A History of the Ottawa Folk Festival (1994-2012)

The CKCU Ottawa Folk Festival began in 1994 to showcase Canada’s folk traditions through music, dance, storytelling, and crafts. The festival was co-founded by CKCU station manager Max Wallace, and performing songwriter Chris White. The event became known for its relaxed atmosphere, enthusiastic grassroots following, and loyal volunteer contingent. By 2007 it became known as simply the Ottawa Folk Festival. In 2010, the Ottawa Folk Festival came under new leadership with executive director Mark Monahan and was rebranded in 2013 as CityFolk.

The festival’s first publicist, Joyce MacPhee, wrote a historical account of the festival each year capturing not just the performances, but the ambiance. She was aided in her efforts by many festival volunteers. This book covers the first 19 years of the festival as it evolved from a one-day festival on Victoria Island to a beloved four-day community event held at Britannia Park to a reimagined festival at Hogs Back Park.

A concerted effort was made to document the festival in images from the outset. Each year that film was used (1994 to 2005), the photos were edited down to small sets showing the performers, volunteers, and patrons interacting to create a folk festival experience. These sets were displayed on photo boards. From 2006 to 2012 digital images were taken.

 

This book combines the history text with photos and adds some additional text to bring the Ottawa Folk Festival into the context of the 25th-anniversary celebration in 2018.