albert_dadon

After three years at the helm, Albert Dadon has resigned as artistic director of Melbourne Jazz just a week out from this year’s festival opening, citing increasing pressure from business and other creative interests.

Fellow board member Michael Tortoni, who also runs city jazz venue Bennetts Lane, has been appointed the artistic director designate for 2009 and beyond.

“I’ve been planning for a while to retire, it’s not something that came at the last minute,” said Dadon yesterday from the Queens Road office of property developer and funds manager the Ubertas Group, of which he is executive chairman.

“I thought I was going to make my last festival my last one. Then I decided to do one more, but knew I was stretching myself.”

Dadon is making room for more jazz projects beyond Melbourne. Next year, as chairman and founder of the Australian-Israel Cultural Exchange, he is planning a big Australian festival over three cities in Israel, as well as a five-day Australian jazz festival at New York’s famous Birdland jazz club.

“I’m not done with my contribution to Australian jazz,” said Dadon. “I’m more interested now in promoting Australian jazz artists and that’s why I’m keeping the Australian Jazz Awards.”

In 2003, Dadon founded the awards, or the Bells, as they are known. This year’s awards will be announced at 6pm next Tuesday, with Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard announcing the Hall of Fame inductee.

Dadon, 51, a French Moroccan, has lived in Australia for 25 years and is married to Debbie Dadon (nee Besen), a member of the powerful Besen retail family (Sussan Sportsgirl and Suzanne Grae), with whom he has three children.

Dadon was brought on to the festival board by Tortoni in 2002 and became chairman the year after. In 2005, Dadon was appointed artistic director and presented Umbria Jazz in conjunction with the director of Italy’s Umbria Jazz Festival, Carlo Pagnotta, who left after a year, claiming that he was hampered by financial constraints.

The festival was not held in 2006 due to the Commonwealth Games, but returned last year with a blockbuster line-up that included Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea and Pharoah Sanders.

Read the full article on The Age website.

Photo: Albert Dadon

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Hash Varsani is the owner of The Jazz Directory, a network of sites related to jazz, travel and everything else he loves. He also runs a selection of jazz related sites including Jazz Club Jury, a jazz club and festival review site. Check out his Google+ Profile, to see what else he's up to...probably setting up another website from one of his many passions.

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