Gullah Festival | Beaufort, SC
The Gullah Festival showcases the African history and heritage of South Carolina’s Low Country Gullah culture, a blend of West African, European and Native American cultures, which became a way of life for West African slaves living on the Sea Islands off the coast of the South Carolina mainland. The annul event attracts talent from the local, regional, national, and international levels and prides itself on having something to appeal to every taste, including art and history exhibits including local choirs, jazz, storytelling, symphonic music, arts and crafts, and theater. For more information on this year’s event, please visit the festival’s official website for more information on this year’s event.
More About Gullah:
The Gullah are African Americans who live in the Low Country region of South Carolina and Georgia, which includes both the coastal plain and the Sea Islands. Historically, the Gullah region once extended north to the Cape Fear area on the coast of North Carolina and south to the vicinity of Jacksonville on the coast of Florida; but today the Gullah area is confined to the South Carolina and Georgia Low Country. The Gullah people are also called Geechee, after the Ogeechee River near Savannah, Georgia. The term Geechee is most commonly used in Charleston, South Carolina.
The Gullah are known for preserving more of their African linguistic and cultural heritage than any other African American community in the United States. They speak an English-based creole language containing many African loanwords and significant influences from African languages in grammar and sentence structure. The Gullah language is related to Jamaican Creole, Bahamian Dialect, and the Krio language of Sierra Leone in West Africa. Gullah storytelling, foodways, music, folk beliefs, crafts, farming and fishing traditions, etc. all exhibit strong influences from West and Central African cultures.
Source: Wikipedia
French Quarter Festival, New Orleans, LA
April 19, 2009 by lindsey
Filed under Festivals, New Orleans
The South’s largest free music festival, the French Quarter Festival, features 13 stages, hundreds of musicians, and a number of musical genres – international, blues, rock, swing and, of course, jazz. All other events (from the art show to the children’s activities) are free, and festival-goers can enjoy the Crescent City’s fine food during the World’s Largest Jazz Brunch, a signature event featuring authentic local cuisine from renowned area restaurants. A celebration of music and food in the French Quarter of New Orleans, the French Quarter Festival is a great prelude to New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
For more information about the event visit the official website at the French Quarter Festival.
Photos Courtesy of French Quarter Festivals, Inc (click to enlarge)
Montreal Jazz Festival | Montreal, Canada
With well over 500 concerts spread over 10-days attended by 2 million people or more, the Montreal International Jazz Festival is billed as the world’s largest, attracting some of the world’s most famous and popular artists. Not a jazz fan? No worries. Featured musical genres span from Jazz to African to ‘50s-60s R&B to Folk Blues to Reggae to Contemporary Pop. Venues range from small intimate jazz clubs and large concert halls, to cordoned-off streets and outdoor public areas often overflowing with 100,000 fans. All of the outdoors concerts are free, and there are usually at least two going on at the same time on different stages. For more information on scheduled performances, please visit the official Montreal International Jazz Festival website.
Monterey Bay Blues Festival | Monterey, CA
Dedicated to perserving this unique American art form, Monterey Bay Blues Festival is considered one of the premier blues festivals in the country, attracting not only world-renowned blues artists, but young up and coming artists of the future.
Highlights of this year’s line-up include B.B. King, Charlie Musselwhite, Susan Tedeschi, Homemade Jamz Band, Blind Boys of Alabama, Taj Mahal, James Cotton, CJ Chenier, Keb’ Mo’, Joe Bonamassa, Teeny Tucker, Volker Strifler Band, Bettye LaVette, James “Blood” Ulmer, and more. For full details of this year’s program, please visit the Monterey Bay Blues Festival website.
Hampton Jazz Festival | Hampton, VA
The three day Hampton Jazz Festival features an eclectic lineup of top blues, soul, pop and jazz talent from around the world. The star-studded roster of artists scheduled to perform at this year’s 41st anniversary event includes Galdys Knight, Jill Scott, Maze Featuring Frankie Beverly, Boney James and Jonathan Butler, Kenny G, Joss Stone, Raheem Devaugn, Kem, Dave Koz and Friends Featuring Peabo Bryson, Chrisette Michelle, and The Now and Then Trio Featuring Robert Ransom, James Hoopes and Eddie Edwards. Music lovers from far and wide come to enjoy wonderful entertainment and talent, which has become a social ritual for every Hampton Jazz Festival weekend. For more information, please visit the official website of the Hampton Jazz Festival.
