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Stratford Summer Music (SSM) is already looking forward to warmer days.
This year marks 25 years of the organization bringing world-class music to the Festival City.
“We’re super excited,” said Crystal Spicer, executive director of SSM. “We’ve been talking about it and planning it for the last year already, so we’re pretty excited to get things launched, to get things going. … There are a few special surprises that are still yet to be announced … and by April, everybody will see the entire picture of everything that we have planned for the next year.”
SSM is an annual music festival that invites diverse musical acts and experiences to Stratford. Over many weeks, more than 100 artists perform year after year in indoor and outdoor venues across the city.
For anyone who hasn’t attended before, Spicer said the thing which makes this music festival unique is the sheer diversity of acts and venues, from casual folk performances on the music barge in the Avon River downtown to more formal opera performances in the Avondale United Church.
Additionally, this year SSM will be running two academies concurrently as part of the festival.
The Stratford Summer Jazz Academy and the Stratford Summer Vocal Academy will help young musicians develop their skills through workshops, sessions, collaboration and education from instructors across Canada. The jazz academy runs from July 28 to Aug. 3 while the vocal academy runs from Aug. 5-10.
This year would not be possible without sponsors, Spicer made sure to say. In particular, supporter Elaine Godwin, a generous donor to SSM for many years, made a $50,000 donation this year – the largest donation she’s made to date.
Additionally, TD Bank Group has signed on as a presenting sponsor for the next two seasons, a sponsorship that has not been a feature of the organization for a number of years.
Spicer said that just as the arts are struggling across the nation, they are struggling in Stratford as well. The presenting sponsorship is only a piece of the puzzle and donors, sponsors and supporters are still just as vital.
“The arts are always needed in a community,” Spicer said, “and I think it’s really important that the arts are accessible for everybody. … For me, it’s very, very important that we make sure that anybody can come and see a performance.”
While SSM hosts a few events throughout the year (like January’s partnership with Lights On Stratford, Lights On NYX), its 2025 season officially opens on July 17 with a performance of the German cantata, Carmina Burana, performed by the Ullugiagâtsuk Choir, Deantha Edmunds and the Bergmann Duo.
Spicer told residents and visitors to keep an eye out on their social media and brand-new website –www.stratfordsummermusic.ca – for updates and announcements on this year’s lineup, as well as for additional information on its new summer academies.
Connor Luczka is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter. The LJI is a federally-funded project.
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