The Montmartre Jazz House is unable to cope with the corona crisis due to restrictions.
The historic venue Jazzhus Montmartre in Copenhagen cancels all concerts.
It informs the jazz house in a press release and justifies the decision with the restrictions that the corona crisis has brought.
– We regret the situation, but it is not possible for us to run the house at the desired level with the income from only 35 tickets against the usual 85 seats, says Montmartre’s CEO, Jonas Dyrved.
– We had hoped that the state would come up with a larger aid package that could avert the situation, but the agreement just concluded is too little and too late. It is sad in light of the fact that Montmartre set a record in visitor numbers up to the corona crisis.
The press release does not directly state that Montmartre will close, but that the concerts have been canceled “with a view to closing down the legendary jazz club”, and that the decision will take effect with immediate effect, so “Montmartre has thus held its last concert on Saturday, the August 29, 2020 “.
Managers have been fired
At the same time, the house’s director and music director have been laid off, and the house’s hourly paid servants, settlers and sound technicians have been sent home, and the lease has been laid off.
Due to a ceiling of 35 spectators per concert, the operation can not continue.
Support and funding from 2021 onwards is insufficient to survive the corona crisis, it appears.
This is happening despite the fact that the City of Copenhagen earlier this year nominated Jazzhus Montmartre to become a regional venue with the prospect of both state and municipal support.
It would have saved the club in the corona crisis and secured the venue in the long run, but the Statens Kunstfonds Project Support Committee for Music chose to ignore the recommendation, says chairman of the board of Jazzhus Montmartre Michael Christiansen.
– It is a sad situation for Danish cultural history, for Copenhagen and for hundreds of artists who lose an important stage, says the chairman of the board.
– But we can not defend to continue the operation, unless someone in the 11th hour comes to our rescue. My phone is open. But in relation to our responsibility in the given situation, we now need to take steps to shut down the house properly.
Opened in 1959
The house is a non-profit institution and needs about 2.4 million kroner annually in grants from the state, municipality and foundations to run around.
Even though the municipality has granted its party, there is not enough support from the state.
Montmartre has annually held about 230 concerts for over 12,000 audiences and with more than 600 performing musicians on stage.
The Jazz Club has roots dating back to 1959 and has held thousands of concerts. Stars like Roger Moore and Stevie Wonder have set foot in the old club.
