May in Atlanta will be filled with the sounds of jazz music, culminating in the city's 33rd Jazz Festival, back in Piedmont Park after two years in other locations.
Alonzo Craig, a program manager for the Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs, said organizers are happy to return to the 185-acre Midtown park after drought restrictions forced large events out off its popular lawn. Past jazz festivals there drew as many as 150,000 visitors.
“It really just enables us to give the best performance,” Craig said. “Any time you’re able to showcase your event in a venue that people have come to appreciate and anticipate, it’s always good.”
The full festival lineup will be announced in April, but performers will include Spyro Gyra, Stanley Clarke Band with pianist Hiromi and Grammy winner Diane Schuur with drummer and composer Jason Marsalis. Marcus Miller and featured performer Christian Scott will perform "Tutu Revisited, the Music of Miles Davis."
The free Memorial Day weekend festival is the finale of the city’s “31 Days of Jazz” series, which will include new “Beltline Jazz” events at Gordon White Park and another yet-to-be-announced location along the Beltline. A “Jazz Passport” contest was created to encourage people to attend more events, and organizers are planning a video contest that will allow fans to select a band to perform on the festival main stage.
“As we go back to Piedmont Park," Craig said, "we return to a level of world-class entertainment.”
Atlanta Jazz Festival
Noon-11 p.m. May 29-30. Free. Piedmont Park, Atlanta. www.atlantafestivals.com.
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