The Queenstown JazzFest Trust is presenting the events to complement its ticketed concerts in venues across the Wakatipu, in a bid to keep the festival family-friendly, accessible to all and to create performance opportunities for young musicians.
A New Orleans Street Parade starts today at noon from the Queenstown Gardens bandstand with a procession along Marine Pde, around Earnslaw Park and up Queenstown Mall to perform on the Village Green.
Led by the Be There Bicycle Band, of Christchurch, the procession will include a wide variety of entertainers, including musicians, dancers, street performers and acrobats.
The Queenstown Village Green Community Stage is the venue for free live music today and tomorrow from 1pm to 6pm.
Three jazz bands from James Hargest College, Invercargill, get the show rolling today from 1pm to 2.50pm, followed by the Big Mountain Brothers Band, of Queenstown and Wanaka (3pm-4.20pm), and the Jack Daniels Blues Band, of Invercargill (4.30pm to 6pm).
A jazz band from Wakatipu High School takes the stage tomorrow from 1pm to 1.50pm, then the school's senior band Best Served Chilled plays from 2pm to 2.50pm.
Neo, an Invercargill six-piece band, entertains from 3pm to 4.20pm, followed by the Queenstown and Sydney based Jason Thornton Quartet at 4.30pm to 6pm.
Arrowtown is not left out this weekend, with ''Jazz on the Green'' taking place on Buckingham Green in the village centre.
The Be There Bicycle Band wheels in to play tomorrow from noon until 12.30pm, then the Jason Thornton Quartet will finish off from 12.30pm to 2pm.
