Calgary Folk Fest making a comeback with live concert series this summer
As recommended by health officials, if you choose to participate in events outside of your home, please adhere to COVID-19 health and safety measures, including proper physical distancing, mask-wearing, and frequent handwashing. If you are sick, please stay home.
One of Calgary’s beloved summer music festivals has announced its return in 2021 after being put on hold last year due to the pandemic.
Calgary Folk Music Festival (Folk Fest) will be bringing its 42nd annual event back to Prince’s Island Park at the end of July with a concert series called Summer Serenades; however, programming will look a little different this year.
The festival will run for seven days instead of the usual three, and concerts will be presented on the main stage only. Some of Folk Fest’s typical amenities, such as the family area, artisan market, and day stages, will not be present at the 2021 event.
- See also:
Programming will run each evening from July 22 to 28, plus afternoon shows on the Saturday and Sunday. The lineup features Canadian artists such as Dan Mangan, Cowboy Junkies, Shad, The Jim Cuddy Band, Julian Taylor, Tom Wilson and iskwē, Blake Reid Band, and many more.
Summer Serenades will allow audiences a chance to chill under the big Alberta sky while enjoying the diverse live concerts that Folk Fest is known for. This year, instead of haphazardly tossing your blanket or chair on the grass (aka “Tarp City”), audience members will be seated on “home base” tarps with cohorts in designated zones.
There will be a two-metre distance between each home base, and one ticket allows for up to four adults and two children on a tarp space.
With capacity reduced to 15% of the event’s usual audience, Calgary Folk Fest noted in a media release that Summer Serenades is a “small step on the road to recovery for the festival, live music, and the arts.”
For those who would rather view the lineup from the comfort of their own couch, live Summer Serenades programming, along with interviews and archival Folk Fest footage, will be streamed virtually.
Tickets for Summer Serenades go on sale at 10 am on June 18. The return of this popular event combined with the limited capacity means that home base tarps could sell out quickly, so jump on this as soon as you can.
The full line-up, schedules, and tickets can be found on the Calgary Folk Fest website.
Calgary Folk Music Festival: Summer Serenades
When: July 22 to 28
Where: Prince’s Island Park
Tickets: Tarp spaces available from $100 to $500 (applies to a maximum of four adults and two children). Tickets go on sale at 10 am on June 18.
Follow Channels and Categories