Address
90 Fort Adams Drive
Newport
Rhode Island
Eastern
02840
United States
The Newport Jazz Festival is a music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. It was established in 1954 by socialite Elaine Lorillard, who, together with husband Louis Lorillard, financed the festival for many years. The couple hired jazz impresario George Wein to organize the event to help them bring jazz to the resort town.
Most of the early festivals were broadcast on Voice of America radio, and many performances were recorded and have been issued by various record labels.
In 1972, the Newport Jazz Festival moved to New York City. In 1981, it became a two-site festival when it returned to Newport while continuing in New York. From 1984 to 2008, the festival was known as the JVC Jazz Festival; however, during the economic downturn of 2009, JVC ceased its support of the festival and was replaced by CareFusion. As of 2012, the festival is sponsored by Natixis Global Asset Management.
The festival is hosted in Newport at Fort Adams State Park. It is often held in the same month as its sister festival, the Newport Folk Festival.