As one of the biggest free musical holidays in the town, French Quarter Fest celebrates the music and food of New Orleans.Every year, French Quarter Holidays , Inc, a 501 non-profit firm, brings together a volunteer corps of over one thousand folk to mark the local community and bring business into the French Quarter. The 2010 French Quarter Holiday is Fri. , Apr nine - Sun. , Apr eleven, and packs in a large amount of New Orleans-spirited fun all in one weekend! This year's 2010 French Quarter Holiday poster was designed by local Gretna local Christy Works-Boutte. As the 1st deaf graduate from the highly-acclaimed Ringling Varsity of Art and Design in Sarasota, Florida, she uses her love of colourful colours and thick palette knife painting method to capture the spirit and jubilation of this excellent event. Boutte's posters and other official French Quarter Fest product including jewellery and clothes should be available at the holiday and online at www.fqfi.org.

This year's 27th anniversary party of French Quarter Fest essentially starts with T.G.I.F. Thank the Lord It's Festival! on Thursday, Apr eight, on the Steamboat Natchez, dockside at the Toulouse Street Quay , behind JAX Brewery in the French Quarter. True neighbors love to mark the start of the weekend early at this yearly fundraiser.This year entertainment will componaats Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers on the dock, and John Royen performing on solo piano within the Natchez. The fundraiser is from 7-10 p.m, with TGIF tickets costing $55 thru Apr one and $65 beginning Apr two. Admission includes Abita lager, Southern Comfort cocktails, Coca-Cola products, and a tasty choice of local cuisine. There will be an exciting raffle including fantastic dining certificates, hotel stays, and hampers filled with Louisiana treats. The French Quarter Holiday will start New Orleans-style with their yearly 2nd line parade on Fri. around ten a.m. On Scotch Street. Neighbors and visitors alike can dance down the famous street while catching some beads and goodies from local advocates. Be certain to catch some Where Y'at Mag goodies and have a look at our Traditional Jazz Stage a little while later in the day on the seven hundred block of Bourbon Street. Bands including Leroy Jones and New Orleans Best , Some Like It Hot, and Fritzel's New Orleans jazz combo will be performing there in the weekend party. Also be certain to catch the Dancing at Dusk series we'll be sponsoring, at the four hundred block of Royal Street, featuring Rocky's Hot Fox Run Orchestra from 6-7:15 p.m.On Sun.

Now for those on the fringe of cutting technology, the 2010 French Quarter Holiday will offer its very first iPhone application. Made feasible thru a cooperation with Applitite, iPhone users will have an individual French Quarter Holiday guide at their fingertips.Applitite, the front-runner in music holiday mobile applications, has made an application that permits revelers to plan their agenda, get up to date updates about the event, and access the holiday map and music schedule right from their iPhones and iPod touches. The application should be available for download previous to French Quarter Holiday and can be downloaded thru Apple's iTunes store. Also new this year, in collusion with BMI, is the launch of the BMI Composer Stage at The Historic New Orleans Collection on Royal Street. This stage will include twelve of the region's best up-and-comers including Luke Winslow-King, Amy Trail, Lynn Drury, Micah McKee, Charlie Oxford, Dana Abbott, Ruby Rendrag, Karen Waldrup, Kristin Diable, Jim McCormick, Andrew Duhon, and John Michael Rouchell. Thanks to the new addition, Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carr will now host the Classical Music Stage and feature performances by the most respected performers from the area including harpist Rachel Truck Voorhees, guitar strummer John Rankin, and the Crescent Woodwind Quartet. Performances on the Classical Music Stage at Le Petit will occur from 11a.m. - 4:45 p.m. On Sat., Apr ten and Sun. , Apr eleven. Even with the 2010 French Quarter Holiday featuring over 150 local musical acts, the holiday selects to keep true to its values by only featuring local New Orleans performers. With over eighteen stages, the most important decision is what act to see. This year, the legendary Brass Band Stage will take on a new name and feature more performances than ever seen. Performers at the Riverbank Bequest Stage include : Rebirth Brass Band, the Soul Rebels, Storyville Stompers, and Treme Brass Band. As well as conventional brass bands, the Riverbank Inheritance will also have acts such Glenn David Andrews, I'voire Vision , Kora Konnection, and Giant Chief Bo Dollis and the Wild Magnolias. Returning again this year by universal acclaim is the Louis-Louis Pavilion Stage on the riverfront paying tribute to Louis Armstrong and Louis Prima.