Predictions for a "strong probability of rain" were greatly exaggerated
Dark clouds offered many silver linings to festival-goers on the second Friday of the 2023 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell—managable crowds, shorter lines, and room to dance—and ultimately no rain—made for an enjoyable experience for performers and fans alike. It also presented opportunities to navigate the expansive Fair Grounds facility to discover many smaller stages, craftsmen, and other aspects of this mosaic of music often unseen when working through larger lines of attendees. And paraphrasing Robert Frost's oft quoted poem The Road Not Taken, it made all the difference.
CONTEMPORARY CRAFTS
When the gates opened, Cafe du Monde's coffee and beignets called out from Heritage Square Food area between WWOZ Jazz and Blues Tents, already spilling out rich melodies by the Delgato College Jazz Band and Marc Stone respectively to start the day. For coffee lovers, the French Quarter staple is only one of two locales for some authentic cafe au lait caffine infusions, the other being New Orleans Coffee Co. across the track in the infield's Food Area 2.
Near Cafe du Monde's stand, the Contemporary Crafts area enticed people to meander through the booths with artisans showcasing everything from clothing and jewelry to glasswork and visual arts. Among them, Shani Solomon Scarlett Silk Skirts enticed with colorful designs beyond skirts. Her silk garments are screened by hand, each being their own work of art.
Christine Ledoux's Mosaic Bayou work sparked despite grey skies with brilliant tiles of color. An eclectic mix of subjects, her work included innovative takes on mandolins and other musical instruments and Mexican-styled skulls, appropriate for Jazz Fest on Cinco de Mayo.
CULTURAL EXCHANGE PAVILLION
Don Remix was standing on a step stool to paint the upper part of a billboard-size creation outside the Cultural Exchange Pavilion where Tambuyé was performing. Featuring the culture of Puerto Rico at Jazz Fest this year in art as well as music, the San Juan-native muralist's work is a fusion of cultural awareness with street art. The result is colorfully vibrant works, evoking what some might describe as soulful refined graffiti with heart. With work exhibited in major cities as well as galleries and museums worldwide, Remix's work-in-progress represented his homeland's relationship with music.
LOUISIANA FOLKLIFE VILLAGE
The Savoy Family Cajun Band began a lively set at the Sheraton New Orleans Fais Do Do Stage within easy listening distance of the Louisiana Folklife Village. The area is an eye-opening experience of life beyond the Big Easy's city limits, and especially for first-time visitors to Louisiana.
Kevin Dunn's Social Aid & Pleasure Club Crafts and Traditions featured pretty handmade Mardi Gras Indian costumes. Dunn takes pride in his work and highlighting hidden nods to the faith-based reverence in the work as a culture bearer.
The Architectural Trades tent featured Master Building Arts in Louisiana Decorative Painting & Restoration such as Diane Killeen's Painting Studio. With impressive work, including emulating historical drapery to create a five-layered stencil design that continued along the surround walls for a hotel in Evanston, IL. Killeen was in demand with fans intrigued with her services. Her knowledgeable on-site team, Kate Delaney and Darcy Flinn, also fielded questions and gave demos while delighting children (and adults) with gold-foil tattoos.
Blacksmith Russ Forshag mesmerized spectators. But his captivated onlookers did not gather for the flashy demonstrations of sparks—although there was some of that—but rather for his deliberate, patient process, often times sitting down while waiting for smoldering metalwork to cool between painstakiigly precise steps.
GRANDSTAND
About the time Trumpet Mafia lined up to blow their audience away with their fat horns in the WWOZ Jazz Tent, Francofonte Catering's handmade ice cream sandwich was not to be missed. The Fior di Latte between chocolate cookies is well worth the $8 price, if someone can actually get their sweet tooth around the super-stacked treat. A Jazz Fest mainstay for years, a second location outside the grandstand may save a walk for those heading inside to see a cooking demonstrations at the Food Heritage Stage.
Ozzie Louis Mendoza Diaz of Fowlmouth NOLA prepared Arroz con Gradules (rice with pigeon peas) in front of enthralled foodies. In keeping with jazz Fest's celebration of Puerto Rico, Chef Mendoza Diaz's popular pop-up has been a sensation with patrons. His skilled fusion of Puerto Rican street food with East Asian influences is a tasty statement for his "love for all things Japan to introduce a fresh take on Puerto Rican flavors."
The ground-floor concourse in the west wing of the grandstand was lined with an exhibit of Allons a Louisiana — 60 Years of Arhoolie in Lousiana. The show celebrates archive of Cajun and Zydeco's introduction to the world through the eyes and ears of Arhoolie Records' founder, Chris Strachwitz. He carefully documented the pelican state's music, "from traditional jazz in New Orleans and deep blues in Baton Rouge to the wonderful Cajun, Creole, and Zydeco music of Southwest Louisiana" that Strachwitz recorded and released through his recordings.
Other exhibits throughout the grandstand building include New Orleans Stomp: The Centennial of King Oliver's Groundbreaking 1923 Recordings and Backstreet Cultural Museum: A Powerhouse of Knowledge.
In the stadium-stepped seating overlooking the festival infield activity, Alynda Segarra was on the Allison Miner Music Heritage Stage, used exclusively for interviews. Interviewed by Lily Keber, audience participation and questions for the featured guests was encouraged. The NYC-born singer and songwriter turned hobo-band member shared stories from her train-hopping teen years from releasing her first album with Hurray for the Riff Raff label to her discovery and adoration for New Orleans.
"I love that New Orleans isn't trying to be New York," Segarra said. "I'm from the Bronx, and it's like, 'yeah, we don't care.'"
With a foundation in slam poetry readings at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in Manhattan's East Village, her music evolved though life experiences, sharing how she was most recently impacted by her father's death and how it gave her a deeper appreciation of New Orleans culture.
""I mean, parades for funerals," she said. "Grief is celebrated here as a healing tool. Coming here before Katrina, I witnessed death and tried to carry people with my music. But my dad dying in February was humbling, and now I'm asking others to help me carry this."
KIDS TENT
Across the race track's finish line, the Kids Tent was an unexpected surprise. The tent is specifically for young performers and young patrons, but the quality of the musicians represents the highest levels of music and is every bit as entertaining as any of the other stages. Because of this, the attention of the juvenile audiences is met with adult attentiveness in return.
Without a cube schedule, the tent was nonetheless packed with performers, and worth wandering into to experience the talent on stage. Similar to Trombone Shorty being less than three feet tall when he began performing with the big boys decades ago, the ages of these musicians belies their abilities. T
Walking in, the classical music of Sergei Prokofiev was unexpected as The Electric Yat Quartet under the direction of André Bohren expertly performed Peter and the Wolf. As often performed, the piece was accompanied by Bohren's narration to verbally illustrate Prokofiev's melodic storyline.
Even without a set schedule, it would be an error in judgment to assume the Kids Tent was only for and fledgling students and supportive parents. The tent's next-gen talent are already accomplished musicians with nowhere to go but up. True music lovers should make the effort to catch tomorrow's superstars here before they command high ticket prices at the Smoothie King Center a decade form now.
AFRICAN MARKETPLACE
The Soul Rebels' music from Congo Square Stage entertained music lovers shopping in the African Marketplace. Among them, African Art Miami out of Albany, GA offered handcrafted musical instruments and intricate carvings. Surprisingly affordable, a large wooden sculpture depicting two figures was priced at $1,200 while a 4-foot long balafon made of wood and coconuts was priced at $350
Nearby, Francois Djenohan from New York City displayed African art. With his daughter, they manned the booth overflowing with traditional ceremonial masks and other authentic decor.
FESTIVAL STAGE
While a Festival Stage closer is not usually considered off the beaten path, there was an unexpectedly large representation in the crowd watching Jon Batiste seemingly unaware of his reputation or lexicon of music. Many locals and visitors alike were blissfully ignorant that he performed live, or in some cases "had no idea who he was" despite the Grammy and Oscar award-winner's prolific catalog—much less his family's musical legacy in New Orleans. It did not stay that way for long.
The St. Augustine High School graduate took the stage wearing his alma mater's signature Purple Knights purple and gold t-shirt. But his pride and love for his city did not stop there. After kicking off the show by promising "This is not a concert. This is a spiritual practice," he brought out the recent Grammy award-winning St. Aug's Marching 100 to share the experience of performing on Jazz Fest's biggest stage.
"There is no place like home to me," the composer said before launching into a rendition of "Freedom" that had every hand in the air, and most feet dancing.
Some times the lesser known paths are the most fun. Batiste proved that to one and all.
