Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues 30 Years charts the rise of the event

But the international jazz fraternity already knew Wangaratta as the place that hosted one of the most discerning and cutting-edge jazz festivals in the world.

Jazz critic Adrian Jackson OAM, who was Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues artistic director from 1990 to 2017, said the festival had certainly put the regional city on the map.

Jackson, himself, wasn't sure the idea would fly back in 1989.

"I thought the festival was a crazy idea," he said.

"There was no history of jazz being played in Wangaratta, which was situated between the two major centres for jazz in Melbourne and Sydney.

"In the first year it did lose a heap of money but we had a semi-reasonable attendance of about 2500.

"Everything went really well; there was great spirit among the musicians and the audiences.

"Sydney Morning Herald jazz reviewer John Clare gave it a great review and any doubting Thomases on the council were won over!"

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Jackson said the festival went from strength to strength, with the blues program added in 1994.

"It increased every year until 1999-2000 when we hit a plateau because we couldn't sell any more tickets because there wasn't enough accommodation," Jackson said.

"We introduced the Home Stay Program which enabled us to further increase ticket sales and made the festival an even better experience for visitors.

"Someone told me that by the third year of the Home Stay Program, their hosts no longer even charged them!"

Featuring more than 200 jazz and blues artists from the US, the UK, Europe, Asia and Australia each year, the festival has won numerous tourism and sponsorship awards.

Jackson and his sister Andra Jackson, a jazz critic and journalist, have delved into the history of the festival in their new book, Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues 30 years.

Officially launched in Melbourne on March 10, Wangaratta Library will host a regional launch on April 7. Bookings are preferred.

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