Speculation abounds concerning the fate of NOLA in general and some of its major cultural festivities in particular. It seems that the mood is to do SOMETHING for each event to maintain continuity. But how it will play out is anyone's guess. Johnny Gumbo sent an email: New Orleans Blues- Not a very happy story. By the way, Happy Birthday, today to Dr. John...IKO....IKO! (and a post from Time Magazine)
New Orleans Today: It's Worse Than You Think. Neighborhoods are still dark, garbage piles up on the street, and bodies are still being found. The city's pain is a nation's shame By CATHY BOOTH THOMAS/NEW ORLEANS (Posted Sunday, Nov. 20, 2005)
On Bourbon Street in the French Quarter, the neon lights are flashing, the booze is flowing, and the demon demolition men of Hurricane Katrina are ogling a showgirl performing in a thong. The Bourbon House is shucking local oysters again, Daiquiri's is churning out its signature alcoholic slushies, and Mardi Gras masks are once again on sale. But drive north toward the hurricane-ravaged housing subdivisions off Lake Pontchartrain and the masks you see aren't made for Carnival. They are industrial-strength respirators, stark and white, the only things capable of stopping a stench that turns the stomach and dredges up bad memories... Time On-line
New Orleans Planning Shorter Mardi Gras -here
Musicians fear New Orleans jazz traditions will die
By Russell McCulley (Reuters)
NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - Philip Frazier, who leads the New Orleans jazz group ReBirth Brass, was one of the lucky ones. His house and tuba survived Hurricane Katrina mostly intact. But hundreds of his fellow musicians were not so fortunate. The floodwaters that swept through this city nearly three months ago destroyed not only homes but also the instruments local musicians use to make a living, and cast doubt on the future of New Orleans' vivid musical traditions.
"We were very blessed," Frazier said of ReBirth's revival after its members had relocated as far as Houston and Baltimore. "We were fortunate that we were able to regroup and go out and continue to make a living for ourselves." Katrina scattered musicians across the country, and shuttered many clubs and concert venues. More critically, perhaps, it halted the convention and tourism industries that supplied much of the audience.
........There are hopeful signs. The mammoth New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival says its 2006 event will take place on schedule, and some music clubs have reopened to enthusiastic crowds of mostly local fans. Tipitina's is hosting its first post-Katrina "fais-do-do," a Sunday afternoon ritual for Cajun dance aficionados, followed by a practice session for Mardi Gras Indians, the bead-and-feather bedecked troupes who parade during New Orleans' huge and famously decadent pre-Lenten festival. - complete article
2006 jazz fest
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