The Detroit Jazz Festival Finds a Way
Back in April, shortly after the shutdown of just about every damn thing had begun across the nation, the Detroit Jazz Festival announced its 2020 lineup for Labor Day weekend. Chris Collins, president and artistic director of the Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation, soon received pointed queries and criticism from journalists and bloggers, along the lines of “How could you make an announcement like that when every other event is canceling or postponing?” In a recent JazzTimes interview, Collins said he had an immediate gut reaction: “Hope! Because we all saw what was coming and if this thing keeps going, we’re in a real mess.”
Of course, “this thing”—the pandemic—did keep going and remains a mess. Undaunted, Collins and his team pivoted to
