Festival Pass: New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

Arguably one of the most storied and legendary cities in the world, The Big Easy stretches along a sharp bend of the Mississippi River just about 100 miles north of where that mighty river flows into the Gulf of Mexico. Founded by the French, then under Spanish rule for four decades, this busiest northern port of the Gulf of Mexico was bought by the US via the 1803 Louisiana Purchase. Every part of the city – from the architecture to the cuisine to its music past and present – bears witness to centuries of cultural collisions and confluences of people.

As a city documented to be the birthplace of jazz, New Orleans is a music-lover’s mecca. The city is also the wellspring of magnificent Creole cuisine and home to annual celebrations of worldwide renown, such as its centuries-old Mardi Gras and, since 1970, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell –affectionately termed ‘Jazz Fest’ – that currently takes place over two weekends at the end of April and beginning of May.

Jazz & Heritage Stage (photo: Catalina Maria Johnson)

Founded by pioneering cultural visionary George Wein – who was also instrumental in the creation and launch of other legendary festivals such as Newport Jazz Festival (1954) and Newport Folk Festival (1959), and is often credited as the founder of the American outdoor festival – the first Jazz Fest was in April 1970. It featured performances by one of the world’s greatest gospel singers, Mahalia Jackson, and Duke Ellington.

For its first two years the festival was held in the city’s iconic Congo Square on the edge of New Orleans’ French Quarter, where in the 1700s enslaved Africans were allowed to gather, trade goods, and dance and play drums. In 1972, to accommodate the rapidly increasing number of festival goers, Jazz Fest moved to the Fair Grounds Race Course – the third oldest horse race track in the country (famous for spirited races since 1872). In 2004, Festival Productions partnered with entertainment company AEG Presents. Shell Oil became a major patron in 2005, supporting the festival following devastation caused citywide by Hurricane Katrina – that year’s edition was at risk due to heavy damage to the Fair Grounds.

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival has now taken place for 51 years, absent only during the two pandemic years. It’s a massive event, attended by 475,000 in 2022 and currently boasting 14 stages, almost all of them different-sized tents and stages set up all over the racetrack grounds, with two stages incorporated into the Grandstand structure.

Every festival has a vibe but, at Jazz Fest, each stage has its own vibe. To wander through the fairgrounds from stage to stage – there are 14 – is to delight in a moveable feast of sound. There’s the Economy Hall Tent, which features traditional local bands. There, revellers of all ages break out in spontaneous parades through the aisles, strutting their moves and holding up decorated parasols – an essential Jazz Fest accessory. Mardi Gras Indians parade throughout the fairgrounds, as well as perform on the Jazz & Heritage Stage, bearing witness to one of the most unique musical and cultural fusions. Their music and stunning regalia reveal the legacy of kinship between peoples of African and Native heritage that was forged in the hardships of colonial times. Inside the Grandstand, the Allison Miner Music Heritage Stage is another favourite spot as it offers comfy seats and an air-conditioned space, and most importantly the opportunity to hear live interviews, and often performances, with the artists, allowing for a deeper understanding of the context of their art.

Over the years, the event has showcased a glorious who’s-who of the great artists that New Orleans and Louisiana have gifted the world. To mention just a few: Professor Longhair, Fats Domino, Wynton and Branford Marsalis, Dr John, Harry Connick Jr, Allen Toussaint, the Neville Brothers.

But there is music for every kind of ear: jazz, gospel, Cajun, zydeco, blues, R&B, rock, funk, African, Caribbean, folk. And Jazz Fest’s offerings include much more than exemplary artists of each genre. At the Blues Stage I experienced not just the majestic wonder of BB King in 2013, but blistering, blues-tinged desert shredding courtesy of Nigerian Touareg singer-songwriter and guitarist Bombino in 2014.

And a stage that often specifically highlights international artists is the Cultural Exchange Pavilion: Mexico’s Son Rompe Pera, Haiti’s Lakou Mizik and Ukraine’s DakhaBrakha performed there in 2021. A significant number of mainstream and Latin luminaries have also performed at Jazz Fest. I have seen Earth, Wind & Fire perform, as well as legendary guitarist Carlos Santana and salsa icon Rubén Blades – all at Jazz Fest. Caribbean grooves are always well-represented, too, and in 2022 Cimafunk served up his trademark exuberant R&B funk on the Congo Square Stage.

It’s also a treat to explore the different craft stages, which reflect in artists’ handiwork the sonic landscape shared at Jazz Fest. The Congo Square African Marketplace, for example, features handcrafted artwork with influences from throughout the African diaspora, whereas the Louisiana Marketplace highlights pieces crafted by the state’s own artisans.

Lionel Richie (photo: Joshua Brasted)

Jazz Fest’s music extravaganza, it should also be noted, happens rain or shine and both those weather scenarios are quite possible – I’ve learned to pack a poncho and rain boots when attending. In fact, one of my happiest memories is from 2010’s edition, singing along to every tune as Dominican pop merengue and bachata superstar Juan Luis Guerra and his large entourage – easily over a dozen musicians and dancers on stage – performed for a huge steadfast crowd, despite the steady downpour, as we stood happily under umbrellas, ankle-deep in mud. Other times the local weather can be quite steamy! However, there are tents with sprinklers along their upper edges that come to the rescue and, from on high, dispense cool mists on the gathered. And there’s always the iced Rosemint tea – a festival classic – refreshing and impossible to duplicate (believe me, I’ve tried) as well as the myriad culinary delights, including pecan-crusted catfish, crawfish beignets or fresh oysters that counter any weather woes.

The next edition’s line-up for 2023 has just been revealed, and after attending various Jazz Fests over the decades, the musical wonders I have experienced are far too many to enumerate. Readers can rest assured 2023’s event will prove no different.

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2023 will take place April 28-May 7: www.nojazzfest.com

This article originally appeared in the January 2023 issue of Songlines magazine. Never miss an issue – subscribe today