Day One-June 26, 2008
                    

                                  Report by Nelson Brill

Grab your dancing shoes, a quick bag of clothes and be prepared to stay up all night as Stereo Times heads to Montreal for this year’s Festival International De Jazz (“Festival”). The official poster for this 29th edition tells it all: entitled “Swing” (the creation of Quebec artist, Yves Archambault) it's a swirling, colorful Beatlesque vision of a world united by jazz in all of its spirited glory and far flung experimentations. Archambault’s vision is reflected on the crowded, raucous streets surrounding the central Place des Arts, where all of the main outdoor stages and theatres for the Festival are located. Beautiful posters are everywhere on the streets announcing the confluence of Jazz and Montreal, both old and new.

Arriving for the opening ceremonies this evening, throngs of fans line the Place des Arts and its collection of restaurants, outdoor cafes and booths. An opening Bourbon Street style parade performed by “Le Swing Tonique Jazz Band,” (along with some colorful characters), commences the festivities.

One stands elbow to elbow with thousands of music fans lining the Place de Arts. This eclectic and international crowd includes young Asian and Black kids on their father’s shoulders; punk rockers in colorful streaked mohawks; Arab women wearing chadors; graying men in European cut suits with fancy Montreal lunettes (glasses now all the rage with heavy ornate frames); lastly, lots of old French Canadian couples, (their faces lined with age and leaning on their chairs or canes), with quiet smiles, all enjoying the spectacle.

We are all packed in as one big musical family for a thronging celebration of the music of Canada’s own legend, Leonard Cohen, performed by dozens of artists on the Festival’s main outdoor “GM” stage.