Nothin’ Like A Fine Bix Festival

The Big Spider Back—I mean Bix Beiderbecke—Jazz Festival took off on August 1st through 3rd, congregating enthusiastic folks back to Davenport, Iowa, including my mum and me. It was a thrilling reunion to meet both the same musicians and aficionados from last year as well as new folks. The long wait was so rewarding after an entire year of “dull silence” in Georgia, and Mum even convinced me to take an AP exam to attend the festival; the motivation was substantial. It happened to be US History, which as usual, I studied with much pleasure, except for some minor complaints, one being that they barely covered the 1920s and the birth of jazz. Since we enjoyed last year’s festival so much, we decided to reach Bix’s hometown in time for the opening day at the Rhythm City Casino on August 1st. Furthermore, we actually got to attend the preceding afternoon concert held at the Putnam Museum too: Blindly poking around to find where the proper entrance was, I heaved open a door and immediately, music flooded into my ears. I first caught the echoes of a bright, singing clarinet and noticed that it was Mr. Andy Schumm! Dumbstruck, I scurried into the large museum room. An employee inquired us, “Are you here for the science exhibit or the concert?” “The music,” I replied, bug-eyed with ears fixed to the clarinet, and I didn’t know what time it was—we definitely arrived la