New Ontario waterfront festival marks major change as Sound of Music era ends

The long-running Sound of Music Festival — once billed as Canada’s largest free outdoor music festival — has given way to a new waterfront event, marking a major shift in one of Ontario’s most recognizable summer traditions.

This weekend, Spencer Smith Park in Burlington will host the inaugural Lakeshore Music and Arts Festival, a scaled-back but still ambitious two-day celebration that organizers hope can carry forward the city’s live music legacy while introducing a new identity for the waterfront.

The change comes after financial pressures and funding shortfalls led to the end of the previous festival model, which for decades drew massive crowds to Burlington’s downtown core and lakefront. While the new event continues the tradition of free admission, it is being positioned differently, with a stronger emphasis on curated programming, local talent and a more compact footprint.

Organizers behind the Lakeshore Music and Arts Festival describe it as a multi-stage cultural event featuring Canadian artists, emerging performers, artisans, food vendors and family programming. Set for June 20 and 21, the festival is expected to draw tens of thousands of attendees each day, though likely on a smaller scale than the Sound of Music’s peak years.

Despite the transition, familiar elements remain. A downtown parade — long considered a signature part of Burlington’s summer music identity — is still taking place on Saturday morning. The parade, featuring marching bands and youth ensembles, will travel through parts of the downtown before festival programming ramps up at the waterfront.

This year’s festival lineup leans heavily into Canadian talent, with Burlington’s own Walk Off the Earth headlining Saturday night at Spencer Smith Park. The group is scheduled to take the main stage at 9 p.m., a hometown performance that organizers have highlighted as a cornerstone of the inaugural event.

Sunday night’s headliner is The Trews, continuing a weekend that also includes performances from indie, rock and hip-hop artists such as Stuck on Planet Earth, The Dirty Nil, Katie Tupper and others spread across two stages in the park.

While the musical programming remains diverse, the scale is more concentrated than the former Sound of Music Festival, which in past years stretched over multiple days and multiple city blocks, and attracted hundreds of thousands of attendees over its run.

The new festival is being operated by MRG Live, a national event company that has emphasized a focus on Ontario-based artists and emerging acts who may not typically access large waterfront stages. Organizers say hundreds of performers applied for a limited number of spots, reflecting strong demand from the local music community.

Even with its new branding, comparisons to the Sound of Music Festival are unavoidable. For decades, the Burlington event was a major cultural fixture, bringing international and Canadian headliners to the lakefront and helping define the city’s summer identity. Its cancellation followed rising production costs and declining public funding support, leaving city officials to search for a replacement model.

City officials have framed the Lakeshore Music and Arts Festival as a continuation “in spirit” of the waterfront tradition, but with a more sustainable structure going forward. That includes a shorter schedule, streamlined programming and a broader arts component that extends beyond music.

Still, questions remain about whether the new festival can replicate the cultural and economic impact of its predecessor. The Sound of Music Festival was not only a major tourism draw but also a longstanding symbol of Burlington’s identity, built over more than 40 years of free summer concerts.

Early indications suggest the Lakeshore festival will be more modest in scale, though organizers say it is designed with long-term growth in mind. Future editions will likely depend on attendance, funding support and how well the new format is received by residents and visitors.

For now, Burlington is entering a new chapter on its waterfront — one that blends familiar traditions like the parade and lakeside concerts with a reshaped vision of what a major summer music festival can look like in a changing economic landscape.