Photos and Review by Max Stewart
Atlanta Jazz Festival celebrated its 47th year as a festival in style, welcoming an array of talented jazz musicians to Piedmont Park for another memorable weekend at Piedmont Park. This year felt even more special as it also included ATL music royalty, André 3000, who has recently dipped his toes into the jazz realm by performing flute and other wind instruments. The festival is the country’s largest free jazz fest, and it has surely stayed true to its commitment to hosting exclusively jazz-centric performances. The vibe outside on Memorial Day weekend in Atlanta’s Piedmont Park could not be beat, with families setting up sections to revel in the atmosphere and fantastic musicianship.
The first day kicked off with fantastic sets from Richmond’s Butcher Brown (one of the highlights of the event), the jazz maestros Something Else! (featuring saxophonist Vincent Herring), top-tier jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, New Orleans pianist Sullivan Fortner, and the uniquely-talented New Jazz Underground. The second day had a uniquely international feel with legendary Latin-jazz performer Paquito D’Rivera, vocalist OLATUJA, French saxophonist Jacques Schwarz-Bart, the vastly-creative Luca Ciarla Trio, singer Lauren Henderson, and Afro-Cuban group OKAN. The event wrapped up on Memorial Day with soulful vocals from KELS, a high-energy performance by Justice Michael and the Passage, the ATL locals Groove Centric, a captivating performance of André 3000 and the awe-inspiring vocal acumen of Lizz Wright to top things off (her version of Neil Young’s “Old Man” was another highlight). So much elite musicianship over a three-day period.
It was clear on the final day that many were highly anticipating seeing the enigmatic and rare-to-tour André 3000. He actually celebrated his 49th birthday at the festival on the day of his performance in his hometown, only 2 years older than the festival itself. Given his royalty status in ATL and the picturesque sunset vibes in Piedmont Park, this was an all-time memorable show. His journeys into wind instruments from New Blue Sun made for an atmospheric and ethereal vibe in the warm southern sun. The recent passing of the Atlanta music icon Rico Wade also made this performance weigh even heavier. André talked about his formative years and how important Wade was to him in his career; it was an emotional but uplifting hour of improvised jams which felt like a historic moment in Atlanta music history.
The Atlanta Jazz Festival is an integral part of the musical community and we are thankful it is a part of the city’s musical tradition, and we look forward to many more years to come!
