Headliners Delbert McClinton, Brave Combo, and The Neville Brothers perform at free Denton Arts & Jazz Fest

by Minnie Payne

DENTON — Over 2,200 musicians, artists and performers draw over 200,000 fun seekers annually to enjoy culturally diverse music and art at the FREE Denton Arts & Jazz Festival to be held April 25, 26, 27 at the 20-acre Denton Quakertown Park in the heart of downtown, 321 East McKinney, Denton, two blocks northeast of downtown square, and 35 minutes from Dallas or Fort Worth.

The Denton Festival Foundation, Inc., in cooperation with the City of Denton and the Dallas/Fort Worth American Federation of Musicians, produces the festival with support from individual and corporate sponsorships. It is also funded in part with a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and the National Endowment For the Arts.

Headliners The Neville Brothers, Delbert McClinton, and Brave Combo, along with other professional and amateur jazz, blues and cross-cultural musicians, will perform on six different stages. The popular jazz students at the University of North Texas, along with community and school performers will also be featured.

Specially crafted items, one-of-a-kind paintings, and sculptures will be available from 175 juried artists and crafters. Community awareness and business opportunity booths will also be featured. Games and activities for everyone, as well as delicious food from five food courts, will add to the festivities.

Over 230 sponsors, festival foundation sponsored booths, booth space fees, and four hundred festival member volunteers make this FREE event possible.

The Children’s Art Tent is a special treat for the 12 and under set because of its hands-on creativity such as molding, drawing, sculpting, painting, printmaking, and paper and fiber arts under trained supervision.

“I think one of the most important things that the festival does is expose children at a very young age to many different mediums of art in a very structured and supervised way,” said Kevin Lechler, Assistant Director of the festival. “We’re seeing second generation in the art tent.”

On April 19-20, 1980, the Denton Festival Foundation, Inc. produced Spring Fling, the first arts festival in Denton. The festival was held at the North Texas State Fairgrounds each spring until 1989, when it moved to the Center for the Visual Arts and surrounding area. In 1990, the Denton Festival Foundation, Inc. reorganized and Spring Fling became “Denton Arts & Jazz Festival”, with a new location, Denton Civic Center Park, now known as Denton Quakertown Park, on McKinney Street.

A group called “top hands” which consists of 400 volunteer members, along with an additional approximate 300 volunteers from other non-profit groups, gives service hours to the festival by manning various food, beverage, information booths and the Children’s Art Tent. To be a member of the group an individual is required to work a 3-4 hour shift of choice during the event and pay $15 annually. A supporting member who is unavailable because of illness or other circumstances can participate by paying $30 annually. Membership offers privileges such as a party given in honor of the volunteers the night before the festival opens and reserved parking.

“The Denton Festival Foundation contributes to the community through the United Way, the universities, and various other non-profit organizations,” said Kathleen Duffy, president of the Denton Festival Foundation. “We couldn’t succeed without the support of our sponsors, top hands and many volunteers.”