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Memphis Music and Heritage Festival
Memphis Music and Heritage Festival

This extremely young drumline amazed audiences on the Main Street Mall during the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival. African-American drumming and drilling is an integral part of Memphis’ inner-city culture, and it is cool to see it preserved by a squad of young children who sound better than many high school drumlines. 

Favor is a Memphis gospel group with an unusual line-up, consisting of voices, a saxophonist, a drummer and a conga player. This stark instrumentation lends the music a rather Caribbean flavor, and puts a lot of responsibility on the percussionists, who, fortunately, were immensely talented. Quite an exciting group. 

Favor is a Memphis gospel group with an unusual line-up, consisting of voices, a saxophonist, a drummer and a conga player. This stark instrumentation lends the music a rather Caribbean flavor, and puts a lot of responsibility on the percussionists, who, fortunately, were immensely talented. Quite an exciting group. 

Walking around downtown during the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival, September 3, 2011

Walking around downtown during the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival, September 3, 2011

The Memphis Music and Heritage Festival is held every year in downtown Memphis on the Main Street Mall on Labor Day Weekend. It is a celebration of Memphis music, culture, art and food, and thus amounts to Memphis’ version of the New Orleans JazzFest, with some elements of Ponderosa Stomp thrown in for good measure. Unfortunately, each year the event seems to become more precarious, for, unlike JazzFest, the event is free to the public, and organized by the Center for Southern Folklore, a worthwhile organization which has also struggled in recent years. Since other festivals like the Beale Street Music Festival have little to do with Memphis music or culture, it is important for our community that we find a way to keep the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival viable for many years to come. 

The Memphis Music and Heritage Festival is held every year in downtown Memphis on the Main Street Mall on Labor Day Weekend. It is a celebration of Memphis music, culture, art and food, and thus amounts to Memphis’ version of the New Orleans JazzFest, with some elements of Ponderosa Stomp thrown in for good measure. Unfortunately, each year the event seems to become more precarious, for, unlike JazzFest, the event is free to the public, and organized by the Center for Southern Folklore, a worthwhile organization which has also struggled in recent years. Since other festivals like the Beale Street Music Festival have little to do with Memphis music or culture, it is important for our community that we find a way to keep the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival viable for many years to come.