MAIN Travel Popular San Francisco Fillmore Jazz Festival

Every year over the Independence Day long weekend, as many as one hundred thousand eager jazz enthusiasts gather in San Francisco for the Fillmore Jazz Festival.

This year, watch for the 24th annual festival to kick off on Saturday, July 4th continuing on to Sunday, July 5, 2009.

The music festival, which is billed by organizers as the largest free music festival on the west coast, takes place on Fillmore Street in San Francisco covering an entire 12 blocks between Eddy Street and Jackson Street.

Although the first Fillmore Jazz Festival was held in 1985, the jazz tradition of Fillmore street stretches back much farther than that. During the World War Two era, Fillmore Street was home to a booming jazz scene, and the many jazz clubs along the street regularly played host to some of the country's most legendary jazz musicians.

In later decades, jazz would continue to be a major cultural influence on the area, and the creative spirit that resided on Fillmore Street also drew in a whole host of other artists, musicians and writers who came to call Fillmore Street their home.

Today, the Fillmore Jazz Festival draws on this rich heritage to create an entirely unique music festival. A wide variety of musicians perform on several different stages, and the music continues from sun up to sun down for two whole days.

Everything from up and coming jazz talent to well seasoned jazz musicians can be heard on any given stage.

The wide range of eclectic shops that can be found on Fillmore Street also offer up their wares during the festival, and festival goers can also choose from the huge variety of gourmet food shops that dot Fillmore Street, which is yet another great draw for this fantastic music festival.

More about the Fillmore Jazz Festival around the Web:

Fillmore Jazz Festival 2009 - The official site with the complete schedule, entertaiment lineup and performance times, lists of food vendors and exhibitors, news updates, parking info, maps & directions.

Fillmore Jazz Festival on Flickr - Browse through hundreds of photos taken by Flickr community members.

Fillmore Jazz Festival Japantown, San Francisco CA - Star-rated overview of the annual event from the Yelp community with visitor-submitted reviews.

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