. . . And All That Jazz: The Music New Orleans Gave the World

This year’s 10-day jazz marathon starts Saturday April 27 and runs through Sunday May 6 at the Fair Grounds horse race track located about 20 minutes from downtown.

The top acts are typically booked for Saturday May 5, which will of course draw large crowds. The locals recommend going the preceding Thursday or Friday to see local acts and avoid the lines at the food and craft booths.

With several acts performing throughout the day, you can easily be entertained from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Between acts festival goers can taste such Louisiana delights as shrimp étouffée, crawfish salad, seafood gumbo, po-boy sandwiches (two slices of French bread filled with shrimp, oysters, or soft-shell crabs), crawfish sausage, and crabmeat.

According to Mancuso, the food can be pricey so bring plenty of cash.

Jazz Fest goers might consider buying tickets in advance through TicketMaster at (800) 488-5252 outside Louisiana and (504) 522-4786 within the state. The fee is $12 per adult and $1.50 per child compared with $17 per adult and $2 per child at the gate.

Organizers recommend using the Jazz Fest Express bus for getting to the Fair Grounds and back. The bus provides continuous service between 10:45 a.m. and 8 p.m. from the Superdome and major downtown hotels. Tickets cost $10 per day for unlimited roundtrip transportation and can be purchased in advance by calling (888) 670-4638. Otherwise, look for the local New Orleans tour desk in major downtown hotels.

When in New Orleans, do what the locals do: Rest up a bit from Jazz Fest and then head out to dinner before going to one of the local clubs for more jazz or rhythm and blues or Zydeco (a type of Cajun music). Mancuso recommends music venues such as Snug Harbor at 626 Frenchmen Street, one block from the French Quarter (504) 949-0696; Tipitina’s at 501 Napolean Avenue in Uptown, (504) 891-8477; and the House of Blues at 225 Decatur Street in the French Quarter (504) 529-2583. Snug Harbor features mainly jazz with such local headliners as Ellis Marsalis and Charmaine Neville. The club seats 90 people compared with about 1,000 people in the House of Blues.

Snug Harbor tickets run between $10 and $25 depending on the act. Tipitina’s features name shows and local bands that play everything from jazz to Zydeco to funk. Tickets run between $5 and $12. “Homegrown” acts play on Tuesday nights and admission is free.

The House of Blues features a similar range of music with tickets running between $10 and $40 depending on the act.

Because the shows sell out around Jazz Fest, club managers recommend buying tickets in advance by calling the clubs directly.