Lakeshore Music & Arts Festival parade will take place June 20th to mark the opening of the two day event

By Pepper Parr

May 20th, 2026

BURLINGTON, ON

It’s on!

The parade that was the start of the now-defunct Sound of Music event will take place on June 20th at 10:00 am.

That will mark the opening of the Lakeshore Music & Arts Festival, a free, two-day outdoor celebration taking place June 20–21, 2026, at Burlington’s Spencer Smith Park.

Set along the city’s waterfront, the festival will come alive as a vibrant, multi-stage experience featuring nationally celebrated Canadian artists, emerging performers, local artisans, an extensive selection of food trucks, and engaging family-friendly programming. Lakeshore is poised to become one of Ontario’s premier outdoor music and cultural events for years to come.

Local bands, including the Burlington Teen Tour Band and Burlington Junior Redcoats, Top Hat Marching Orchestra, Halton Region Police Service Board Pipes and Drum Band, Crash Rhythm will be featured, along with entries from community organizations.

The parade route will begin near Central Arena on Caroline Street at Drury Lane and continue to Brant Street, ending at Baldwin Street.

Burlington Teen Tour Band

The Burlington Teen Tour Band Boosters will be collecting non-perishable food items and donations for the Burlington Food Bank along the route.

Organized by MRG Live, the festival runs June 20–21, 2026, and will feature more than 30 local and Canadian artists, highlighted by headlining performances from Walk Off the Earth, The Trews, Katie Tupper and The Dirty Nil across a dynamic weekend of live music and arts programming.

The festival is free to attend, with optional paid VIP experiences available.

Having a summer music festival began to look a little iffy when city staff came to the conclusion that the Sound of Music team was not going to be able to hold the event. Most members of Council wanted something to take place and set aside a large sum of money for whoever would put on a festival. MRG Live came out of nowhere with a proposal city staff were stunned with.  They moved mountains to make it happen.

Now the public gets to see what MRG is capable of doing.  They decided to start with a two-day event (they have a multi-year contract with the city) and decide if they can grow it to become what the Sound of Music used to be.