On International Jazz Day, all roads lead to New Orleans: Where jazz lives on in every note and neighbourhood

The annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival runs until May 4, 2025. Tickets available on their official website.

Never before have I landed in a city after a 16-hour nonstop flight and started humming immediately and packed in my heart the belief that it really is a wonderful world. No care for the sore feet and a bad back, not even for a broken suitcase, everything just seemed wonderful - trees of green, red roses, skies of blue and clouds of white. The bright blessed days, the dark secrets night and I said to myself what a wonderful world. New Orleans does pipe music into your heart. After all, jazz was born in the city; born from a rich mix of cultures in a single city, which combined West African and Caribbean sounds with European musical influences.

A one-of-a-kind indoor and outdoor observatory and cultural experience, featuring the only 360-degree panoramic riverfront views of New Orleans (Photo credit: Preeti Verma Lal)

And it all starts at the airport named after the jazz legend Louis Armstrong. Satchmo, as they called him. The legendary Satchmo with a rich gravelly voice who released What a Wonderful World on August 16, 1967 as a single in which he sang trees of green, red roses, skies of blue and clouds of white. The words I borrowed as soon as I landed in New Orleans.

Jazz is often tagged as America's only authentic art form. History will forever remember the city’s greatest jazz legends - Charles ‘Buddy’ Bolden, King Oliver, Edward ‘Kid’ Ory, Louis Prima, Pete Fountain, Nellie Lutcher and of course, Louis Armstrong. The legends have pushed the daisies but in New Orleans - lovingly shortened to Nola (New Orleans Louisiana) - jazz can be heard all over the town. In the French Quarter, the Marigny, the Treme, uptown on Oak Street and on St. Claude Avenue.

Located at 311 Bourbon Street, the New Orleans Musical Legends Park includes a series of commemorative displays, plaques, and artwork (Photo credit: Preeti Verma Lal)

If you are in the city, here are the jazz must-dos.

Armstrong Park

Formerly known as Beauregard Square, Louis Armstrong Park is a 32-acre park located in the Tremé neighbourhood. Designed by New Orleans architect Robin Riley and dedicated and named after Louis Armstrong, the park has sculptures, duck ponds and lots of open spaces, Do not miss the Congo Square, an open space where the enslaved and free people of colour gathered throughout the 1800s for meetings, open markets, and the African dance and drumming celebrations.

New Orleans Musical Legends Park

Located at 311 Bourbon Street, the heart of the Park is a tribute to New Orleans Musical Legends and includes a series of commemorative displays, plaques, and artwork. The park houses statues of musical legends Al ‘Jumbo’ Hirt, Pete Fountain, Fats Domino, Chris Owens, Ronnie Kole, and Louie Prima Jr.

New Orleans Jazz Museum (400 Esplanade Ave.)

The New Orleans Jazz Museum celebrates jazz in the city where it was born.

Vue Orleans (2 Canal St. , Entrance to the left of the Four Seasons Hotel): A one-of-a-kind indoor and outdoor observatory and cultural experience, featuring the only 360-degree panoramic riverfront views of New Orleans. Here, you can surround yourself with music, from jazz and R&B to funk and bounce. Discover the musicians whose contributions birthed jazz music in the city.

New Orleans Jazz Walking Tour

The Birthplace of Jazz: A Walking Tour Through New Orleans’ Musical Past is the best jazz walking tour that is curated by New Orleans Historical, a project by The Midlo Center for New Orleans Studies at the University of New Orleans

d.b.a has been famous for jazz and libations for 25 years (Photo courtesy: Louisiana Office of Tourism)

Best Jazz Bars in New Orleans

Preservation Hall: Situated in the heart of the French Quarter on St. Peter Street, the Preservation Hall venue presents intimate, acoustic New Orleans Jazz concerts

The Jazz Playhouse : Nestled inside the historic The Royal Sonesta New Orleans hotel, The Jazz Playhouse was awarded Best Jazz Club in New Orleans by Where Y'at Magazine's Best of the Big Easy.

Sidney’s Saloon: See King James and the Special Men live every Monday night.

The Spotted Cat: The Spotted Cat remains the local favourite for live music ranging from traditional and modern Jazz, Blues, Funk, Klezmer, and so much more.

Fritzel’s European Jazz Club: Founded in Situated in 1969 and housed in a historic 1831 building in the heart of the French Quarter.

Peacock Room at the Hotel Fontenot : An ornate all-day gathering spot that's equal parts creative French salon and music hub, The Peacock Room serves punch-bowl cocktails and great music.

d.b.a: Has been famous for music and libations for 25 years.

Bacchanal Wine : What started as a sleepy little wine shop on the outskirts of New Orleans is now a hotspot for wine and music lovers.

Steamboat Natchez: The last authentic steamboat on the Mississippi River is in New Orleans, and it's home to The Dukes of Dixieland, one of the city's most beloved jazz bands.

Site of Arman J. Piren’s old barber shop. It was almost next to “Big 25”, the cabaret where Joe “King” Oliver made his reputation. The bands would all congregate here and practice. The building was also a restaurant before being torn down in 1959. The space is now part of a parking lot (Photo courtesy: Louisiana State Museum)

(Source: New Orleans & Company)

Jazz shopping

Go to Louisiana Music Factory to find rare records and obscure titles by jazz artists from New Orleans and beyond. Stock up on CDs, DVDs, vinyl, books and souvenir T-shirts.

New Orleans Jazz Fest: The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, more commonly referred to as Jazz Fest, an annual festival celebrating the music, art, culture, and heritage of New Orleans is on until May 4, 2025. Buy Jazz Fest 2025 tickets through their official website.

Lake Charles: Lake Area Music: Roots, Rhythms, and Resonance through photographs, instruments, artifacts, and immersive audio experiences (May 23-July 19, 2025) at History City Hall Arts & Cultural Center, Lake Charles. Entry: Free