Toussaint, Lewis, Schurr to headline multi-venue Jazz Fest

It's easy to think of Indy Jazz Fest as that big event in Broad Ripple Park (and, in earlier years, in downtown parks).

But while that omnibus entertainment day will still be happening on Sept. 21, it caps a series of events that actually begins the first weekend of August with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and a who's who of local talent as part of the Symphony on the Prairie series.

September events that will be part of the festival proper include Allen Toussaint at the Schrott Center for the Arts; Ramsey Lewis at the Madame Walker Theatre; Diane Schuur at the Cabaret at the Columbia Club; Brian Nova at the Jazz Kitchen; Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra and Zach Lapidus Trio at the Indiana Landmarks Center; Eddie Palmeiri at the Indianapolis Museum of Art; and a CD release party with American Pianists Association Fellow Aaron Diehl at the Jazz Kitchen.

The schedule can be found here. More events will be announced as September gets closer.

New events include a "pub creep," mixing jazz and beer with a stop at a different brewery each night from Sept. 16-19.

So what do you think of the offerings announced so far?