship program to promote the use of (and develop new materials for) the Archive’s collection.

Since 1979, the Jazz & Heritage Foundation has invested the proceeds from Jazz Fest directly into the community — in the form of grants to arts and educational organizations — to support projects that reflect the Foundation’s mission. The Foundation has donated more than $3 million to nonprofit event presenters, schools, after-school and summer programs, dance troupes, theater workshops, gallery showings, film productions, performing artists, visual artists and many more. Since Hurricane Katrina, the budget for the grants program has grown steadily to support an ever-increasing number of programs in the local community.

ASSETS OF THE JAZZ & HERITAGE FOUNDATION PROGRAMS

Your Jazz Fest dollars at work.

COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP GRANTS

In a major city-wide initiative, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation has taken a leading role in a project to re-institute meaningful arts education for every K-8 student in the city. Partnering with the City of New Orleans, the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts (NOCCA) and the nonprofit KID smART, the Foundation helped to bring the Kennedy Center’s planning program, “Ensuring the Arts for Any Given Child,” to New Orleans – making ours the 16th city to be served by this ground-breaking program. As a result, a 40-member Community Arts Team worked to develop a long-range plan for arts instruction (and “arts integration”) in the schools. With the plan now complete, the Foundation is working with its partners to implement it. The result will be greater student engagement and

better outcomes in many measures: attendance, grade point averages, test scores, graduation rates and college enrollment. With the highly decentralized school system in New Orleans, it’s a difficult project. But the Foundation is intent on seeing it through to completion – for the benefit of every child in the city.

ENSURING THE ARTS FOR ANY GIVEN CHILD

PROGRAMS

The Jazz & Heritage Foundation supports community involvement in Jazz Fest by distributing thousands of free tickets to the world–famous festival of local music and culture. Our Community Outreach Tickets program distributes Jazz Fest tickets through social service organizations – non-profit, educational, religious, government and community agencies. Each year we distribute more than 8,500 free tickets – ensuring that Jazz Fest is available as a community resource to those who otherwise would not be able to afford a ticket.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH TICKETS

Building on its long tradition of presenting free community festivals, in 2006 the Foundation began producing a series of genre-specific festivals. Each was designed to provide local and visiting audiences with a year-round taste of Jazz Fest and – more importantly – to provide new employment opportunities for our world- class musicians. We currently host four such events, each focusing on a particular aspect of our diverse culture: Crescent City Blues & BBQ, Treme Creole Gumbo, Congo Square Rhythms and Louisiana Cajun-Zydeco. Each of these festivals has grown to the point where they now attract significant numbers of visitors to New Orleans and have become highly-anticipated additions to our cultural calendar.

FREE FESTIVALS

PROGRAMS

The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation has a long history of presenting top-level jazz concerts several times per year. With the opening of the George and Joyce Wein Jazz & Heritage Center, the Foundation has increased its concert programming to a minimum of one concert per month, and frequently more. Our concert series provides an opportunity for New Orleans audiences to experience the very best in jazz in an intimate setting that is casually elegant, with outstanding acoustics. Recent artists we have presented include drummer Herlin Riley, trumpeter Christian Scott, pianists Brad Mehldau and Cyrus Chestnut, and many others. We also have presented chamber concerts by artists including the internationally acclaimed Argus String Quartet.

FREE JAZZ CONCERTS

Since 1990, the Foundation has operated a free after-school music instruction program under the leadership of the saxophonist Edward “Kidd” Jordan. Many of the top names on the New Orleans music scene are among our alums. Now housed at the George and Joyce Wein Jazz & Heritage Center, the Heritage School provides top-notch music instruction and employs eight of the city’s leading musicians as instructors. Our free after-school classes teach the fundamentals of jazz performance and theory, and students enjoy the opportunity to perform at Jazz Fest and other events in the region. Our enrollment has grown steadily, now numbering more than 100 students each week.

DON “MOOSE” JAMISON HERITAGE SCHOOL OF MUSIC

An educational and business development event for the Louisiana entertainment industry, Sync Up brings together leaders in music, film and digital media for educational and networking sessions during Jazz Fest. With free admission, Sync Up has provided opportunities for our local music and film professionals to mingle with and learn from major figures in the entertainment industry. Sync Up covers a wide array of topics – marketing and distribution, digital resources for fan engagement and sales, touring and career development, crowdfunding and more – for independent artists working in the constantly-changing environment of new media.

Now in its fifth year, this innovative program promotes music education in the school system while promoting Louisiana’s cultural heritage. It’s a contest for middle schools and high schools to create New Orleans-style brass bands, which then compete in a “second-line” parade judged by the city’s top jazz musicians.

Winners receive gift certificates for instruments to support their schools’ music programs. Not only has Class Got Brass provided more than $150,000 worth of supplies for music instruction in the schools, it has spurred the creation of new brass bands that now provide employment for New Orleans musicians.

CLASS GOT BRASS

PROGRAMS

SYNC UP CONFERENCE

To support the entrepreneurs who are an essential component of our cultural economy, we developed the Catapult Fund - a pilot program - to provide essential training to small and start-up businesses in the arts. Business owners learn accounting, marketing, human resources and other best business practices. Participants learn to develop high-quality business plans that are suitable for seeking investments and other sources of financing. Those who successfully complete the training are awarded grants to support their enterprises.

CATAPULT FUND

PROGRAMS

To increase discussion about social justice, civil rights and issues of art and commerce, we host events through our Tom Dent Congo Square Lecture Series. With twice-yearly symposia and monthly lectures, the series delves deeply into the history and continuing relevance of New Orleans music and the way its artists have responded to the world around them. Recent topics have included real estate development in Tremé, government regulation of cultural expression and the resonance of ancient traditions in modern cultural expression.

TOM DENT CONGO SQUARE LECTURE SERIES

To celebrate the rich tradition of gospel music in New Orleans — the birthplace of Mahalia Jackson — each year we present an outstanding program of gospel performers. The concert is an outreach program for senior citizens in the New Orleans area, and for others in our community. In recent years we have presented many icons of gospel music, including Cece Winans, Shirley Caesar, the Blind Boys of Alabama, Rance Allen, the Selvy Singers, Evelyn Turrentine and more.

JOHNNY JACKSON, JR., GOSPEL IS ALIVE CELEBRATION