Is this the most relaxed, sheerly pleasurable jazz festival in the world? Judging by my own experience of Melbourne, it may well be—especially as the jazz, blues, and soul, mostly homegrown, are free. One prays the wildfires will not cast a literal pall over the proceedings; in any case, this is one way to show support for a people that is paying dearly for all our effluvial sins. —E.E.