Jazz in Fukuoka: Nakasu Jazz Festival 2016

Last Weekend was a very busy one in Fukuoka. On the 9th and 10th we had the big once a Year Nakasu Jazz Festival, this Year for the 8th time.

It all started on August 29th in 2009 with 3 Open Air Live Stages, along the Nakasu Main Street, with 18 Artists/Bands and roughly over 25000 Spectators and it all evolved into a 2 day Festival with 78 Artists/Bands and roughly over 50000 Spectators each day for this Year. Organizer and Staff all put in a lot of voluntary work in to make this a Happening every Year and spend a lot of Time and Effort to make it a Reality. Of course, as this is a Japanese Festival, many Artists and Bands come from Japan, but you will also be able to enjoy several international Jazz Musicians. Here on several Stages with different Bands and Artists, each with their own Style, everything from classic Jazz to Latin Jazz can be experienced.

Artists like Hinoteru Masa, Murakami Ponta, Yamashita Yosuke, Chie Ayado, Keith Middleton, Manday Michiru, Gaia Cuatro and many many many more can be seen and heard Free of Charge.

Nakasu is located on an Island in the middle of Fukuoka City, including the Red-Light District, many Bars, Restaurants, Live Houses, Host and Hostess Clubs and of course "Soap Land" are located here. It's the Entertainment Central of this Town and famous for it in all of Japan.

As you make your way across one of the Bridges towards the Central Nakasu Main Street, you will already be greeted by a Sea of People and can already hear the first beats from the Stages still hidden behind several Buildings.

I hope you got your Festival Guide ready, to see where and when your preferred Artists will be live on which Stage. Or you do it like me and hit Nakasu around 6pm and follow the flow of this living River of People and just enjoy each Stage as you come across each and maybe you will be surprised by what u can see, hear and experience.

There are a lot of Spectators everywhere, stopping here and there, so the Staff have their hands full trying to guide People from one Stage to the next one. If you find an Artist you like, i recommend to stop at one of the Bars or Restaurants close to the Open Air Stage, as it beats to stand in the way of the passing Crowd. Like this you can enjoy the Music, while having a nice cool Beer or a Glass of Wine in this still hot, very hot last waves of the Japanese Summer. But don't spend all night at the same Stages, just move around and see more, hear more and enjoy more than just one Show and one Artist.

Of course there are also Bands performing at certain Stages inside a few selected locations, but usually with no place to sit, get there early, to at least be able to not only hear, but also see the Performers while they make the Magic happening.

So many Impressions and the always present huge Crowd leave a lasting Impact...but hey....that's only the First Day, as we leave at around 10:30 pm, exhausted and looking forward to Day 2.

The 2nd Day starts like the 1st and we go with the flow again, stopping here and there. At around 8:30 pm i caught myself stopping for quite a while at the Stage of Sayakas Cuban Project, Latin Jazz with a burning rhythm that makes you wanna move your body, 2nd reason being my wife was in charge of this Stage.

After 45 Minutes of Latin Jazz Beats i quickly helped getting all the Instruments ready to go, so we could all together enjoy a cold Beer at the next Stage and see how the other Artists had been doing.

First we went and visit Conguero Tres Hoofers, they performed at Brooklyn Parlor, an american Style themed Dining Bar. Acoustic Guitar, Percussion and a Tap Dancer as Front-man combine their Sound to create a unique Performance for Eyes and Ears. If you get the chance to have them perform near you, definitely worth a visit.

With their Show the 2nd Day ended, at least the public part of the Nakasu Jazz Festival, it surely was very exciting and a feast for the Eyes and Ears to remember.

The Nakasu Jazz Festival will always be on the 2nd Friday and Saturday of September each Year, hopefully for many Years to come, so if you happen to be in the Area, give it a try, but book your Hotel early on or you might need to sleep in your rental car.

Riverain Stage at Nakasu Jazz Festival in Blog about Japan

The Shoking

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