If you live in ITP and you are anywhere near Midtown on Memorial Day weekend, the soundtrack is mostly going to be coming out of Piedmont Park. The Atlanta Jazz Festival is back for its annual three-day run on the Meadow, and 11Alive's coverage flags an expected crowd of up to 300,000 over the weekend, which is the high end of what the park has historically absorbed.
The festival has been a staple since the 1970s, started under Mayor Maynard Jackson as part of Atlanta's pitch to be a destination for the arts. It remains one of the country's largest free jazz festivals, which is part of why it draws a crowd that ranges from people who can name every Blue Note pressing to families who came because there was an open lawn and free music. Axios pairs it this weekend with the return of MomoCon at the GWCC, so if you are downtown for one and want to walk into something completely different a few blocks away, the timing lines up. Set times, the artist lineup, and parking and transit guidance are all on the festival's official site.
