Jasper Folk Music Festival runs September 11-12. Get tickets here
Ten years into the Jasper Folk Music Festival, organizers have learned a thing or two about what makes a great weekend of music in the mountains.
For the festival’s 10th edition, that means bringing back some of the artists audiences have been asking for, introducing new acts that organizers think are destined to become favourites, and keeping the event small enough that it still feels distinctly Jasper.
“We’re most excited about our lineup,” says festival executive director Cristin Murphy.
The lineup is a celebration of the festival’s first decade, with several returning artists selected, in part, because Jasper audiences asked for them.
Festival organizers turned to their social media followers to find out who they wanted to see again. They couldn’t accommodate every suggestion, Murphy says, but the responses helped shape the lineup alongside the favourites of the festival’s board.
Among the returning acts are Sweet Alibi and Leeroy Stagger, along with Moontricks and The Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer.
Then there are the artists Murphy expects could become the next generation of Jasper favourites.
Chief among them is Alison Russell, who Murphy calls a personal favourite and a favourite of much of the festival board.
“She’s going to blow people away,” Murphy says.
Russell has a history with Jasper, having previously performed in town at the Olive Bistro as Birds of Chicago. Before that, she was part of the band Po’ Girl. More recently, she has toured as an opening act for Sarah McLachlan, as well as on her own.
Murphy caught Russell performing in Toronto in 2024, shortly before the Jasper wildfire, when she opened for McLachlan.
“She’s spectacular,” Murphy says.
Russell will headline Friday night, while Moontricks will take the headliner spot Saturday. Murphy says both are technically headliners, with each taking the top billing on their respective nights.
The festival’s lineup also includes Miina, Nova Scotia’s Mama’s Broke and Wyatt C. Louis, along with a strong contingent of local and regional performers.
Jasper’s Northbound Train, Matt Cushing and Warrior Women will all take the stage, while Greetings will provide DJ sets between performances and host the Saturday night After Dark party at the Olive Bistro.
The Brass Tactics will also return for an After Dark party Friday at the Athabasca Hotel, following the success of both events last year.
There will be a new generation of performers on the bill, too.
The Ducks, a youth band from Canmore, will make their first appearance at the Jasper festival. Murphy says the group came onto the festival’s radar through some Jasper youth who spent a year in Canmore following the wildfire.
There’s even a family connection: Murphy’s cousin is the music teacher in Canmore who teaches the members of The Ducks.
For younger festivalgoers, Captain Thunderpants is back for his third year.
Taken together, Murphy says, the lineup should offer a mix of artists that longtime festivalgoers already love and performers who may be new discoveries.
“I feel like it’ll be a really nice mix of kind of old favourites and I think soon-to-be favourites,” she says.
A festival that still feels like Jasper
The music is the obvious draw, but Murphy says what sets the Jasper Folk Music Festival apart is its scale and atmosphere.
She describes it as family-friendly, safe and welcoming — a smaller festival experience for people who might find some of the larger music festivals overwhelming.
“Lots of Jasper locals are there,” she says.
That local participation is particularly important because of the festival’s timing.
Held in September, the event gives Jasper residents a chance to enjoy their own community after the intensity of the summer season.
Murphy says the festival is intended to be a place where locals and visitors can come together, listen to great music and enjoy the mountain setting without the crowds and scale of a much larger festival.
“It’s a smaller local festival,” she says, “and just to have a spectacular mountain view while you’re listening to amazing music.”
The weekend begins Friday evening with the festival parade before moving to the festival grounds for the opening performances.
The festival will once again offer activities beyond the music, including food vendors, artisans, yoga and meditation opportunities throughout the day.
The festival needs Jasper, too
As the festival prepares for its 10th edition, Murphy says one of the most important ingredients isn’t something that appears on the poster.
It’s volunteers.
The festival had a more difficult time recruiting volunteers last year, which Murphy attributes in part to the challenges of putting on the first festival following the 2024 wildfire.
This year, organizers are hoping to rebuild that volunteer base.
“We’re still looking for volunteers,” Murphy says. “That’s something that’s kind of always critical.”
It’s fitting that the festival’s 10th edition is emphasizing both its history and its community.
After a decade, Jasper Folk Music Festival has accumulated returning artists, returning audiences and its own traditions. But the event is still looking ahead, bringing in young performers, introducing new artists and creating new reasons for people to come out.
And for Murphy, that may be the most exciting part of all.
“I’m excited about every band,” she says. “Some of these are just extra, because we’ve seen them before and we have a relationship with them.”
For a festival celebrating its first 10 years, that combination — familiar favourites, new discoveries and a strong connection to the community that hosts it — seems like a pretty good place to start the next decade.
Bob Covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com
