KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana |French Quarter Fest starts music festival season
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Associated Press - April 17, 2009 5:54 AM ET
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The French Quarter Festival kicks off Friday with performances by Big Sam's Funky Nation and a host of other New Orleans brass bands.
It is 1 of the largest free music festivals in the region. Last year it drew more than 435,000 attendees.
This year, more than a dozen stages, set up along the Mississippi River and in the French Quarter, will feature jazz, blues, Cajun and zydeco. The lineup includes blues singer Marva Wright, trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews.
This is the first in a string of spring and summer music festivals in Louisiana. The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and Festival International de Louisiane in Lafayette begin later this month. The Swamp Pop Music Festival in Gonzales and Essence Music Festival are in July.
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