Coltrane at 90

Any time, is the right time, to celebrate a master such as Trane. Aside from the important programming aspects, we wanted to be strategic with our marketing to create a buzz. From our research, we knew Portland is a strong jazz-centric city. However, there was still an audience that, though liked jazz, were not regular concert-goers (see Stumptown Ticket). It was my recommendation to strategically choose jazz icon, John Coltrane as the main Festival theme and capitalize on Nostalgic programming with Coltrane at 90 (a celebration of what would have been John Coltrane’s 90th birthday). This theme resonated with our regular audience as well as a new audience, hipsters to be precise. Using Coltrane as our main marketing pillar, the artistic director booked a line-up of artists that would showcase Coltrane’s everlasting history on jazz.

Each year Portlander’s wait, with bated breath, for the annual PDX Jazz Festival line-up mailer. The Festival is a 10-day musical extravaganza during Black History Month. The world of jazz is almost cult-like in its following so it makes sense this piece is highly expected. I wrote all copy, created strategy for launch and collaborated with designer on architecture, form, and layout https://www.studiomclaughlin.com/