List of blues festivals in Canada explained

This is a list of blues festivals in Canada. These festivals—which celebrate Canadian blues music, and often times roots music as well—range from small, community-based festivals that feature mostly local performers, to major corporate-sponsored festivals that draw nationally and internationally-prominent blues musicians.

Some of the larger festivals in Canada include the Ottawa Bluesfest, Bluesfest Windsor, the Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival in Fredericton, Tremblant International Blues Festival in Mont-Tremblant, and the Edmonton's Labatt Blues Festival. These festivals, which are usually organized by volunteer-based blues societies, are an important part of the Canadian blues scene.

List

British Columbia

Burnaby Blues + Roots Festival — August in Burnaby^[1]
Harbour Blues 'N Roots Festival (formerly Vancouver Island Blues Bash) — Labour Day weekend in Victoria^[2]
Hornby Island Blues Workshop — May in Hornby Island^[3]
Pender Harbour Blues Festival — early June in Pender Harbour^[4]
Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival — August in Salmon Arm, in B.C. Interior^[5]
Summertime Blues Festival — August in Nanaimo^[6]

Alberta

Beaumont Blues & Roots Festival — June (previously Labour Day weekend) in Beaumont^[7]
Calgary International Blues Festival — summer in Calgary^[8]
- Calgary Midwinter Bluesfest — February in Calgary^[9]
Edmonton Blues Festival — August in Edmonton

Saskatchewan

Regina Blues Association’s Mid-Winter Blues Festival — in Regina^[10]
Saskatoon Blues Festival — end of February in Saskatchewan^[11]

Manitoba

Great Woods Music Festival — August in Beausejour^[12]
Winnipeg BBQ & Blues Festival — August in Winnipeg^[13] ^[14]

Ontario

Aurora Winter Blues Festival — in Aurora^[15]
Barrie Jazz and Blues Festival — June (2nd weekend) in Barrie^[16]
- The February Blues — February in Barrie^[17]
Bluesfest International — July in Windsor and London
Bluesfest Windsor — July in Windsor^[18]
Boon's House Blues & Roots Festival — July in Hamilton
Burlington Jazz & Blues Festival — July in Burlington^[19]
Canal Bank Shuffle — October in Thorold^[20]
Capitol Centre's Bluesfest — in North Bay^[21] ^[22]
Coal Flats Blues Festival — September in Port Burwell^[23]
Escarpment Blues Festival — mid-July in Milton^[24]
Kitchener Blues Festival — August in Kitchener^[25]
Limestone City Blues Festival — late August in Kingston^[26]
London Blues Festival — August in London^[27]
Mudcat Blues Fest — August in Dunnville
Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival — first weekend of June in Orangeville^[28]
Orillia Spring Blues Festival — Orillia^[29]
Oshawa Jazz and Blues Festival — August in Oshawa^[30]
Ottawa Bluesfest — July in Ottawa
Paisley Blues Fest — June (1st weekend) in Paisley, Ontario^[31]
Porquis Blues Festival — early July in Porquis^[32]
Port Credit Blues and Jazz Festival (also called the "Southside Shuffle") — early September in Port Credit, Mississauga^[33]
Stratford Blues and Ribfest — June in Stratford^[34]
Thunder Bay Blues Festival — July in Thunder Bay^[35]
Toronto BluesFest — June in Toronto^[36]
Twisted Pines Blues Festival — May in the Midland/Penetanguishene area^[37]
Wasaga Beach Blues — September in Wasaga Beach^[38]
Winterfolk Blues & Roots Festival — in Toronto^[39]
Women in the Wilds Blues Festival — September in Atikokan, Northwestern Ontario^[40]

Quebec

— April in Chicoutimi^[41]
West Island Blues Festival — June in Pierrefonds/Roxboro, Island of Montreal^[42]
Montreal International Jazz Festival (Blues Stage) — June in Montreal^[43]
Tremblant International Blues Festival — July in Mont-Tremblant^[44]
Sherblues & Folk — July in Sherbrooke^[45]
— August in Saint-Laurent-de-l'Île-d'Orléans^[46]
— August in Saint-Sauveur^[47]
Festival de Blues de Donnacona — August in Donnacona^[48]
Trois-Rivières en Blues — August in Trois-Rivières^[49]
Festival de Blues de Joliette — October in Joliette^[50]

Atlantic Canada

Dutch Mason Blues Festival — August in Truro, Nova Scotia^[51]
Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival — September in Fredericton, New Brunswick
Wreckhouse International Jazz & Blues Festival — early July in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador^[52]
Blues d'la Baie — July (3rd weekend) in Petit-Rocher, New Brunswick^[53]

Notes and References

Web site: Burnaby Blues + Roots Festival. Burnabybluesfestival.com. June 9, 2021.
Web site: Harbour Blues 'n Roots – Victoria Jazz Society . 2022-07-31 . en-US.
http://www.hornby-blues.bc.ca/ Hornby Island Blues Workshop
http://www.penderharbourbluesfestival.com/ Pender Harbour Blues Festival
http://www.rootsandblues.ca/ Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival
http://www.nanaimobluesfestival.com/ Summertime Blues Festival
http://www.beaumontblues.net/ Beaumont Blues & Roots Festival
http://www.calgarybluesfest.com/ Calgary International Blues Festival
Web site: Midwinter Blues – Calgary International Blues Festival . 2022-07-31 . en-US.
Web site: Regina Blues Association . 2022-07-31 . Regina Blues Association . en.
http://www.saskatoonbluessociety.ca/ Saskatoon Blues Festival
http://www.greatwoodspark.com/Festival-greatwoods/index.htm Great Woods Music Festival
Web site: Ltd . True North Sports & Entertainment . Winnipeg BBQ & Blues Festival . 2022-07-30 . Burton Cummings Theatre for the Performing Arts . en-CA.
Web site: Lizard . Visual . BBQ and Blues Festival . 2022-07-30 . www.tourismwinnipeg.com . en.
Web site: Aurora Winter Blues Festival Where music connects . 2022-07-31 . en.
http://www.barriejazzbluesfest.com/ Barrie Jazz and Blues Festival
Web site: The February Blues Festival . 2022-07-31 . www.barriejazzbluesfest.com.
http://www.bluesfestwindsor.com/ Bluesfest Windsor
http://www.burlingtonjazzbluesfestival.ca/ Burlington Jazz & Blues Festival
http://www.canalbankshuffle.com/ Canal Bank Shuffle
Web site: Capitol Centre announces the return of Bluesfest . 2022-07-31 . BayToday.ca . en.
Web site: 2021-07-29 . Bluesfest makes its return . 2022-07-31 . My North Bay Now . en-CA.
http://www.coalflatsblues.com/ Coal Flats Blues Festival
http://www.escarpmentblues.ca/ Escarpment Blues Festival
http://www.kitchenerbluesfestival.com/ Kitchener Blues Festival
http://www.kingstonblues.com/ Limestone City Blues Festival
http://www.londonbluesfest.com/ London Blues Festival
http://www.orangevillebluesandjazz.ca/ Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival
http://www.orilliaspringblues.com/ Orillia Spring Blues Festival
http://www.oshawajazzandbluesfestival.com/ Oshawa Jazz and Blues Festival
http://www.paisleyrocks.com/the-artists.html Paisley Blues Fest
http://www.porquis.ca/web-content/ Porquis Blues Festival
http://www.southsideshuffle.com/ "Southside Shuffle"
http://www.stratfordbluesandribfest.ca/ Stratford Blues and Ribfest
http://www.tbayblues.ca/ Thunder Bay Blues Festival
Web site: Toronto BluesFest . 2023-03-27 . en-US.
http://www.twistedpines.com/ Twisted Pines Blues Festival
http://www.wasagabeachblues.com/ Wasaga Beach Blues
Web site: 2020-12-18 . Winterfok XX . 2022-07-31 . Winterfolk XX . en-US.
http://www.atikokanarts.ca/ Women in the Wilds Blues Festival
http://jazzetblues.com/ Festival de Jazz et Blues de Saguenay
http://www.westislandbluesfestival.com/home.html West Island Blues Festival
https://web.archive.org/web/20160301073455/http://www.montrealjazzfest.com/default-en.aspx Montreal International Jazz Festival
http://www.tremblantblues.com/home/ Tremblant International Blues Festival
http://sherblues.ca/ Sherblues & Folk
http://www.lileenblues.ca/programmation.html l'Ile en Blues
http://nuitsblues.ca/ Les Nuits Blues Laurentides
http://www.donnaconablues.com/ Festival de Blues de Donnacona
http://3renblues.com/ Trois-Rivières en Blues
http://www.centrevilledejoliette.qc.ca/october-blues Festival de Blues de Joliette
Web site: NameBright - Coming Soon. Dutchmason.com. June 9, 2021.
Web site: Wreckhouse International Jazz & Blues Events . 2013-03-31 . 2013-06-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130625193707/http://wreckhousejazzandblues.com/ . dead .
Web site: Festival Blues d'la Baie 21 au 23 juillet 2022 . 2022-07-31 . Blues d’la Baie . fr.