The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
When the beat goes on – you’re going to be there
From toe-tapping jazz to techno raves and Rossini nights, here are three great ideas for music fans who love to move
JAZZ AND MORE IN NEW ORLEANS
New Orleans is so much more than Mardi Gras. Every day, the African, Spanish and French heritage of the “Big Easy” thrives in its music, language and food. Within close proximity there are also fun towns, plantation mansions and mysterious bayou waterworlds to explore.
WHY IT’S SPECIAL
New Orleans is one of a kind; no other place in America can top the 300-yearold city when it comes to its cultural mix of Cajun, Creole, African, Caribbean, Hispanic and French. Dixieland jazz is world-famous and you can feel its toe-tapping rhythm at gigs in Preservation Hall (preservationhall.com) and impromptu sessions in Congo Square in the African-American neighbourhood of Treme (say Tre-MAY). Then there’s roots, zydeco and more.
As for food, New Orleans does everything big – think gumbo and jambalaya, crawfish, shrimp and beignets.
With so much to see and do in the French Quarter alone, it’s easy to stay put. But you shouldn’t be tempted to lounge away the day listening to street musicians and sipping on Hand Grenade cocktails. The bayous, Louisiana’s swampy inlets, are worth leaving town for. Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge and Honey Island Swamp are both within easy reach and are home to huge cypress and tupelo trees, Spanish moss, birds and alligators. You can also take in small communities, such as Lafayette, where you can listen to Cajun French and zydeco bands. Meanwhile, near Baton Rouge you can tour, or even stay at the resort of Nottoway, a former sugar-cane plantation.
YOU’LL NEVER FORGET…
Drummers in Congo Square, gigs at the Spotted Cat and riding the St Charles Streetcar to the elegant Garden District where you can photograph cypress trees.
INSIDER TIP
New Orleans has a surprising number of classic cocktails worth trying; from a Vieux Carré at the Hotel Monteleone to a Hurricane at Pat O’Brien’s, and a Sazerac, the iconic cocktail, at Cure. Then there’s the Ramos Gin Fizz of the Roosevelt Hotel’s Sazerac Bar and the French 75 at Arnaud’s French 75.
HOW TO DO IT
Mardi Gras is always packed with tourists. Instead, consider the free French Quarter Festival (frenchquarterfest.org), rescheduled for Oct 1-4 2020, with 20 music stages; or the Satchmo SummerFest (July 31-Aug 2; satchmosummerfest. org) which celebrates the music of Louis Armstrong. Local tours led by well-informed guides are a must (abeltours.com; doctorgumbo.com). Complete North America (0115 961 0590; completenorthamerica. com) offers 14-night
New Orleans and Cajun Country self-drive tours. For more information, visit neworleans.com.
For more dream trips, see telegraph.co.uk/ 1000dreamtrips
A SUMMER OF MUSIC IN LE MARCHE
In this lesser-visited region of Italy you’ll find beaches, scenery, history and music galore, including an annual homage to Rossini.
WHY IT’S SPECIAL
Some people visit Italy’s Marche region for its long sandy beaches, others for its historic towns and cities such as Urbino, Loreto and Ascoli Piceno. Hikers love the tracks of the Monti Sibillini national park along the Umbrian border: they will scale the region’s highest peak, Monte Vettore, and trek to the beautiful glacial Lago di Pilato. But others adore this relatively undiscovered Adriatic-facing region of Italy for its music, which comes in many forms, and overwhelmingly in summer. Rossini fans gather in his hometown, Pesaro, for the Rossini Opera Festival (rossinioperafestival.it/ en) in mid-August. In July and August, Macerata’s impressive neoclassical Sferisterio – a converted 19th-century sports arena – hosts the Macerata Opera Festival (sferisterio.it/en), with world-class open-air performances. And in late July, there’s Jazz by the Sea (fanojazzbythesea.com/en) in Fano.
YOU’LL NEVER FORGET…
It’s no stroll, but scrambling down the many paths to the rocky coves around the Conero peninsula is endlessly memorable. The town of Sirolo is a good point to start your descent.
INSIDER TIP
Italy’s latest three-Michelin-star restaurant started out as a simple beach hut in Senigallia. It’s still there, but Uliassi (uliassi.com) is now a foodie mecca, serving fish and game imbued with local culinary traditions, superbly reworked.
HOW TO DO IT
Fly to Aeroporto delle Marche in Falconara, served by Ryanair (ryanair. com) from Stansted, and hire a car.
Stay at the stylish self-catering Castello di Granarolo (castellodigranarola.it/en) or, for belle époque charm, the Grand Hotel Vittoria (grandhotel vittoriapesaro.it/en) in Pesaro.
Give yourself up to the gods of techno in the world’s clubbing capital for a night of unparalleled significance. No previous rave experience required.
WHY IT’S SPECIAL
Berlin’s history is present at every turn, from the bullet-pocked buildings to the circus of Checkpoint Charlie, but to get under the skin of what the city’s past meant for its culture and society, you have to hit the clubs.
Tresor, Watergate, Berghain – these are not nightclubs but institutions that rose to prominence in a post-Wall city, when the rise of dance music as a defining subculture coincided with a seismic release of geopolitical tension.
Berliners take their music seriously but are also famously welcoming (excluding, perhaps, the door staff). And when you emerge staggering into the cold morning, you’ll remember there’s never a better time to see a city than at first light, not least Berlin.
YOU’LL NEVER FORGET…
Once you’re in, settled in a corner, drink in hand, the nerves abate and the music rises; when the beat drops, you’ll be immersed in euphoria.
INSIDER TIP
By all means check the clubs’ websites for line-ups and events, but don’t worry if you haven’t; chances are the music won’t be so esoteric you can’t enjoy it. If you don’t get into your intended venue, ensure there’s a plan B.
HOW TO DO IT
Many airlines fly direct to Berlin from UK airports. Stay at Generator Mitte (staygenerator.com), a fun, clean and cool hostel in east Berlin, while Monbijou (monbijouhotel.com) is a charming boutique in the city centre. There’s no need to look for packages as they are few and far between when it comes to the clubbing element and there is little extra they can offer.