This summer, Burlington’s inaugural Jazz Festival will light up downtown with two days of live music at the Capitol Theatre and other venues.
Local musicians and festival organizers Matt Landon and Emma Reynolds say this is a cultural movement aimed at reviving southeast Iowa’s jazz legacy and contributing to a thriving local arts scene.
That jazz legacy includes American composer and cabaret songwriter Bart Howard, who was born in Burlington in 1915. His many songwriting credits include “Fly Me to the Moon.”
“There was a lot going on at the time when he was in his 20s,” Reynolds said. “It was a big time for jazz along the Mississippi with riverboat touring and tourism in the 30s and 40s. Burlington was this really quaint, charming spot between St. Louis and Chicago.”
As Landon and Reynolds plan the jazz festival, they have been digging into the history of jazz in Burlington.
They say the Mississippi River has always been a pipeline for jazz, and that the Burlington Steamboat Days music festival was originally a Dixieland jazz festival.
“The first couple of bills that we are able to see from ’62 and ’63 are all Dixieland bands. And then in 1964, Louis Armstrong actually came to Burlington,” Reynolds said.
The jazz festival, planned for July 25-26, will have contemporary jazz, Latin jazz, big band jazz, and more from local, regional, and national performers.
Landon said they want the jazz festival to be entertaining and culturally enriching, but also educational, by exploring what all falls under the umbrella of jazz.
“I think if people attend every concert they'll be like, wow, this is all jazz? I didn't realize that this could be jazz, and then that could be jazz. The word itself is kind of a misnomer because it's like such an expansive genre that covers so many things and it's only expanding more,” Landon said.
In addition, all performances at the festival will be free to the public, and everyone is welcome, regardless of how deep their knowledge of jazz is.
A fundraiser is planned for the Burlington Jazz Festival from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, April 28 at the Capitol Theatre, 211 N. 3rd St.
Landon and Reynolds will present a free concert. They will be joined by celebrated bassist Jordan Richards and Grammy-nominated drummer Michael D’Angelo.
There will also be a silent auction and exclusive festival updates.
For more information, or to donate to the festival, visit the Capitol Theatre’s website.
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