Denton Arts & Jazz Festival

A distant dream now, but that was the best contingent of all of the administration, vibrant and peaceful weekend that ended yesterday in historical Quakertown Park, close to the downtown Denton City Offices and Council Chambers and Courts.It's got to take supreme team work amongst the City Departments during this autumnal celebration of our musical performance environment in north Texas, where both of our great universities pitched in sending us some of the finest live performances, set up on seven different stages in different parts of the Civic Center Park. I was perhaps most impressed with the city's answer to clean up the party zones, which span the area of the grounds of the Emily Fowler Public Library to the walls that surround our iconic Public Swimming Pool, which has a beautiful connection between our individual swimming participants, who flock to the Bell Avenue, and Texas Woman's University-adjacent location.I am proud of my hometown and have generally been drawn into the hordes of people who come here from homes nearby and enjoy the atmosphere of Gemuetlichkeit (German for warmth of friendliness that comes from mutual community that accompanies the Oktoberfest season of harvest time.A mighty shout out to the fabulous Local Grammy Award winning nuclear polka group, Brave Combo, and specifically band leader and guitarist Carl Finch, who founded the band with North Texas State University Jazz Music legends, along with Bubba Hernandez and their trumpet player Danny.I am so blessed to have Denton, Texas as my hometown and this annual event is going to be continuing far, far into the future. A shout out to my companion for the closing act, the most excellent Little Jack Melody, who rocked the Festival Stage, next door to City Hall.Cheers,Mark C. Fearing, Ph.D. ([email protected]).

If you don't know why people say Denton is different..... than you have not been here. Orrrrr you just don't see why it matters. Sometimes it is safe to not know anything about Denton, but if you are adventurous....... You need to go. Just go.

This was my second year going to the Denton Jazzfest. My and my daughter went two years ago and we had a pretty good time. The previous review was correct about parking. We got lucky and arrived early enough that I didn't worry so much, but cars were circling.As for the festival itself, plenty of vendors, plenty of art work, clothing, jewelry, photography and bacon lemonade. Yep, didn't try it though. I did have some really nice jerk chicken and my daughter did demolish a 13 inch corndog. Didn't realize my four year old could eat that much. I was kind of upset, with the recently passed vote to allow food trucks into Denton, that they were not represented. They were excluded on purpose. It would have been nice to have some healthier options and items other than fried food and corndogs.As for the music? We saw some high school concert bands, a mariachi band on the UNT stage and we heard jazz pumping throughout the festival.Overall, a nice experience and it brings good revenue into Little D. They just need to tweek a few things.Support Denton businesses!

This is a cool festival for art and music fans. There are so many vendors to buy from food, jewelry, arts prints, clothes sooooo much more! Music is playing everywhere! Well organized. No drama. This is my second year attending and can't wait for the next! Be prepared to come hungry and to relax. Grab your blanket or chair and sit in the lawn listening to music. Support local!

I'm shocked and saddened to see that Arts & Jazz hasn't gotten a 5-star review yet! I look forward to this weekend every year and can't imagine Denton without it! It's a staple and is a place you can really see the heart an soul of the city. This is one of the few festivals in the metroplex that is still free and allows you to BYOB/cooler (no coolers in the main jazz area, but that gets too crowded anyways). There's a wide variety of delish festival food- from fried green tomatoes (and beyond) to healthier options like smoked sweet potatoes. The vendors keep the food and beer pricing reasonable and the profits help keep the festival alive and kickin. There's all sorts of different arts and crafts set up at different parts of the park, which provide a nice a nice opportunity to walk around and see the sights. There's even a kids section with small rides and games. What's not to love?!As a seasoned Arts & Jazz goer, I always bring a full campsite of chairs, blankets, snacks, and beers every year and set up shop underneath a nice shade tree at the UNT stage. You're always guaranteed great music at this stage and it's nice having a consistent place to sit and relax away from the massive crowds. We explore, get food, and shop in shifts with friends and it works quite nicely. Some of the other stages may get more crowded, but that's the great thing- there are plenty to choose from!

I just moved out to Texas about 11 days ago and I heard a lot of chatter about this event prior to arriving in Denton. This was by far the best Art/Wine/Jazz Festival I've ever been to, at least as long as I can remember. There are so many cool and eclectic tents here with so many different products. There were a good amount of things that I had not seen before. All of the vendors are very friendly and aren't too buggy about making sure you do not leave their tent prior to purchasing something. There were some really nice pieces of art here as well. The main thing that took me by surprise was the prices on beer at these type of events! It was only about $4-5 per 12oz beer. They also have an amazing selection of beers here as well. I was in awe of the different varieties and breweries they had to choose from. If you have been to a California event, you know you get pretty crappy choices and a premium price. The next part is the food. The food choices here are excellent. (If you enjoy a lot of fried food) Foods from all different cultures too. I was excited to try some things that I had not tried before. Everything I tasted was quite delicious. I docked half a star due to some of the prices for food. They were quite high for the amount that you received. The other half star is due to the lack of parking. If you don't get there super early or live close to the event, good luck on finding free parking. There are select private parking lots, close to the event, that allow parking for a small fee.In the end, I was stoked I arrived in Denton on time to experience one of the city's biggest events of the year. I am looking forward to going to it every year, from this point, and would highly recommend checking it out if you have not been here before.

Meh. Same old stuff year after year .... No Seriously. It's ALWAYS the same.... And 11+ for a Gyro? REALLY??? The food vendors here continually jack the pricing till they just sit there in front of the vats of deep fried grease laden "insta tent". I totally get prices are higher at festival events - but that shit's not even realistic. Eventually this festival will just implode from same crap - yearly returns and overpriced fare. Meh. Save your time and Money.

Face painting, beers, awesome friendly people, cool art, great bands... why does this only happen once a year!?

Denton Jazz Festival is a free (admission) community event showcasing national jazz artist such as Al Jarreau, local jazz bands and music students of UNT. The festival also features original artwork made of various mediums (paint, wood, stone etc.) by local Texas artist. The festival grounds are spread out and include 3-4 stages for musical and dance performances. There are vendors selling homemade crafts and foods. There are plenty of trees, which provide shade and ample space to stretch out and enjoy the musical sounds. There are bench tables and festival guest are allowed to bring their own chairs and/or blankets. Food vendors sell typical festival/fair foods including corndogs, turkey legs, corn on the cob, funnel cakes, street tacos, deep fried desserts etc. There is limited free parking in parking lots as well as along the street but worse case there are also businesses allowing parking for as little as five dollars. Denton Jazz Festival is a great inexpensive outing that is suitable for all ages.

I understand that the weather is unpredictable but this year was a disaster. I honestly feel bad for the City of Denton because the lawn is going to be ruined for at least a year after this single weekend. The art was amazing! The music was cover bands or UNT lab classes. The food selection was great! What's with the tiny bridge that everyone has to wait twenty minutes in line to pass over? I assume this festival will go on for many more years so they should consider investing a wider bridge. Hipsters started hanging out in the drainage ditch. I'm not that cool yet. I wish I could say more but even if it wasn't muddy, I don't think I'll come back next year.