Guelph Musicfest 2026 — Season 20 - Guelph, ON

This festival has ended. Looking for something happening now?

🎹 Guelph Musicfest 📅 May 22 – June 19, 2026 📍 Guelph Youth Music Centre 🏆 20th Anniversary Season 🎥 Live & Online options

Guelph Musicfest 2026 — Season 20

Twenty years on, Guelph Musicfest still feels like a beautifully kept secret. Five Friday-evening chamber concerts (plus a Thornbury bonus) running May 22 to June 19, 2026 at the Guelph Youth Music Centre — a small, gorgeous-sounding recital hall where the playing is world-class and you can usually shake the artist’s hand at intermission.

This anniversary season is a strong one: Stewart Goodyear playing the complete Goldberg Variations. The JUNO-winning Gryphon Trio. The Penderecki String Quartet celebrating their 40th. A wild Klezmer-jazz crossover ensemble featuring the TSO’s principal clarinet. The Festival Trio with violinist Sadie Fields (a Guelph native now leading the Edinburgh String Quartet). Crowd-sourced, no government funding, just music for music’s sake.

🎹 Chamber music 🎸 Klezmer-jazz fusion 🎲 Solo piano recital 🎻 String quartet 🎥 HD video replays 🎔 Student pricing

🎫 Buy Single Tickets Official Website →

💡 Can’t make it in person? Every live ticket includes a 7-day HD video replay, or grab an Online-only Series for $75 — one ticket covers the whole household.

✨ Why This Festival Is Worth Your Time

If you live anywhere in southern Ontario and you love chamber music, Guelph Musicfest is one of the great low-key pleasures of the spring. It’s the kind of festival where Toronto-tier artists drive out to play in a 250-ish-seat hall with acoustics that show off every detail of what they’re doing.

It’s also unusually personal. Artistic director and pianist Ken Gee runs the whole thing himself — the bookings, the website, the ticket emails — and you can tell. Programs feel curated rather than assembled, and the festival has built a loyal audience that comes back year after year.

For 2026, the lineup leans into the anniversary. Two JUNO-winning ensembles, an internationally acclaimed solo pianist, a Klezmer-jazz crossover that’s been selling out festivals nationwide, and a homecoming for Guelph-raised violinist Sadie Fields. It’s a strong season by any measure.

📅 What’s On: The 2026 Schedule

Five Friday-night concerts at the Guelph Youth Music Centre, plus a Saturday afternoon recital in Thornbury. All evening shows start at 7:30 pm.

Fri · May 22

Schmaltz & Pepper — GYMC Recital Hall — 7:30pm

A genre-bending ensemble blending Klezmer, Yiddish swing, jazz and classical. Features Eric Abramovitz (principal clarinet, Toronto Symphony), Grammy-nominated multi-instrumentalist Drew Jurecka, violinist Rebekah Wolkstein (Payadora Tango Ensemble), JUNO-nominated bassist Michael Herring, and JUNO-winning pianist Jeremy Ledbetter. Sold-out shows at Ashkenaz, Toronto Summer Music and Jewish Music Week — expect something genuinely unique.

Fri · May 29

Festival Trio — GYMC Recital Hall — 7:30pm

Violinist Sadie Fields (new principal violinist of the Edinburgh String Quartet, and a Guelph native), cellist Katie Schlaikjer (of the JUNO-winning Penderecki Quartet) and Ken Gee on piano. Program: Beethoven Piano Trio in C minor Op. 1 No. 3, Michael Conway Baker Piano Trio, and Brahms’s glorious Piano Trio No. 1 in B major. A repeat performance happens Sunday May 31 at Keffer Memorial Chapel for the Kitchener-Waterloo Chamber Music Society.

Sat · May 30 · Off-Series

Classical Spring: Sonatas & Miniatures — Grace United Church, Thornbury — 3:30pm

A special Blue Mountain recital with Sadie Fields and Ken Gee as the Festival Duo. Beethoven’s “Spring” Sonata, Lili Boulanger’s Two Pieces, Mozart’s E minor Sonata K. 304, and Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir d’un lieu cher. Not part of the main series — a separate ticket — but your purchase includes a 7-day video replay of the May 29 Festival Trio concert as a bonus.

Fri · June 5

Stewart Goodyear plays the Goldberg Variations — GYMC Recital Hall — 7:30pm

Toronto’s Stewart Goodyear — called “a phenomenon” by the LA Times — takes on Bach’s monumental Goldberg Variations. Goodyear has recorded the complete Beethoven piano sonatas and concertos and earned a JUNO nomination for his Rachmaninov album. Hearing the Goldbergs in a 250-seat hall with this player is the kind of evening that justifies the whole season.

Fri · June 12

Gryphon Trio — GYMC Recital Hall — 7:30pm

Annalee Patipatanakoon, Roman Borys and Jamie Parker — the three-JUNO-winning Gryphon Trio, ensemble-in-residence at Music Toronto for 25+ years. Program runs from Mozart and Beethoven through Schubert, Rebecca Clarke and Dinuk Wijeratne’s Love Triangle, finishing on Dvořák’s gorgeous F minor Piano Trio. A genuine highlight of the season.

Fri · June 19 · Season Finale

Penderecki String Quartet with Ken Gee — GYMC Recital Hall — 7:30pm

The PSQ closes the festival in their own 40th anniversary year. Beethoven’s “Razumovsky” Quartet Op. 59 No. 2, the namesake Penderecki’s String Quartet No. 3 (“Leaves of an Unwritten Diary”), and Dvořák’s great Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major with Ken Gee joining at the piano. A big, generous, celebratory program.

📍 The Essentials

Festival Dates

May 22 – June 19, 2026
Five Friday-evening concerts plus a Saturday recital in Thornbury

Main Venue

Guelph Youth Music Centre Recital Hall · 75 Cardigan Street, Guelph (Thornbury concert at Grace United Church, 140 Bruce St S)

Tickets

Single tickets and 3/4/5-concert series available. Online-only series $75. Book at musicfest-tickets.square.site

Featured Artists

Stewart Goodyear · Gryphon Trio · Penderecki String Quartet · Schmaltz & Pepper · Sadie Fields

Online Option

Every live ticket includes 7 days of HD video replay (1080p, stereo). Online-only series available for $75 total.

Best For

Chamber music lovers · classical fans · students · anyone who wants a small-hall, world-class concert experience

🎫 Series & Pricing

Series ticket holders get reserved seating and the HD video replays for free. Use coupon code BREAK for 10% off (excluding online-only).

🏆 Full 5-Concert Series

Adult $240
Senior 65+ $225
Student / Child $90

🎤 4-Concert Series

Adult $195
Senior 65+ $185
Student / Child $75

🎹 3-Concert Series

Adult $150
Senior 65+ $140
Student / Child $55

🎥 Online-Only Series

$75 total
One ticket per household
All 5 concerts, 7-day replay window

Need help with a tricky combination? Email [email protected] or call Ken directly at 519-993-7591 — he’ll sort it out personally.

💡 A Few Things Worth Knowing Before You Go

🎤 The hall is small — book early for the big names. Goodyear, the Gryphon Trio and the Penderecki Quartet will pull a full house. Series tickets also lock in reserved seating in the “cushy” section.

🎥 Can’t make the live show? You still get the video. Every live ticket includes a 7-day HD video replay starting the evening after the concert. Genuinely useful if life intervenes.

🎄 Skip the perfume. The Guelph Youth Music Centre is a scent-free facility — please don’t wear fragrance. Masks welcome but not required.

🎯 Use the BREAK discount. The coupon code BREAK saves 10% on most tickets — the festival genuinely wants people to come, so they don’t hide it.

🎉 Never been? Start with Schmaltz & Pepper or Stewart Goodyear. The Klezmer-jazz opener is the most accessible if you’re not a regular chamber music listener. The Goldberg Variations recital is the one you’ll be telling people about for years.

Support the Festival 🎸

Guelph Musicfest receives no government funding — it’s entirely crowd-sourced through ticket sales and donations from the audience. If you enjoy it, kicking in a little extra makes a real difference, especially in an anniversary year.

Donate Now →

❓ Common Questions

When exactly does Guelph Musicfest 2026 run?

Friday May 22 through Friday June 19, 2026. The main series is five Friday-evening concerts at 7:30pm at the Guelph Youth Music Centre. There’s also a separate Saturday afternoon recital in Thornbury on May 30 at 3:30pm.

Where are the concerts held?

The five main concerts are at the Guelph Youth Music Centre Recital Hall, 75 Cardigan Street, Guelph. The off-series Classical Spring recital on May 30 is at Grace United Church, 140 Bruce Street South in Thornbury (Blue Mountain).

What if I can’t attend in person?

Every live ticket includes 7 days of HD video replay starting the evening after the concert. If you can’t make any of the live shows, the Online-Only Series is $75 for all five concerts, and a single ticket covers the entire household.

Are there discounts available?

Yes — seniors 65+ and students/children get reduced pricing on all series tickets. There’s also a coupon code BREAK for 10% off (excluding online-only tickets). And there’s a free online ticket option available on the website if cost is a barrier.

Where do I buy tickets?

Online at musicfest-tickets.square.site, or directly from Ken Gee by phone at 519-993-7591 or email at [email protected]. Cheques and Interac e-transfers are also accepted.

Never been — which concert should I start with?

If you’re new to chamber music, the May 22 Schmaltz & Pepper opener is the most accessible — it blends Klezmer, swing and jazz and is just a great night out. If you’re already a classical listener, Stewart Goodyear’s Goldberg Variations on June 5 is the kind of evening you’ll remember.

Details may change — always confirm on the official Guelph Musicfest website before heading out.