Greg Osby Performing at the 2010 Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival
The Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival has grown from its beginnings in 2001 when it attracted 10,000 people to become Boston’s most popular outdoor festival attracting more than 70,000 people. It was founded by local restaurateur Darryl Settles who ran the event through 2006. In 2007, the Berklee College of Music, a supporter of the festival from its beginning, took over the festival which is now a permanent fixture in Boston’s cultural calendar.
People come to Boston’s South End to see jazz, Latin, blues, and groove acts on three outdoor stages. The festival typically opens with a ticketed event at the Berklee Performance Center and newly includes a closing ticketed event as of 2011.
The festival takes up six blocks in the South End from Burke Street to Massachusetts Avenue, and in addition to music features:
- Food
- Over 70 vendors
- Inflatables
- Face painting
- An instrument petting zoo
- … and more…
Past acts to perform at the festival include Nona Hendryx, Cyrus Chestnut, Walter Beasley, Charles Tolliver, and Al Kooper.
Crowd at the 2010 Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival
The Festival is typically held in the third week of September.
Picture credits: The pictures in this article were taken by Phil Farnsworth and were provided by the Berklee College of Music Media Relations department.
