Fans, musicians weather the heat for love of music
Music around the Quad-Cities wasn’t the only thing sizzling at the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival on Saturday in LeClaire Park, Davenport.
Hundreds of jazz enthusiasts braved the heat, humidity and hot sun to listen to jazz bands from around the world at LeClaire Park and other Davenport locations Saturday.
From umbrellas to water jugs, wide-brimmed hats to no shirts, attendees were trying to do everything they could think of to keep cool.
“It’s not too bad under this tree,” said Cedar Rapids natives John and Shirley Duster, Bix Fest regulars who congregated under the trees with several hundred others along the Mississippi River. “We’d never come back if it wasn’t good.”
Looking at the large greenspace east of the bandshell in the park could be deceiving to the actual number of tickets sold and music attendees to the four-day event. Only a handful of a couple hundred people braved the July sun to sit anywhere except under the shade trees.
Annie Peart, Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Society treasurer, said advanced ticket sales are a plus for the event when the temperature reaches as high as it has this weekend.
“I think heat hurts us more then rain. About 40 percent of our tickets sales happens before the festival,” said Peart, who has helped every year since the beginning of the festival. “I know it looks kind of sparse, but I just came from the Clarion (Hotel, one of the indoor spots for concerts), and it’s packed. We’ve had some hot festivals before, and attendees know what to expect.”
And people at the first aid trailer know to keep plenty of water on hand and to be ready to assist those who had just a little too much of the heat.
“We’ve been pretty steady with about 10 people,” said Davenport EMT intermediate volunteer Ken Morse about mid-afternoon. “Most of the people who are here are in the upper-age group, and they just can’t handle the heat quite as well as younger people can.”
Morse said the most
important thing for music-goers to do before heading out to any of the outdoor venues today is to drink plenty of water.
“You should be drinking at least 16-32 ounces of water for every hour you’re out,” Morse said.
Peart said people will come regardless of the heat because of the music.
“You can’t get this lineup anywhere else in the world for the $12 it takes to get in the door,” she said. “I’m sure people would love to sit out here all day, but in the afternoon when it’s this hot, it’s hard.”
The heat didn’t keep Jeffrey and Ann Lacombe coupled up in their hotel room. The English couple couldn’t get enough of the jazz beside the water.
“It’s real nice here,” Jeffrey said. The Lacombe’s visit jazz festivals all over Europe and some in the United States. They saw the Bix Fest in an English jazz magazine and thought Davenport would be the place to come this year.
“It’s real lovely by the water here, and we really liked the ballroom. There’s a lot of memories there I can tell,” Ann said.
The only complaint they had for the Bix weekend was the bus system.
“The buses could be improved a little bit, but that’s little,” Jeffrey said. “The whole town here gives itself to this festival and that’s unique to see.”
The city desk can be contacted at (563) 383-2245 or newsroom@qctimes.com.
FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
Here is the schedule today, the last day of the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival:
LeClaire Park
Noon: Cakewalkin’ Jass Band
1 p.m.: Black Dogs
2 p.m.: Red Rose Ragtime Band
3 p.m.: Josh Duffee’s Orchestra
4 p.m.: Bill Allred’s CJB
Capitol Theatre, Davenport
(Afterglow special session)
7 p.m.: Bill Allred’s CJB
8 pm.: Statesmen of Jazz
9 p.m.: New York All-Stars