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Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival by the numbers

May 28, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

Now in its 22nd year, the Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival has grown from a passion project backed by a personal bank loan into one of Ontario’s most celebrated music events.

What began in June of 2003 with five volunteers and roughly 2,000 attendees has grown into a three-day downtown showcase drawing more than 40,000 and featuring over 200 performers across three stages. The event generates an estimated $1.5 million in local economic impact, and the festival has appeared on Festivals and Events Ontario’s Top 100 list for 13 consecutive years.

Festival founder and director Larry Kurtz sat down with the Citizen to share the figures behind the scenes — the volunteers, the budget pressures, the performers travelling from coast to coast, and what it truly takes to keep the music playing year after year.

With a $300,000 operating budget, a volunteer army of 240, and a weekend ticket price of just $40, the Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival is, by any measure, a remarkable community undertaking. Here’s a look at the event — by the numbers.

Over 200 performers

More than 200 performers make up the over 40 acts performing at this year’s festival. All of the acts are Canadian, flying in from coast to coast, and everywhere in between. The only exception is a blues band from Malta called Violent Paradise.

“There’s a mix of acoustic music and electric music,” said Kurtz. “If you like quieter acoustic, you can find that in the Opera House, and if you like the rock and blues bands, you’ll see them out on the TD Main Stage and out on the street.”

He added that the lineup features a diverse array of talent, from young emerging artists and local community bands to well-established headlining acts.

Seven JUNO winners and nominees

Four JUNO Award winners and three nominees are set to perform at this year’s Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival. Winners Emilie Claire Barlow, Steve Marriner, Paul James and Morgan Davis will take the stage alongside nominees Miss Emily, Blackburn Brothers and Alex Pangman.

“Friday night headliner Paul James is a legendary Canadian act, also a JUNO Award winner, who played with Bob Dylan and Bo Diddley,” said Kurtz. “Steve Mariner just won a JUNO for his blues music this year in Canada. Miss Emily was also nominated. She’s headlining on Saturday. They were both up against each other in the same category.”

He added, “There are some legendary acts for sure, and just high-quality performances throughout the festival.”

Age of performers – 15 to 80-plus

The Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival’s lineup spans generations — from local high school students taking the stage for the first time to seasoned veterans with decades of experience. This year’s performers range in age from 15 to 80-plus.

250-plus instruments

An estimated 250 guitars, horns, keyboards, and other musical instruments will move through the festival grounds over the course of the weekend, with several performers playing multiple.

“There’s going to be in the low hundreds of instruments being chucked around for the weekend, for sure,” said Kurtz.

40,000-plus attendees

While the Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival started with roughly 2,000 attendees, it now welcomes more than 40,000 over the three days it runs.

For many, the festival is as much a social tradition as it is a music event.

“It’s kind of like old home week,” said Kurtz. “People have been cooped up all winter, and they can reconnect with everybody. It’s a great social hangout for the weekend for sure.”

Three stages

The Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival’s TD Broadway Stage brings free live music to the downtown core — and on the evening of Friday, June 5, Broadway comes alive with classic cars filling the street for the annual Blues Cruise. On Sunday, June 7, the annual Blues and Bikes event will fill Broadway with motorcycles.

“I always like to feel the bands that are performing out on the street could also be on the main stage. The quality is still high – it just happens to be where they’re performing,” said Kurtz.

The festival’s two ticketed stages, featuring an assortment of headliners, are the Opera House and TD Main Stage in Alexandra Park.

Alexandra Park holds up to 2,500 ticketholders per day, while the Opera House seats 260. The TD Broadway Stage has no formal capacity, and during the Blues Cruise alone, an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people fill the street.

“I hope people enjoy the experience and what a beautiful town we have. Having it in the downtown, it’s like a real showcase for the town — there’s an energy you can feel when the festival’s on,” Kurtz said.

Nine event venues

The festival extends well beyond its three main stages, with nine venues hosting musicians throughout the weekend. From craft breweries, historic churches and restaurants to live music bars, there’s no shortage of places to enjoy — or extend the night after the main stages go dark.

The following event venues are participating this year: Orangeville Best Western Plus, Westminster United Church, Black Birch Restaurant, Barley Vine Rail Co., Revival 1863, Josie’s Taphouse, Vesuvio’s, Lightcaster Brewery, Orangeville Public Library, and Broadway Beat.

56 hours of programming

The Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival features 56 hours of programming this year, across all of its stages, workshops, and events. There are 21 hours of programming at the TD Main Stage, 10 hours at the Opera House, and 16 hours at the TD Broadway Stage. Blues and Bikes, Broadway Ramble and the Blues Cruise run for 12 hours altogether, and there are three hours of workshops to enjoy.

13 Years on Festivals and Events Ontario’s Top 100 List

The Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival has earned a place on Festivals and Events Ontario’s Top 100 list for 13 consecutive years. It’s a significant accomplishment when considering the number of qualifying festivals and events held in the province each year.

“That’s not just music festivals, that’s all festivals,” said Kurtz. “I think there’s like 2,500 festivals in Ontario for different types of events, so for us to be in the top 100… that is really quite an honour.”

$1.5 Million in economic impact
The Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival generates an estimated $1.5 million in local economic impact each year, calculated using the provincial model for festival assessment. The figure factors in hotel stays and increased spending at local businesses and restaurants throughout the weekend.
“Being a nonprofit, the money stays in the community — it’s not being siphoned out anywhere else,” said Kurtz. “The economic impact is very locally felt.”

$300,000 budget

Organizing one of Ontario’s top music festivals isn’t cheap. It costs approximately $300,000 to produce the Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival each year, funded through a combination of ticket sales, beer sales, sponsorships, grants, and donations. The festival spends over $80,000 of that directly with local suppliers on products and services.

The financial pressure is real. Grants are down this year compared to last, and costs continue to rise, making community support more critical than ever.

“I just don’t want people to take it for granted that the festival will always be there,” said Kurtz. “It takes constant attention to raise the money and to keep the quality high.”

Costs for patrons remain low, with full weekend passes at $40 and single-day passes ranging from $10 to $30.

“Where can you go for $40 and that’s the whole weekend? That’s like one show somewhere else for one act,” said Kurtz of the festival’s value.

240-plus volunteers

Behind every great festival is a dedicated group of volunteers — and the Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival is powered by hundreds of them.

Volunteer coordinator Norm Trudeau leads a team of 240 people organized into 12 teams, covering everything from food and beverage to stage crew, merchandise, admissions, and the festival’s beloved Roust About Team (RATS), who handle setup and teardown. About half of the volunteers return year after year, with some involved since the festival’s early days.

“It’s a lot of fun,” said Kurtz of the festival’s volunteers. “You’re going to meet lifelong friends doing this… some people have done it for over 20 years… it’s a great way to give back to the community.”

Volunteers also get up-close access to world-class music, a strong sense of community, and a celebratory appreciation party after the festival wraps. High school students can count their hours toward community service requirements.

Anyone aged 14 to 95 is welcome to get involved.

To sign up, visit orangevillebluesandjazz.ca/volunteer or contact Trudeau at Norm@orangevillebluesandjazz.ca or 647-281-1575.

“If a person wants to become a volunteer [during the festival], all they have to do is go to our main Volunteer Centre at the gazebo in Alexandra Park, and we’ll put you to work,” said Trudeau.

4,100 volunteer service hours

The total hours logged annually by all festival volunteers and the board of directors combined is approximately 4,100, and that clock starts well before festival weekend.

As Kurtz puts it, “It’s pretty well year-round now.” Official board meetings run from September through July, but the work of organizing, fundraising, and planning continues well beyond those sessions.

Trudeau noted one of the main benefits of getting involved.

“The real big advantage of being a volunteer is you get to be up close and personal to the music — and the music is what the festival is all about,” he said.

Six local organizations

The Orangeville Blues and Jazz Festival draws volunteer support from six local organizations. Students from ODSS, Westside Secondary School, and Georgian College lend their time to the festival, while community members who volunteer with the Orangeville Food Bank, the Optimist Club, and the Lions Club also pitch in on festival weekend.

“It really is a fantastic experience for any demographic,” said Trudeau.

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