Edmonton Music & Speech Arts Festival

Edmonton Music & Speech Arts Festival The first music festival held in North America was held in Edmonton in 1908. It was started by 3 men: In 1908, Lieutenant Governor George H.V.

Bulyea announced a music competition should be held in Edmonton. He, Vernon Barford, and Howard Stutchbury struck a committee and the first music festival in Canada was born. It took place May 5, 1908 in All Saints’ School Room — later to be All Saints’ Anglican Cathedral. It drew talent from Cardston to Edmonton and was cited by journalists as “the greatest musical event that western Canada has e

ver known”. It had 100 entries, 11 classes, and three trophies. The final concert was held in the Thistle Curling Rink and, among its performers, was a 200-voice choir conducted by Vernon Barford. Edmonton’s festival was the only one of its kind in Canada to operate during the war. In the early 1940s, folk dance and speech were added. It was during that time that Sir Ernest MacMillan, Canadian composer and member of the faculty of the Toronto Conservatory of Music, announced that monies should be spent on music festivals to combat crime and keep boys out of reformatories. The Edmonton Music Festival hit its stride in the 1950s. It was then that many Edmonton musicians, still living and playing in the city, competed. As well, the likes of Robert Goulet sang in our Festival. He received a mark of 84! In 1963, the Edmonton Kiwanis took over sponsorship, and it became known as the Edmonton Kiwanis Music Festival. The Kiwanis Club of Edmonton ended its 56-year relationship with the Festival in 2019. It is now known as the Edmonton Music & Speech Arts Festival. We have come a long way since 1908 mostly due to the Kiwanis Club of Edmonton and Executive Directors Cora Molstad, Paul J. Bourret, and Heather Bedford-Clooney — all of whom are in the City of Edmonton’s Arts & Culture Hall of Fame. We now have over 1,700 entries, and over 20,000 participants. The event runs an average of 21 days in several venues. We have classes in voice, musical theatre, speech arts, piano, strings, woodwinds, brass, harp, choirs, school music, and bands. May we be healthy and continue serving musicians and speech students for years to come!

06/02/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Adeline Su on receiving first place in Class 753

06/01/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Kaline Tan on receiving first place in Class 804

05/31/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Jada Sharp on receiving first place in Class 403

05/30/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Dongping Zhang on receiving first place in Class 301

05/30/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Aliya Guay on receiving first place in Class 502

05/29/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Nautica-Pearl Lehocky on receiving first place in Class 304

05/29/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Nautica-Pearl Lehocky on receiving first place in Class 320

05/28/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Heinreich Schmuhl on receiving first place in Class 312

05/28/2026

FIRST PLACE - Congratulations to Matthew Craig on receiving first place in Class 314

05/27/2026

Congratulations to the St. Vincent Choir Gr. 4-6 from Edmonton, conducted by Charlotte Burrowes, on their FIRST PLACE win at the 2026 Alberta Provincial Music Festival. BRAVO!

Address

9125 50 Street NW
Edmonton, AB
T6B2H3

Telephone

+17806333821

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