Issue Articles — Features
Your Very Own Dream: Clay Parker and Jodi James go electric
Clay Parker and Jodi James are making their third Jazz Fest appearance this year. The Baton Rouge singer-songwriters first performed at the Festival in 2018, a memorable debut for the musical duo that’s a couple in real life.
Jourdan Thibodeaux – Preservation For A New Generation
Jourdan Thibodeaux apologizes for his appearance as he signs on to a video chat. He’s taking a break from work, he explains, and he’s covered in sweat and sawdust. “We got a new business out here,” he explains, looking around at the construction he’s been doing. “Cypress Cove Landing.”
The Colombian Connection: Jazz Fest celebrates Columbia with 17 bands.
The musicians will put a brilliant spotlight on the rich heritage of Colombia across most of the stages and inside the Expedia Cultural Exchange Pavilion. It is the largest celebration of a single country in the long history of the Jazz Fest’s annual cultural exchange. Here’s brief description of some of these great musicians and bands.
Donald Harrison Jr.: A Conduit of The Universe
Donald Harrison Jr. is an essential link between modern jazz and the music and culture of the streets. He is without question a voracious thinker, actively working to expand sonic bandwidth. In doing so he’s become a guru to some of the finest young musicians out there. Harrison is an American treasure and a New Orleans native who was more than willing to go deep about his life and career.
Forgotten Souls Honor Tradition and Memory
Ever since the jazzman Danny Barker returned to New Orleans in the mid-‘60s after a successful career in New York, the once-moribund brass band culture in his hometown has reinvented itself with each new generation of musicians. When Barker discovered there were very few young musicians playing the old songs in the old style, he almost singlehandedly was responsible for reviving the tradition with the Fairview Baptist Church Marching Band.
Gogo Jewelry: Celebrating 20 Years at Jazz Fest
Bold. Bright. Geometric. There’s no mistaking a piece of Gogo jewelry, handcrafted by Gogo Bordeling, who’s celebrating her 20th anniversary as a Contemporary Crafts vendor. And if you’ve been to Jazz Fest before, chances are you already own a piece or two.
Gregg Hill is Walking Down the Street Smiling
For several years, Gregg Hill has leisurely walked from his stately Bayou St. John home on Moss Street across the historic Magnolia Bridge to the nearby Fair Grounds where Jazz Fest is held—as an attendee.
Susanne Ortner: From Germany to New Orleans to Brazil
Susanne Ortner, a clarinetist from Germany who’s lived in New Orleans since 2017, makes her Jazz Fest debut. She’s performing with Susanne Ortner’s Macumba, a small ensemble that plays Brazilian choro music. A distinctive musical style that emerged from Rio de Janeiro in the late 19th century, choro is considered the father of samba and grandfather of bossa nova.
Kevin Ray Clark talks about Al Hirt “Jumbo”
By all rights Al Hirt should be remembered as one of the New Orleans musical giants. He had the trifecta of serious jazz chops, mainstream pop success, and a larger-than-life personality.
Take A Chance: Brian Blade behind the drums
Shreveport, Louisiana native Brian Blade, who folks in New Orleans nonetheless like to call their own, is simply just a spiritually-attuned, monster drummer with a wonderfully infectious laugh.
