GĂRÂNA JAZZ FESTIVAL – A COLONY OF ARTISTS SINCE 1997
It all started in 1997 within an improvised jazz session among close friends in a small Transylvanian village up in the Semenic Mountains. The initiative went on in the following year and in the following 27 years, emerging into what the critics now call one of the most prestigious open-air jazz festival in Eastern and Central Europe.
HISTORY
In the summer of 1997, a few friends were planning a jazz jam session at the La Răscruce Inn in the village of Gărâna, in the province of Banat. As the cymbals, trumpets and saxophones seemed to flow well amidst nature and goulash pots in the Semenic mountains, the move became a festival and was repeated the following year, the year after and 27 years on.
Among jazz lovers, both Romanian and foreign, Gărâna became known as "contemporary Woodstock". It's a long, winding road to the village, and anyone who has ever set foot in Gărâna knows that the weather is fickle. There have been years when tents have floated on the water and years when music has listened from under umbrellas.
1997-2003
The festival was held in the courtyard of the La Răscruce inn. In 2003 the first big artist took the stage - the German musician Eberhard Weber - he introduced Gărâna Jazz Festival to the international festival circuit.
2004-2014
In 2004, the festival moved to Poiana Lupului, where it is still held today, and began to bring in artists from abroad in huge numbers. In 2007 we had 13 jazz bands, six of them international, from America, France, Russia, Poland: Eldad Tarmu Jazz Ensemble, Scott Henderson, Nguyên Lê, Viktoria Tolstoy, Maciej Sikała Trio and Jan Garbarek Group.
2015 – prezent
The festival has grown to include another stage (Catholic Church Văliug), and in 2015 the stage in the courtyard of La Răscruce Inn reappeared. It's a mix of American, Western, Eastern and Northern jazz. Now, the balance is tipping towards Nordic jazz, because in recent years we've realised that it's best suited to the surroundings of Gărâna.
Hundreds of artists have come to Gărâna over the last 27 years and have been heard by around 130,000 people. Among them is Eberhard Weber, Tomasz Stańko, Liv Warfield, Mike Stern, Jan Garbarek, Charles Lloyd, Snarky Puppy, Jean-Luc Ponty, John Abercrombie, Miroslav Vitous, Zakir Hussain, Nils Petter Molvaer and many others.
ORGANISING TEAM
Gărâna Jazz Festival exists as an association under private law since March 23, 2004. The main mission of the festival is the promotion of jazz and its artists through a high-quality event open to all audiences.
The first edition was born from a jam session between friends in the courtyard of La Răscruce inn, in 1997. The founders of Gărâna Jazz Festival are Gigi Tăuș (the owner of the inn), Liviu Butoi, Paul Weiner and Puba Hromatka. We, the current organizers, were only spectators at the birth of the Festival, which first took place on August 8-9.
Gărâna Jazz Festival stands as a testimony to the dynamism of a team committed to the continuing existence of this event thanks to the participation of an organising committee and supported by a team of volunteers. Whether they are passionate about music or simply motivated to participate, all these loyal and enthusiastic people continue to work for the life of this festival which is deeply rooted in the village of Gărâna as well as in jazz music in a broader sense.
Marius Giura (festival director)
Simona Giura (co-director)
Cristina Giura (logistics)
Mihaela Sofian (communication)
Elisabeta Danciu (pr)
Mihai Mija (Sponsoring)
Daniel Fota (vendors and administration Main Stage)
Caius Giura (Administrator-coordinator)
Gabi Giura (Administration)
JAZZ BANAT FOUNDATION
The Jazz Banat Cultural Foundation is a non profit cultural Foundation founded in 2004 with the aim to help support the Gărâna Jazz Festival and promote jazz and other musical genres in the Banat region. The Foundation takes care of fundraising and is therefore essential to the survival of the Festival.
The Foundation’s committee members are Marius Giura, Gabi Giura, Ștefan Giura, Cristina Giura and Simona Giura.