Jazz festival is a $2 million blast

The most successful jazz festival yet drew tens of thousands of people to the Western Bay and pumped more than $2 million into local business coffers.
A fiesta of music, food and drink, hit downtown Tauranga as hundreds of musicians entertained huge crowds who converged on the city for the Montana 43rd National Jazz Festival this weekend.
Organisers deemed it the biggest ever, with shows selling out and tickets to additional performances being snapped up by people keen to get a taste of the jazz buzz.
The five-day festival, which finishes today, has been lauded as a cultural and financial success.
Police estimated about 20,000 people were on The Strand on Saturday night and said they were well behaved.
The central city was packed again last night as crowds mellowed out to jazz music and enjoyed the balmy evening weather.
Organisers must have struck a deal with the weather gods as forecast torrential downpours during the weekend drifted away to reveal near-perfect weather.
The bands played and the crowds began to grow.
The $2 million figure came from the festival's artistic director, Derek Jacombs, who said the sellout performances reflected its growing reputation as New Zealand's supreme jazz event.
"This is the biggest yet in terms of the number of musicians and the number of people watching," Mr Jacombs said.
Three more concerts at Baycourt were also sellouts. He attributed the growing interest to spreading "word of mouth" recommendation.
International interest among the musical fraternity had also increased with inquiries this year from bands in India, Israel, Italy, New York, London and Australia.
Organisers have stuck to the philosophy of making the concerts accessible to everyone and showcasing New Zealanders.
An economic impact survey being carried out by the University of Waikato during the event will give an indication of how much the festival contributed to local coffers.
Mr Jacombs said two stages at Mount Maunganui had also been well supported. It was the first time bands had played at the Mount and it was possible more could play there next year.
Mr Jacombs said future plans included having harbour cruises with a jazz band.
Enjoying the party atmosphere in the Naked Grape restaurant on the Strand yesterday were Morrinsville farmers Bruce and Philippa Robertson.
"The atmosphere is great. It's not just the music it's the whole street party feeling," Mrs Robertson told the Bay of Plenty Times.
The couple went to a jazz festival in New Orleans six years ago but said the Tauranga equivalent "took some beating".
"It's one of those few events that everyone can enjoy, from the kids to those in their eighties," Mr Robertson said.
Katikati avocado growers Kevin and Ann-Marie Evans, who usually sail down the coast and dock at the Tauranga marina during the festival, were soaking up the jazz tunes for their fifth year in a row. Forecasts of rough weather had put them off sailing.
Local band Bureta Park All Stars was one of several to entertain crowds over the weekend with a set in Willow St, with Sonia Bullot on trumpet and Dave Proud singing yesterday.
Australian street performer Lee Nelson drew a large crowd yesterday on The Strand as he balanced atop a ladder and juggled large knives.
It was the second time he had appeared at the jazz festival.
"It's a great event and it brings Tauranga alive," he said. It was a sentiment everyone shared.