Eales, Alison Caroline (2017) Bunting and blues: A critical history of Glasgow International Jazz Festival, 1987-2015. PhD thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/8026/ Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Enlighten:Theses http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] Bunting and Blues: A critical history of Glasgow International Jazz Festival, 1987-2015 Alison Caroline Eales, MLitt MA Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Culture and Creative Studies College of Arts University of Glasgow © Alison Caroline Eales, March 2017 Abstract Glasgow International Jazz Festival first took place in 1987 and has run every year since, making it the city's longest-running cultural event. One of the company's stated aims at its inception was to 'establish [Glasgow] as a major European jazz centre' (Williams, 1986b). Through a single, historical case study, the thesis attempts first to ascertain the extent to which this aim has been achieved, and second to determine the enabling and limiting factors acting upon the Festival in its attempts to effect change in its host city. The thesis finds that urban music festivals can, under the right circumstances, contribute to positive and lasting changes to the environment in which they exist. In the case of Glasgow Jazz Festival, this is evident in terms of both the physical infrastructure and educational opportunities which would be unlikely to exist today had the Festival not been their champion. A festival's ability to effect such change, however, can be severely curtailed by fluctuating levels of commitment from local and national authorities. 2 Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................... 5 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................. 6 Author's Declaration ............................................................................................ 7 Abbreviations used in this thesis ............................................................................ 8 Chapter One: Introduction .................................................................................... 9 About the Festival ......................................................................................... 11 The Festival's relationships with Glasgow ............................................................ 15 Orientation and scope of this study .................................................................... 21 Structure of this thesis ................................................................................... 23 Chapter Two: Literature Review .......................................................................... 27 Definitions: Glasgow ....................................................................................... 27 Definitions: Jazz ........................................................................................... 28 Definitions: Festival ....................................................................................... 30 Festival studies ............................................................................................. 31 Research questions ........................................................................................ 41 Chapter Three: Research Methods ........................................................................ 45 Considerations of research ethics and objectivity .................................................. 45 Archive study ............................................................................................... 46 Interviews ................................................................................................... 54 Participant observation at Glasgow Jazz Festival ................................................... 55 Participant observation at other jazz festivals ...................................................... 58 Application of research methods to the research questions ...................................... 59 Chapter Four: The Way Up (1986-1993) ................................................................. 63 Creating a new future for Glasgow ..................................................................... 64 Jazz in Glasgow ............................................................................................ 72 Establishing Glasgow Jazz Festival: who, when and why .......................................... 78 Jazz festivals in the UK ................................................................................... 83 Glasgow Jazz Festival is born ........................................................................... 86 Developments relating to live jazz in Scotland ...................................................... 92 GIJF as part of Glasgow's tourist proposition ........................................................ 100 Programming ............................................................................................... 107 Post-1990 ................................................................................................... 112 GIJF's Merchant City land grab ......................................................................... 119 Conclusion .................................................................................................. 134 Chapter Five: Money Jungle (1994-2001) .............................................................. 137 Live music in Glasgow: changes to festivals, venues and legislation ........................... 137 Financial challenges ...................................................................................... 144 Reducing GIJF's expenditure ........................................................................... 148 Increasing GIJF's income ................................................................................ 154 3 Programming ............................................................................................... 164 A new fight for The Old Fruitmarket ................................................................. 173 Conclusion .................................................................................................. 183 Chapter Six: Change of the Century (2002-2006) ..................................................... 185 Developments in Scotland ............................................................................... 185 Venues ...................................................................................................... 188 The RBS era: taking George Square ................................................................... 191 The post-RBS era .......................................................................................... 199 Visions for GIJF ............................................................................................ 202 Conclusion .................................................................................................. 209 Chapter Seven: The Third Decade (2007-2015) ....................................................... 213 Developments in Glasgow and Edinburgh ............................................................ 213 Further blues .............................................................................................. 216 (International) Jazz Festival ............................................................................ 221 (International) Jazz (etc.) Festival .................................................................... 225 Whens and wheres ........................................................................................ 228 Conclusion .................................................................................................. 231 Chapter Eight: Conclusion .................................................................................. 234 Revisiting the research questions ..................................................................... 234 Places and spaces ......................................................................................... 238 Implications for future research ....................................................................... 241 Appendix A: The Composer-in-Residence initiative .................................................. 243 Appendix B: A diary of live jazz in Glasgow, 2013 .................................................... 246 2013-09-07, Ubiquitous Chip, Ashton Lane (West End) ........................................... 246 2013-10-12, Avant Garde, King Street (Merchant City) ........................................... 247 2013-10-19, Halt Bar, Woodlands Road (West End) ............................................... 248 2013-10-20, Three Judges, Byres Road (West End) ............................................... 249 2013-10-21, St Enoch Centre, Argyle Street (City Centre) ....................................... 249 2013-11-03, The 78, Kelvinhaugh Street (West End) ............................................. 251 2013-11-10,