An excellent and experienced team is in place to manage the various elements of the Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival.
Our team is enthusiastic and dedicated and have collectively managed and presented an array of very high-profile live music events at various locations within the Southeast of the UK.
Most notably the team manages and presents the Rye International Jazz and Blues Festival which has been established since 2012.
The team have presented many acclaimed international artistes which have include Rick Wakeman, Gregory Porter, Dionne Warwick, Jose Feliciano, Sergio Mendes, Curtis Stigers, Beverley Knight, Nigel Kennedy, Corrine Bailey Rae, Paul Carrack, Rumer, Incognito, Mica Paris and countless others.
Ian Bowden
Festival Director & Producer
Email: ian@sidmouthjazz.com
Ian is a motivated, experienced, and creative producer with over twenty-five years of experience in the music, arts, and entertainment industry.
Ian is the Festival Director of the Rye International Jazz & Blues Festival which he founded in 2012 which takes place in the beautiful and historic town of Rye in East Sussex.
The festival celebrated its tenth anniversary in August 2022 and is established as one of the best boutique music festivals in the UK.
Vicki Haxton
Logistics & Finance Director
Email: vicki@sidmouthjazz.com
Vicki has over fifteen years of events and marketing experience and combines her experience with her passion for the charitable sector.
She looks after the financial aspects of the festival and provides her knowledge and expertise in marketing and event management.
Vicki is also very hands on as are all our team and looks after ticketing and managing of events during the festival itself.
Kate Glover
Event Manager & Director
Email: kate@sidmouthjazz.com
Kate has an Advanced Diploma in Event Management and has a wealth of experience across a wide area of live music events looking after artiste and sponsors hospitality, logistics, accommodation and many other aspects.
Kate manages a specialist team and coordinates various aspects of online digital marketing.
Kate is very much an all-rounder and works closely with the festival director to implement new initiatives and programming elements.
Alex Dodd
Assistant Event & Site Manager
Email: alex@sidmouthjazz.com
Alex works closely with Ian Bowden and the core festival team bringing years of experience and his passion for live music events, production, and management.
As a former DJ and live music event producer Alex enjoys sharing his joy of music with everyone!
His love for 'All things Jazz' was born in his teens and his passion to share contemporary music was undeniable. From local live events to National DJ competitions, Alex was excited to see others enjoy the music he loved and the events he curated.
Alex has four children and is often found dragging them up mountains in The Breckon Beacons!
Kate Kermack
Event Manager
Email: katekermack@sidmouthjazz.com
Having worked in Blue Chip companies, Kate is very professional, and is always on hand to help and assist and loves being surrounded by the buzz of an event ensuring that everyone is happy.
Kate studied hospitality and event management at Sheffield Hallam University, and by day is an Executive Assistant for an accountancy firm.
Kate lives in West Sussex with her husband and her two teenage boys, plus their dog and has a passion for music, having grown up surrounded by music with her dad being a jazz pianist.
Matt Roe
Production Manager
Email: matt.roe@me.com
Matt has been mixing live music his whole adult life; from touring with bands, organising music festivals, working in stadiums to parish churches and everything in between, he loves every aspect of live music!
Matt heads up the production team for the festival making sure all the artists look and sound their very best.
Supported by a great team of technicians Matt is looking forward to another weekend of top tier entertainment in East Devon.
Simon Strange
Creative Projects & Event Manager
Email: simon@sidmouthjazz.com
Simon is an experienced music industry professional having been a professional trombone player, record producer and is currently a Doctor of Creative Arts.
His first book, Blank Canvas, has just been released, exploring innovative art school education and its impact on popular musicians.
Simon works for Bath Spa University and as an independent academic researcher, and one of Simon's passions is in collaborative creativity and scene development, and this year Simon will be managing community and educational music projects at the festival.
Jane Mills
Hospitality Manager
Jane has a wealth of hospitality and customer service experience and uses both constantly when we present our live events.
Jane focuses on looking after our headline artiste’s hospitality requirements and teams up with both Kate and Roma to make sure that our artiste’s are well and truly pampered.
Jane is always cheery, and nothing is too much bother - we love her!
Roma Turner
Hospitality Manager
Roma has lots of experience in the teaching profession and the merchant Navy and she really keeps things ‘Ship Shape’ when we present our live events!
After years sailing around the world on the QE2 she settled in Sussex, and we are so pleased sure that she did!
Roma is cool under pressure and is a real team player and loves working with people, music, and laughter.
Trevor Spink
Community Stage Manager
Trevor and his colleague Lindsay have previously managed our outdoor community stage which is very much a hands on role.
Trevor has years of experience under his belt and a has a huge passion for live music.
Trevor is also the brains behind our classy festival website and e- commerce, and also assists with elements of our digital marketing.
Lindsay Jones
Assistant Event Manager
Lindsay has more than twenty-five years' experience in print and digital media and has previously assisted Trevor in the running of the community stage.
In her spare time, Lindsay is a vocalist and can be found performing solo and with her band online and across the South East.