Northern Lights Festival Boréal is an annual summer music festival in Sudbury, Ontario.[1] It is one of Canada's oldest continuous music festivals, having been staged every year since 1972 until the COVID-19 pandemic.[2][3]
The bilingual festival is held on the shores of Ramsey Lake at Bell Park, home of the Grace Hartman Amphitheatre.[4] A diverse program of music is presented in a variety of genres including arts, crafts and children's entertainment,[5] featuring a mix of national, international and Northern Ontario artists and performers. Musicians at the festival typically participate in concert performances and workshop sessions, collaborating with several other musicians.
In addition to the main festival, the organizing committee also sponsors concerts and other cultural events in the city throughout the year.
The festival is normally held on the first weekend in July.[6] Most commonly held over three days from Friday to Sunday, the festival at various times in its history has also taken place over one, two or four days.[2]
History
Founded by a group of volunteers in 1972, the festival incorporated in 1975 at which time artists also began to be paid for performing. The event has always been multicultural, including Ukrainian, Indian, and Croatian Canadians at the first festival, and Indigenous artists since the third.[7]
Some of the highlights over the years:
In the 1970s, Colin Linden, then 14 years old, appeared at the festival.[7]
In the 1980s, the festival was one of the first major venues to book Shania Twain, then 10 years old.[9]
The 1990 event saw the first collaborative performance by folk musicians James Keelaghan and Oscar Lopez, who later recorded two Juno Award-nominated albums together as the Compadres.[10]
In 1992, the festival was profiled in the TVOntario series Putting On the Arts.[11]
In 1999, pop singer Amanda Marshall announced a concert in the city on a date that conflicted with the festival.[12] The controversy was resolved when Marshall's promoters offered a special promotional pass that enabled ticketholders to attend both events.[12] Nevertheless, attendance at the festival fell below expectations, leaving a deficit.[13] The following year, the festival recovered by offering a smaller program.[14]
In 2017, the festival expanded its three-day schedule with a Thursday night performance devoted exclusively to Indigenous music.[15]
The Bernie Melanson Volunteer Award is also awarded annually, named after one of the festival's founding members and given to individuals or groups for longstanding or exceptional service to the festival.
Afrikelektro, The Amazing René, Bahamas, Mélanie Brulée, Collective Roots, Cindy Cook, Digging Roots, Brian Dunn, Paul Dunn, Fagroongala, Martine Fortin, Matt Foy, Anique Granger, Gypsy Kumbia Orchestra, Jennifer Holub, Les Hotêsses d’Hilaire, Hugh Jazz, François Lemieux, A. David MacKinnon, Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, Kate Maki, Mandala, Minotaurs, Murder Murder, Orkestar Kriminal, Steven Page, Pretty Archie, Chuck Roberts, Sheesham & Lotus & Son, Frederick Squire, Jeff Stewart and Community Drums, Rose-Erin Stokes, Sun K, Dwayne Trudeau, Josh Turnbull, Union Duke[2]
Afrikana Soul Sister, Afro Madness Drum Troupe, Alvvays, Andrew Queen and the Campfire Crew, Arkells, C.R. Avery, Les Barricades, BBBRTHR, Seth Bernard, Binaeshee-Quae, Black Bull Moose Singers, Bonsa, Aleksi Campagne, Canailles, Casper Skulls, David Cordero, Aron d'Alesio, Russell deCarle, Les Deuxluxes, Cécile Doo-Kingué, Matt Foy, Frank Deresti and the Lake Effect, Fresh Kils & Vekked, Jane's Party, Connie Kaldor, Doctor Nativo, Guitars Alive Quartet, Hellnback, Richard Inman, Iskwé, JoPo and the Rize, Julie and the Wrong Guys, King Abid, Kira May, The Keyframes, Édouard Landry, Abigail Lapell, Lisa Leblanc, Lee Harvey Osmond, Paul Loewenberg and Richard Mende, Pat Maloney, Mama's Broke, Rodney Meilleur, Mickey O'Brien, Murder Murder, NiLLa & Ghettosocks, Orlando Julius and Afrosoundz, Joel Plaskett and Bill Plaskett, Donné Roberts, Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, Sheesham & Lotus & Son, Sulfur City, Team T&J, Mara Tremblay, Laetitia Zonzambé
2VPlus, The 555, Chanelle Albert and the Easy Company, Tim Baker, Johnny Bizness, Jully Black, Boogat, John-Paul Chalykoff and Baabii, Ricardo Chavez, The Cicadas, DJ Shub, Jamie Dupuis, Elephantshoes, Empty House, Evangeline Gentle, James Gray, Housewife, The Human Rights, Andrew Hyatt, July Talk, Kazdoura, Land Heart Song, Edouard Landry, Zachary Lucky, Mattmac, Lynn Miles, Moskitto Bar, Evalyn Parry, Dayv Poulin, Andrew Queen and the Campfire Crew, Chuck Roberts, The Rural Alberta Advantage, Sarah Jane Scouten, Shred Kelly, Tell It to Sweeney, Jacinthe Trudeau and Jeff Wiseman, Willows
^ ab"Stan Rogers: 10 Years Gone". Ottawa Citizen, July 11, 1993.
^Barbara Hager, On Her Way: The Life and Music of Shania Twain. Berkley Boulevard, 1998. ISBN9780425164518.
^"Just your average 'Celtino' guitar duo; The unlikely fusion of Latin American and Celtic music came easily to Lopez and Keelaghan". Toronto Star, October 11, 2007.
^"Sudbury festival list was wrong". Toronto Star, June 16, 1995.
^"Summer's sounds of music All across Ontario tunefests ranging from folk and roots to global world beat are getting ready to roll". Toronto Star, June 15, 1997.
