Ascona Jazz Festival award is presented annually during the Jazz Ascona festival and is supported by the municipality of Ascona. Ascona Jazz Festival Ascona Jazz Festival, or Jazz Ascona, is an annual jazz festival held in Ascona, Switzerland. The 10-day festival takes place from late June to early July on the Swiss shores of Lake Maggiore and is devoted to historical styles of jazz, particularly New Orleans jazz. Under the direction of Nicolas Gilliet, Jazz Ascona features more than 200 concerts, 300 musicians, and events such as gospel choirs, jam sessions, exhibits, conferences, and films. Established in 2006, the Ascona Jazz Awards recognizes
Monterey Jazz Festival is now as diverse and vibrant as Lyons imagined it ever could be." In 2006, the festival set an attendance record of 40,000, selling out all five major concerts on the main stage arena, and in 2007, 40,000 attended the 50th Golden Celebration. The Monterey Jazz Festival is a nonprofit organization. It has donated its proceeds to musical education since its inception in 1958. The festival's scholarship program started with a $35,000 scholarship fund in 1970. As of 2012, the festival invests $600,000 annually for jazz education. Every spring, the Monterey Jazz Festival invites student musicians from across the country