Written by | Ray Cornelius
The Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs is proud to present The Atlanta Jazz Festival—May 25-26 at historic Piedmont Park from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
The Atlanta Jazz Fesitval is regarded as one of the country’s largest free jazz festivals and invites music lovers from around the region to be immersed in jazz music culture. Founded by the late Maynard Jackson, The Atlanta Jazz Festival promotes the art form that originated in the south. It also celebrates jazz legends and features up-and-coming jazz performers in venues throughout the metro area.
This year’s lineup includes a variety of jazz sounds and stylings that will delight more than 150,000 attendees on the three newly named stages: The Meadow Stage(formerly the Main Stage), Oak Hill Stage (formerly The Contemporary Jazz Stage) and Park Drive Stage ( formerly the Next Generation Stage)
SATURDAY MAY 25
Park Drive Stage:
12:30 p.m. Avery Dixon, Saxophone Extraordinaire
2:30 p.m. Joel Ross ‘Good Vibes’
4:30 p.m. Christian Sands
6:30 p.m. Makaya McCraven
Oak Hill Stage:
1:30 p.m. Ofer Assaf Quartet
3:30 p.m. Delfeayo Marsalis
5:30 p.m. Takuya Kuroda
7:30 p.m. Richard Bona
Meadow Stage:
1 p.m. Alicia Olatuja
3 p.m. Stefon Harris + Blackout
5 p.m. Rhonda Ross & Rodney Kendrick
7 p.m. Marcus Strickland ‘Twi-Life’ feat. Pharoahe Monche
9 p.m. Lizz Wright
SUNDAY MAY 26
Park Drive Stage:
12:30 p.m. Rialto Jazz for Kids
2:30 p.m. Nicole Banks Long
4:30 p.m. Slim Gambill
6:30 p.m. Michael Mayo
Oak Hill Stage:
1:30 p.m. The Kenny Banks, Jr. Trio
3:30 p.m. OKCello
5:30 p.m Freelance
7:30 p.m. Kandace Springs
Meadow Stage:
1 p.m. The Milkshake Quintet
3 p.m. Alex Lattimore
5 p.m. Gary Motley
7 p.m. Rhonda Thomas
9 p.m. The Royal Krunk Jazz Orkestra
In addition to the Festival, the Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs will host 31 Days of Jazz events throughout the metro area beginning this week. Most of the events are free and will occur in a variety of locations including various MARTA stations, neighborhood parks and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
Stay tuned to RC as I’ll be sharing more information with you in the coming weeks.
