The Big Easy in Buffalo celebrates 20 seasons with full lineup of shows featuring Louisiana & WNY musicians

The Big Easy in Buffalo press release & graphic 

The Big Easy in Buffalo is celebrating 20 seasons of connecting New Orleans and Western New York through music this year with a full lineup of shows including several free concerts and new partnerships. For tickets and more information, go to www.thebigeasyinbuffalo.org or www.facebook.com/TheBigEasyInBuffalo.

The series kicked off in April with local bands The Travesties and Canela, and continues with:

•John Papa Gros Band with The Brass Machine – June 5 – Town Ballroom

•New Orleans Jazz Concert & Mass featuring The Brass Machine – June 13 – St. Adalbert Basilica – free

•Bonerama with Buffalo Bully Brass Band – June 17 – Larkin Square – free

•The Soul Rebels & Honey Island Swamp Band – June 18 – Thursday & Main – free

•Organ Fairchild & The Brass Machine – July 6 – Ralph Wilson Park Levitt Music Series – free

•Lynn Drury Band with Jony James Blues Band – July 6 – Ralph Wilson Park Levitt Music Series – free

•Buckwheat Zydeco Jr. & The Legendary Il Son Partis Band with Yellow Jack – Aug. 13 – Sportsmen’s Tavern

•Sunny Side – Aug. 22 – Duende at Silo City – free

•Rebirth Brass Band – Sept. 19 – Borderland Music Festival, Knox Farm State Park

•Cedric Watson, Bad Penny Pleasure Makers, M.K. Nostalgia – Oct. 1-4 – Folkfaces Fest, Cherry Hill Campground

•Tab Benoit with Ghalia Volt – Oct. 15 – Town Ballroom

•Split Club Party – Nov. 14 – Dick & Jenny’s

•Plus, the first-ever piano night, Mardi Graski 6, the 20th annual Mardi Gras Jam, and more in late 2026/early 2027.

Started as a one-year series to showcase New Orleans music and help that city’s musicians in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, two decades later the organization and its programs have become a unique and valuable part of the area’s cultural landscape. Beyond presenting great bands of all musical styles from Louisiana to local audiences, The Big Easy in Buffalo pairs them with local professional and student musicians for joint performances and mentoring, as well as developing one-of-a-kind musical collaborations among area bands through its “Cultural Connections” series.

“When this started back in 2007 nobody ever imagined we’d be going strong two decades along,” The Big Easy in Buffalo Artistic and Executive Director Tod Kniazuk said. “That’s thanks to all the music lovers who attend the shows, all the amazing musicians from both here and Louisiana who are part of the series, and all the venues, supporters and volunteers who make it happen.”

Since 2007 The Big Easy in Buffalo has brought New Orleans and Louisiana music and culture to the Western New York region several times a year for free and low-cost live performance, as well as music education and mentoring for local musicians, students and the community. Through The Big Easy in Buffalo ,thousands of students, dozens of local bands, and countless audience members in Western New York have been exposed to this unique American culture.