There are several outdoor stages around Place des Arts. They all run to a tight hour long performance, even though when one act finishes that stage will be unused during the next hour, but another nearby stage will be in use. The tight scheduling, apart from being viewer friendly, is necessary to keep one act from interfering with that on a nearby stage.
The stage, with the Museum of Contemporary Art behind. Note also the white umbrellas on the left - that's where we had dinner for the final night's concert by Pat Metheny Group.
Swing Tonique Band in action. The group is described thus in the Festival Program Guide: Actor, TV host, teacher, singer, veteran musician with 20 years under his belt - Pierre Blais is a man of many talents. However, his true passions remain the banjo, the guitar and jazz itself, which led him to form the fun-loving Bande à Magoo in Lac St. Jean in 1990. Blais is back at the Festival with his musicians and friends. They played Dixieland Jazz with a vengenance. And nobody in the crowd could stand still during their performance, which includes some antics from the musicians themselves.
The area to the east of Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, showing some of the crowd, and the children's area.
And from the same location, looking towards the main stage.
Saint Cat adorns the side of Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, and is also peeking out from the some of the air toys in the children's area at the bottom.
And there's that cat again! This time on the side of Theatre Maisonneuve de la Place des Arts.
Photos are not allowed during the performance (not that it stopped people taking flash pictures), so I have none of the performers. This is the stage before the concert. I don't know how old Sonny Rollins is, but the Festival Program describes him thus: It's been fully five years since Sonny Rollins last blew away a festival audience, and he returns with his presence and legacy intact. One of the last true living legends in jazz, descendant of Charlie Parker, acknowledged master of melodic and thematic improv, musical icon for half a century - the Saxophone Colossus transcends the music. A rare pleasure. What more can one say. Except that the saxaphone is not my favourite instrument. The performance, however, was excellent.
Jazz In The Afternoon
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