Jazz in Marciac

This village in Gascony has a larger jazz appreciation per capita if their annual festival is anything to go on. With free jazz concerts all day in the medieval main square and late night jam sessions and jazz related exhibitions, this festival has grown into an international event since it first started blowing its own horn in 1978, and now literally fills the village with jazz, from the main tent to the smaller restaurants and cafes. It's a small place but they get big name acts. In the past they've included Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Eddy Louiss, Sonny Rollins, Gerry Mulligan, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett, Wynton Marsalis, Ray Charles, and Diana Krall. It goes on for about two weeks from the beginning of August.