San Jose Jazz Community

Aart de Geus is Chairman of the Board and CEO of Synopsys, Inc.
He is also the Honorary Chair of this year's festival. His welcome note emphasizes the links between arts and technology.

"Welcome to the 19th Annual Comcast San Jose Jazz Festival. As an amateur musician and the CEO of a locally-based, global technology company, I couldn't be more excited to be chosen as the honorary chair this year. Music, and jazz in particular, transcends borders. Each culture adds its special sound, rhythm, riff, but all can touch our hearts even across time and geographical barriers. You might say that jazz is a global conversation. And this year's San Jose Jazz Festival lineup reflects that wonderfully.

Jazz and technology have much in common. With each syncopated rhythm and improvisation, jazz mirrors the technical innovation that is at the heart of Silicon Valley. They both require team effort to pull together individual expertise and create a greater whole. Understanding music or technology draws on the same part of the brain, as the foundation of both is in math: measured sequences, repetitions, formulas and overall patterns. Perhaps the real beauty of both, though, is that you don't have to be an expert to benefit from either one.

People are attracted to places where they can apply their expertise, earn a good living and at the same time enjoy a rich cultural mix. San Jose and the Silicon Valley offer all this. Events like this one bring together a global community of artists and a diverse audience. It's very fitting that this world class Jazz Festival is taking place in a hub of global innovation."

 Aart de Geus,
Chairman of the Board and CEO of Synopsys, Inc.

Honorary Chair of the 19th Annual Comcast San Jose Jazz Festival