The much anticipated Montreux Jazz Festival Atlanta, presented by the City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs kicks off this Friday, September 1st until Sunday, September 3 at Underground Atlanta.
On Sunday Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin will join Camille Russell Love and Stephanie-Aloysia Moretti for the unveiling of three new statues donated by music lover and long-time supporter of the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, Barbara J. Riley. The generous artistic gift in celebration of the outstanding 20 year relationship between the Office of Cultural Affairs and the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland will be donated to the City.
Riley is donating the bronze busts of B.B. King and Ray Charles, identical to the ones that appear in Montreux, Switzerland, and a third bust of Willie Nelson. The pieces were created by Marco Zeno, a world renowned European sculptor. As a close friend to Montreux Jazz Festival founder Claude Nobs, Riley has traveled to Montreux the past eight years to experience the festival firsthand. The commissioned statues commemorate the long-standing relationship between the Atlanta and Switzerland festivals.
The FREE Montreux Jazz Festival Atlanta will feature diverse performers from urban rock, blues, R&B to jazz and funk music on stages on Upper Alabama Street, in Kenny’s Alley and inside Underground Atlanta. The festivities will also include an interactive Kid’s Zone, arts & crafts and food vendors. The festival hours are 6:00 pm–9:00 pm on Friday and continue on Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm.
After hours, music will continue at clubs throughout Underground Atlanta during the Montreux Club Crawl from 9:00 pm-4:00 am. Tickets for the Club Crawl range from $10 to $15 per club.
ABOUT THE MONTREUX JAZZ FESTIVAL ATLANTA As a festival partner of the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival in Montreux, Switzerland, the Montreux Jazz Festival Atlanta has been a free Labor Day tradition in Piedmont Park since it’s inception in 1988 and was presented for 14 years by the City of Atlanta and the Office of Cultural Affairs until budget reductions necessitated a suspension of the festival in 2002. The Montreux Jazz Festival, in its 40th year of presenting the most famous musical event in the world, seeks to share the experience of the Montreux Jazz Festival by partnering with countries across the world to share in its rich tradition. The City of Atlanta has been selected as the only North American city to play host to a Montreux Music Festival.
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For more information about this and services of the City of Atlanta visit our website at www.atlantaga.gov or watch City Channel 26.