NEW ORLEANS -
When Hurricane Katrina scattered New Orleans residents and its musicians across the country, many wondered if the best days of New Orleans music had drowned with the city. But if its music festivals are any indication, New Orleans is proving its music scene is waterproof.
New Orleans festivals are as strong as they've ever been, and at least one is bigger than before Katrina hit in 2005. French Quarter Festival, which took place in mid-April, started almost 30 years ago as a small festival for locals. But in recent years, has blossomed into a roughly $300 million moneymaker for the city. It brings in some 500,000 music fans each year, as does the upcoming New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Fest.
The French Quarter Festival is also the unofficial start of spring festival season in south Louisiana, when the revelry of Mardi Gras and chill of winter end, giving way to flip-flops, floppy hats and folding chairs toted by music lovers from across the globe.
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Jazz Fest spans two weekends, this weekend and May 3-6, at the Fair Grounds racing track, followed by New Orleans Cajun-Zydeco Festival in June, Essence Music Festival in July, Satchmo Summerfest in August and the Voodoo Music Experience in October. There are countless other festivals throughout south Louisiana packed between the months of April and October, among them Bayou Country Superfest in Baton Rouge, La., and Festival International de Louisiana in Lafayette, La.
"We're just experiencing good times," said Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews, who was handpicked to perform for President Obama and his family at the White House in February. He also worked on the album "Rebirth of New Orleans," which this year landed the Rebirth Brass Band a Grammy, making Rebirth the first New Orleans-style brass band to win the honor. Andrews and Rebirth were among the acts featured at this month's French Quarter Festival, and both are set to perform at Jazz Fest.
"For New Orleans, the music is the heartbeat of everything," Andrews said. "Now that we're on the path to becoming stronger again, everything is just looking beautiful for us."
Trumpeter Irvin Mayfield says overcoming tragedy and coming out stronger on the other end is nothing new for New Orleans. The nearly 300-year-old city has had to rebound from centuries of disasters including fires, plagues, hurricanes and most recently, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Through it all, New Orleans music has flourished and hard times have just been folded into the city's history.
Mayfield has said music continues to help him deal with the loss of his father, Irvin Mayfield Sr., who drowned when levees failed during Katrina. Since that storm, he's been one of the city's biggest champions - touting New Orleans wherever he performs and has opened two clubs under the Mayfield name.
"We all recognize we are part of a continuum," Mayfield said. "When you hear a note by Trombone Shorty, you're hearing a note by Louis Armstrong. When you hear Dr. John, you're listening to James Booker. When you listen to Ellis Marsalis, you're listening to James Black. You're listening to all the folks who have come before who may not even still be here."
A festival, says Mayfield, is one of the best ways to celebrate and present to the world the city's unique music, food, art and culture.
"A lot of our music, primarily jazz music, comes from that outside way of being, the Mardi Gras Indians, the outside culture of what we do during Carnival time," Mayfield said. "We definitely have a unique position of knowing how to do outside stuff and knowing how to do it really well."
French Quarter Festival included more than 100 Louisiana Cajun, zydeco, jazz and blues acts on 22 stages strung throughout the historic French Quarter in such places as Jackson Square, the open-air French Market and the grassy park space along the Mississippi River.
More than 8 million people visit New Orleans annually, and music is the biggest draw after Mardi Gras, particularly for international visitors, said Kelly Schulz of the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau. But there are many other attractions, including a vibrant restaurant scene, the Audubon Butterfly Garden and recently expanded World War II Museum. An increase in marketing dollars from BP to the city and state after the oil spill in 2010 has also helped boost tourism in the past two years, Schulz said.
"The city," she added, "is just really hot right now."
If You Go
• New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival: today, May 2-6; www.nojazzfest.com
• New Orleans Cajun-Zydeco Festival: June 9-10, www.jazzandheritage.org/cajun-zydeco
• Essence Music Festival: July 6-8, New Orleans, www.essence.com/festivals/2012/essence-music-festival
• Satchmo Summerfest: Aug. 2-5, New Orleans, www.fqfi.org/satchmosummerfest
• Voodoo Music Experience: Oct. 26-28, New Orleans, thevoodooexperience.com/2011
• Bayou Country Superfest: May 26-27, Baton Rouge, La., www.bayoucountrysuperfest.com
• Festival International de Louisiana: through today, Lafayette, La., www.festivalinternational.com/site.php
