Hay asked to re-launch Brecon Jazz

The Arts Council of Wales has asked the Hay Festival to revive the international jazz festival in Brecon, including a possible event in 2009.

Nick Capaldi, Chief Executive for the Arts Council of Wales said: "The Hay Festival has put forward an exciting and compelling vision for the future.

"We've consistently argued that Brecon deserves a high quality festival that can stand proud as one of Wales's signature cultural events.

"Hay's imaginative artistic ideas and their 'blue chip' reputation for international festival management have convinced us that they are the right organisation to take Brecon Jazz Festival to new creative heights."

Although focusing largely on 2010, an important part of the Hay Festival's plans is a commitment to arranging a smaller-scale programme of activity in Brecon during 2009.

The ACW's initial announcement that it wanted to relaunch the festival in 2010 prompted a number of organisations to declare their intention of staging an event in 2009 to ensure continuity.

Commenting on the 2009 proposals, Nick Capaldi said: "The staging of events in Brecon during 2009 is a real added bonus.

"We're acutely aware of the Festival's contribution to the local economy in Brecon, and we know that the doubts we raised about mounting a festival this year caused widespread concern.

"Hay Festival has persuaded us that an exciting programme of activity is possible, and we’re happy to back their judgement.

"They've now got the green light to translate their plans into action, and we look forward to seeing them unveil programme details in due course."

Read more on the BBC News website.