By Judy Bergeron
For the ninth year, New Orleans is celebrating Satchmo.
The annual Satchmo SummerFest honoring native son and jazz great Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong will run Thursday, July 30, through Sunday, Aug. 2, at the Louisiana State Museum’s Old U.S. Mint in the French Quarter.
The free, family-friendly festival sponsored by French Quarter Festivals, Inc., celebrates Armstrong’s life, music and legacy.
The festival is multi-faceted, with music on one indoor and two outdoor stages, seminars, movies, exhibits and a swing “dance off” contest.
The keynote speaker will be Robert O’Meally, a professor at Columbia University, who will talk at 6:30 p.m. Thursday on the Mint’s second floor. While there, visitors can catch the photo exhibit Jam Session: America’s Jazz Ambassadors Embrace the World.
Seminars are scheduled on Friday at the State Museum’s Presbytere, and move to the Mint on Saturday and Sunday. A “Happy Birthday, Satchmo!” birthday party is at 10:30 a.m. Friday in Armstrong Park.
The music stages have been renamed in honor of Armstrong and will be called “Back o’ Town,” “Red Beans and Ricely Yours” and “Cornet Chop Suey.” The stages will offer a mix of traditional/contemporary and brass band music on Saturday and Sunday.
The Lindy Hoppers swing dancers will host the “dance off” at 12:30 p.m. Saturday on Barracks Street, near the “Red Beans and Ricely Yours” stage. Swing dancers from eight states will perform.
The children’s area moves to the second floor of the Mint this year. Kids can watch an assortment of Armstrong cartoon and other historic, family-friendly shows and specials. Families can also create their own Armstrong-inspired collages noon- 5 p.m.
There will be no shortage of food choices at this year’s festival, from Vietnamese fare to traditional Louisiana dishes.
The festival is scheduled each year to coincide with Armstrong’s birthdate, Aug. 4, 1901. Armstrong died in 1971.
For more information, call (504) 522-5730 or go to http://www.fqfi.org.
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