Harlem's Charlie Parker Jazz Festival celebrates 30th anniversary
NEW YORK -- Some of the biggest names in jazz are performing at the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in Harlem this weekend.
It's part of the city's free SummerStage events, and this year, the festival is celebrating its 30th anniversary.
New Orleans might be home to jazz, but New York City is at the heart of it, and Harlem is where many of the genre's stars became icons.
"Well, for me, I am an old-time jazz man. The '50s and '60s is the music that I like listening to, and most of that era comes from Harlem," festival attendee Teree Frazier told CBS2's Astrid Martinez.
"Jazz makes me feel like my whole body rhythm goes back into sync. It's energizing. It's soothing. It's so electric," attendee April Tann said.
Hundreds came to see the five-time Grammy-winning headliner, Terence Blanchard.
"I've been playing trumpet for a long time. Actually, Terence Blanchard, I went to school with him years ago," musician Kirk Charles said.
For 30 years, the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival has been honoring the legendary voices of jazz's past while opening doors for the next generation of artists.
"We're able to bring young musicians, musicians who are, you know, just getting started or getting their foot in the door, and it's a great platform," said Paula Abreu, the director of programming for the Capital One City Parks Foundation SummerStage.
Watch Dana Tyler's interview with Abreu
The free three-day outdoor festival is the city's annual salute to the late great saxophonist Charlie Parker, who worked and lived in Harlem.
"Charlie Parker was the one that led that. That's why it's important for me to come up here every year," Frazier said.
"He was an innovator. When you listen to music before Charlie Parker and after Charlie Parker, everything was different. Everyone copied him. Everyone took something from Charlie Parker," Charles said.
Showing that no matter how much time passes, the music continues to inspire fans and Harlem continues to inspire musicians.
The final event of the festival takes place Sunday in Tompkins Square Park in the East Village.
