---
title: "Ottawa Jazz Festival asks community for help after TD Bank pulled its sponsorship"
description: "The Ottawa Jazz Festival has launched a fundraising campaign called Keep the Music Playing, as it faces $400,000 in debt after its major sponsor, TD Bank, withdrew."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/on/ottawa-2026/news/ottawa-jazz-festival-fundraising-november-2026"
last_updated: "2026-11-14T20:55:35.930Z"
---

The Ottawa Jazz Festival has launched a public fundraising campaign after its major sponsor, TD Bank, withdrew and production costs rose, leaving the 46-year-old festival carrying $400,000 in debt, CBC reported on November 14.

The campaign is called Keep the Music Playing. The festival's own page describes "significant financial pressures" from rising production costs and "an increasingly challenging funding environment." It says it has reimagined how it operates to become financially sustainable, but cannot do that without community support.

## What the festival is asking for

The festival is accepting donations at five tiers, starting at $1. Tax receipts are issued for donations of $20 or more.

According to the festival's donate page, the tiers are:

- Friend of the Festival: $1 to $500
- Festival Builder: $501 to $1,250
- Festival Leader: $1,251 to $5,500
- Supporting Act: $5,501 to $20,000
- The Headliner: $20,001 or more

The festival did not state a specific dollar target on its campaign page or a deadline to reach it.

## What TD Bank's exit means

CBC reported that TD Bank, described as a major sponsor of the festival, pulled out at the same time the festival's production costs began to rise. The two changes together left the festival with $400,000 in debt, CBC's Chuck Tinte wrote.

The festival's statement does not name TD Bank by name or give a reason for the withdrawal. It says only that "the community institutions that make live music possible cannot rely on ticket sales alone."

## About the festival

The Ottawa Jazz Festival has run for 46 years as of 2026. Its most recent edition ran June 18 to 28, 2026, in Ottawa, with CF Rideau Centre listed as title sponsor. It presents Canadian and international artists each year.

Ottawa residents who want to help can donate at ottawajazzfestival.com/donate. The campaign page has no stated deadline.

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