In Celebration of Canada’s 150th, the inaugural Sawdust City Music Festival is launching this August long weekend (Aug 4-6) in Gravenhurst, ON. The 3-day festival is the creative brainchild of renowned Canadian Singer-Songwriter, Musician & Label Owner Miranda Mulholland and will feature an incredible lineup of musicians, including the Jim Cuddy Family Band. Programming will consist of 3 nights of music at the Sawdust City Brewery, an evening of music at the Opera House, a free Songwriters’ Workshop, a Sawdust Stripped Down acoustic series, and a free concert on Sunday evening as part of the Music on the Barge series (a 50+ year tradition). Additional artists confirmed for the festival are local darlings Bet Smith & The Currie Bros, C&C Surf Factory, Devin Cuddy, Zachary Lucky, Jessica Mitchell, NQ Arbuckle, and Roaring Girl Records’ own Harrow Fair, Benjamin Hermann, Tim Moxam and Liz Stringer (with many still to be announced). Tickets for the festival are available now.
Miranda’s vision of the festival came from her desire to celebrate her Gravenhurst heritage and was well received by the city’s Manager of Arts & Culture, Krista Storey. “We were very excited when Miranda approached us with this idea for a new music festival in town!” Krista continues; “We really appreciate that she wants to bring this festival featuring top notch talent back to her roots and we’re very proud to be a part of it. These are the types of unique, cultural initiatives that attract visitors and help create economic sustainability in small towns like Gravenhurst.”
Miranda’s Great-Great-Grandfather was Charles Mickle, who owned the lumber mill that dubbed the town’s Sawdust City nickname, was Gravenhurst’s mayor twice, and commissioned the construction of the Opera House for the town’s residents. As the founder and Artistic Director of the Sawdust City Music Festival, Miranda’s goal is to celebrate her heritage while providing an amazing experience for residents and visitors alike, increasing cultural engagement at the community level in the beautiful town of Gravenhurst.
“When I first created my label Roaring Girl Records, I had a hypothetical festival in mind. A festival that celebrated collaboration, cross-genre and musicianship, the cornerstones of the label. It is beyond my wildest dreams that it’s actually happening now and in Gravenhurst.” Says Miranda: “This town has been my favourite spot for my entire life – I was brought there in utero! My great great Grandfather Charles Mickle believed in the power of the Arts when he had the Opera House built on the main street. It was called “Mickle’s Folly” at the time but it is still going strong after 115 years. I’m so excited to be reinforcing his testament to the necessity of music, art and culture in our society with the inaugural Sawdust City Music Festival.”
