By: Joseph A. Rosen
Music fans are lining up to grab tickets for this year’s New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (April 29 through May 8, 2011) with its feast of hot performers. The line-up this year features some of the top music legends in the world, including: Jeff Beck and Robert Plant and his Band of Joy. The festival has been a hallmark New Orleans event since it began in April 1970, when it featured the legendary Mahalia Jackson and inimitable Duke Ellington. Since that time, Jazzfest has drawn crowds with the likes of Miles Davis, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin, B.B. King, Sarah Vaughan, Joni Mitchell, and a vast host of other music legends from all music genres.
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival will delight audiences this year as it has for forty-one years in its quest to honor and celebrate the culture of Louisiana and the people of New Orleans. And, as one of the top music festivals in the world, the sponsors of the event always delight the hard-core fans of jazz, blues, and other music styles by offering up an amazing array of world-class performers.
I’ve had the distinct honor of being offered opportunities to photograph the festival for many years and thought that Guitar International’s music lovers would enjoy checking out last year’s Jazzfest 2010 and whet their appetites for Jazzfest 2011 that launches this week.
Warren Haynes of Gov’t Mule
Steve Martin with the Steep Canyon Rangers singing “Atheists Don’t Have No Songs.”
Jimmy Herring of Widespread Panic
Elvis Costello with the Sugarcanes.
Wife and husband team Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks
Rocker Jeff Beck
Local legend Classie Ballou performs with his Family Band
Classie Ballou’s grandson drums with the Family Band
Ivan Neville with his band Dumpstafunk!!
Amanda Shaw with her band The Cute Guys.
Sunpie Barnes
Exuberant Mardis Gras Indian
Not so exuberant Mardis Gras Indian
Matt Abts of Gov’t Mule
Jorgen Carlson and Danny Louis of Gov’t Mule
CJ Chenier, son of Clifton Chenier and leader of his Red Hot Band.
CJ Chenier’s bling.
John Bell of Widespread Panic
JoJo Herman of Widespread Panic
Singer songwriter Martin Sexton
John Popper of Blues Traveler
Stanley Dural, Jr. AKA: Buckwheat Zydeco
New Orleans’ bluesy Eric Lindell
John Mooney with his band Bluesiana
Alan Toussaint with his Jazzity Project
The “Braille Blues daddy” Bryan Lee
New Orleans own Johnny Sansone
Blues rocker Anders Osborne with Stanton Moore on drums
Jazz Drummer Brian Blade
Baton Rouge native Chris Thomas King
A young fan takes a break
Aaron Neville sings in the Gospel Tent
Lafayette Louisiana’s slide guitar wizard Sonny Landreth
The late great Teena Marie
Blues Rocker Kenny Wayne Shepard
New Olreans’ own rising and shining star, Trombone Shorty
The Soul Queen of New Orleans, Irma Thomas
Chicago Bluesman Jimmy Johnson
Soul legend, Clarence Carter
Spontaneous Second-line parade in the Blues tent.
Big voiced Luther Kent
John “Boogie” Long of Luther Kent’s band
Blues Legend B.B. King
Blues Legend B.B. King
About Joseph A. Rosen
Joseph A. Rosen is a New York City based professional photographer whose work has appeared in Time,Newsweek, The New York Times, Sports Illustrated and more. Corporate clients include JP Morgan/Chase Bank, American Express, Nordstrom, PepsiCo and IBM. He has been a working and exhibiting professional since prior to his graduation from Carnegie-Mellon University with a degree in Photography and Related Studies. His music clients are some of the greatest names in the industry from blues, R&B, soul, rock, Cajun/Zydeco, and jazz, the record companies for whom they record and their management groups. Joe has received the prestigious Keeping the Blues Alive in Photography and Art Award for 2002. The award is presented by the Blues Foundation of Memphis to an artist who has created a body of work which has brought the Blues to the public though photography and “made a significant contribution to the blues world.” For more information about Joseph A. Rosen, please visit www.josepharosen.com.
All photos in this article – Copyright Joseph A. Rosen 2010.
