Chicago’s Jazz Festival promotes appreciation for all forms of jazz music.
Music Marathon
with the city’s legacy of musical
innovation, Chicago’s festival scene
shines a spotlight on other genres,
too. The music marathon kicks off
late May with the Chicago Gospel
Music Festival, marking its 30th year.
The weekend event offers a lineup of
inspirational local, national and international talent. Last year an appearance by Grammy Award-winner Tye
Tribbett, who has performed with
everyone from Elton John to Gloria
Estefan, drew rave reviews.
The wail of a saxophone can be
heard during one of the final music
events of the summer, when Labor
Day weekend brings the Chicago Jazz
Festival to Millennium Park and the
Cultural Center. Programmed by the
Jazz Institute of Chicago, former events
have showcased acts like the Sun Ra
Arkestra and Ari Brown Quintet.
While many of Chicago’s music festivals are centered on specific genres,
Lollapalooza offers a refreshing variety: Last year’s headliners included
hip-hop duo Outkast and alternative
rock band Kings of Leon. The event’s
roots date to the early 1990s when it
was established as a touring festival; in
2005 it became an annual destination
event for the Windy City. This year it
takes place in Grant Park from July 31
through Aug. 2.
Chicago and music go together like
blues icon Muddy Waters and his
Telecaster guitar. The first Chicago
Blues Festival, held in 1984, celebrated Waters’ memory. This year,
more than half a million fans will
head to Grant Park in June for the
festival, which is the largest free event
devoted to the genre in the world.
“Chicago has long been a mecca for
blues musicians,” Boone says. “So of
course people from all over the world
make a pilgrimage here to be a part of
this celebration.” Previous performers
have included musicians Ray Charles
and B.B. King.
While the blues are most identified
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Festival Flavor
Lollapalooza has an increasingly large
emphasis on food—a move that makes
Tye Tribbett performs during the
2014 Chicago Gospel Music Festival.
sense, according to celebrity chef
Graham Elliot, who works with the
festival. “Chicago has long been on the
forefront of the music scene,” he says.
“And we’ve [become] one of the most
exciting food cities in America.”
In fact, this May, the James Beard
Foundation will leave New York for the
first time to host its Awards Gala in
Chicago, an exciting acknowledgment
that this city of avant-garde chefs and
roughly two dozen Michelin-starred
restaurants has long surpassed its
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: PATRICK PYSZKA, COURTESY OF CITY OF CHICAGO; COURTESY OF CHOOSE CHICAGO; RAYMOND BOYD
The Blues Festival is Chicago’s largest music festival.
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