The Winnipeg Folk Festival is a non-profit charitable organization with an annual summer folk music festival held in Birds Hill Provincial Park, near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The festival features a variety of artists and music from around the world as well as a number of local artists.
Begun by Mitch Podolak, Colin Gorrie, and Ava Kobrinsky in 1974 as a celebration of Winnipeg's centennial, the festival itself has grown into an annual event exceeding 70,000 attendees. The festival is held over the second weekend of July, beginning on Thursday night and running through to Sunday night.
Beyond the four-day festival, the organization offers year-round concert programming at venues throughout the city bringing in artists as well as organizing free concert programming throughout the city.
Music The festival offers a wide selection of music over the four-day festival. Throughout the year the organization facilitates the Hear All Year concert series.
Festival programming There is a large variety of music at the festival, including bluegrass, blues, Celtic, indie folk, folk rock, roots, Americana, French Canadian, contemporary singer-songwriters, and a variety of children's performers. Every year artists join the lineup from all over North America and across the world. The Winnipeg Folk Festival hosts over 70 artists annually from nearly 10 different countries including Australia, Colombia, Iceland, Ireland, Mexico, Netherlands, Niger, United Kingdom, and more with the majority of the acts coming from Canada and the United States.
The festival showcases several genres every summer. Past performers include Bahamas, Joan Baez, Barenaked Ladies, Courtney Barnett, Blue Rodeo, Oscar Brand, Brandi Carlile, Bruce Cockburn, City and Colour, Sheryl Crow, Ray Davies, Death Cab for Cutie, Elle King, Mimi Farina, Feist, Fleet Foxes, Stephane Grappelli, Great Big Sea, Arlo Guthrie, Half Moon Run, Emmylou Harris, Levon Helm, John Hiatt, Japanese Breakfast, K'naan, k.d. lang, Lyle Lovett, Nick Lowe, Natalie MacMaster, Jason Mraz, Kacey Musgraves, Odetta, Passenger, Pete Seeger, Stan Rogers, The Shins, The Strumbellas, Sudan Archives, Jeff Tweedy, Townes van Zandt, Kurt Vile, Weyes Blood, and Wilco.
Each year the Winnipeg Folk Festival showcases local Manitoba talent. Past local performers include Begonia, Boniface, The Bros. Landreth, John K. Samson, Leonard Sumner, Living Hour, Richard Inman, Roger Roger, Royal Canoe, William Prince and more.
History Winnipeg Centennial Folksong Festival, 1974 The first Winnipeg folk festival was held August 9–11, 1974 at Birds Hill Provincial Park. The free concert was staged with funding from the Centennial Committee and the CBC. The event depended on the collective work of many local volunteers so the organizers developed an organizational structure that embodied their philosophy that everyone contributing was a significant participant. Subsequent events built on the foundation of this initial idea creating a model that heavily influenced the operation of other similar festivals in Canada, particularly the Vancouver Folk Music Festival and the Edmonton Folk Music Festival.
Performers at the first festival included:
Honorary members Mitch Podolak (Founder/Director/Artistic Director), 1974–1975 Colin Gorrie (Founder), 1974–1975 Ava Kobrinsky (Founder), 1976–1989 Nate Nurgitz (Board Legal Advisor), 1975–85 Bill Merritt (Business/general manager), 1977–1994 Jon Singleton (Past Treasurer), 1978–1987
Past Executive Directors Trudy Schroeder, 1999–2008 Tamara Kater, 2008–2011
Past Artistic Directors Mitch Podolak, 1974–1986 Rosalie Goldstein, 1987–1991 Pierre Guérin, 1992–2000 Rick Fenton, 2001–2004
Past President and Chairs Peter Stringham, 1976–1979 Greg Brunskill, 1980 Derek Black, 1981–1987 Jane Graham, 1988–1990 David Asper, 1991–1992 Michael Handler, 1993–1995 Brenda Prosken, 1996–1998 Gloria Koop, 1999–2000 Gerry Couture, 2001–2002 Sandra Altner 2003–2004 Terry Sargeant 2005–2009 Allan Finkel 2010–2011 Gerry Couture, 2012 Mike Baudic, 2012–2015 Karen-Denise Cyr, 2015–2017
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