The public is invited to attend and all proceeds will benefit Special Olympics . Everyone is also invited to the pre-show Mardi Gras activities including a Chinese ink painting demonstration by Louise Chen and handmade Mardi Gras masks by Juliet Hughes from 6 to 7 pm in the Student Union. Originating in the early part of the century, New Orleans Jazz is not to be confused with the two-beat Dixieland style. The tempo is a shade slower than the other jazz forms and the melody is always clearly heard with improvisation at its heart. Unobscured by complicated arrangements, its greatness lies in its simplicity.
Bands generally consist of five to seven pieces, with the trumpet usually the musical leader.
The musicians do not know what they will play from concert to concert beyond the opening and closing numbers. After sizing up each individual audience, the musicians decide what comes next. In It, Bill Bailey, Moonlight and Roses, Bourbon St. Parade, Just a Closer Walk With Thee, St. Louis Blues, Little Liza Jane, Careless Love, and Goin' to the Mardi Gras. Historic Preservation Hall was built as a residence in the heart of New Orleans' French Quarter around 1750 and later served as a tavern during the War of 1812. It later became a home for creative artists and writers and eventually an art gallery.