Leo Schofield says short-sighted State funders means curtains for 2015.

Hobart Baroque has announced that next year’s festival has been cancelled due to a lack of State Government funding.

Following outstanding results for revenue and audience attendance at this year’s events, Festival director Leo Schofield had asked for an increase in funding to sustain growth into the future. That application it seems was turned down today.

Tasmanian Premier Will Hodgman said the State Government supported the event but that it wasn’t prepared to offer the Festival an amount that he maintained was in the region of $3 million over three years. “In the context of the current tough fiscal environment the Government determined it was appropriate to offer Baroque Festival organisers the same amount as last year, $300,000 from the state, and $100,000 from the Commonwealth,” he said.

Hobart Baroque however tell a different story. “The Tasmanian Government has announced it is reducing the funding for Hobart Baroque,” they said on their Facebook page earlier, maintaining that the government would only commit to the 2015 festival, with no commitment beyond.

Responding to Hodgman’s offer Schofield said that it was an insulting amount and that as a result he had decided to quit...