Early Music Vancouver Summer Festival

The Early Music Vancouver Summer Festival is a series of live concerts and events with traditional music at various venues in Vancouver.

The festival features music by Johann Sebastian Bach, but also by different composers including Mozart, Marenzio and others. It takes place from late July until early August. Other festivals happening around the same time are Chilliwack Ribfest and the Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival in July and Harmony Arts Festival, White Rock Night Market and BC Dumpling Festival in August. On the BC Day long weekend there is also Brigade Days at Fort Langley, Celebrate BC Festival in Coquitlam, BC Day at Britannia Mine and a variety of other events.

See our July Calendar of Events to learn about what else is happening around the same time. Continue reading for full details about the Early Music Vancouver (EMV) Summer Festival.

This article includes the following information about the EMV Summer Festival:

Festival Schedule | Other EMV Concerts | About EMV | Other Information

EMV Summer Music Festival

Formerly known as the Vancouver Bach Festival, the EMV Summer Festival is an exploration of traditional music presented by Early Music Vancouver. Each year the festival has a different theme. In 2025 it was Bach & Mozart: In Endless Ascent.

The EMV Summer Festival ran from July 26th to August 8th in 2025. The shows combine elements of nature with journeys that continue forever. It’s a triumphant celebration of EMV’s 55th season in 2025. There were 11 concerts that took place over this past summer at various venues in Vancouver. There was also a fundraising gala that happened a couple days before the festival began.

See the Early Music Festival‘s official website for full details about what’s happening and when.

Summer Festival Schedule of Events

The schedule for the 2025 EMV Summer Festival is below. Exact details, however, were subject the change.

Thursday, July 24th, 2025

Rondeau in the Forest – a pre-festival fundraising event at The Vancouver Club, located at 915 West Hastings Street in Vancouver. The formal gala began at 6:00 pm and featured a dinner, an auction and live performances.

Saturday, July 26th, 2025

Baroque in Motion on Granville Island – this free outdoor double concert ran at noon and 1:00 pm in the Chain & Forge Plaza on Granville Island. The event featured Marie-Nathalie Lacoursière, Alexander Weimann, Chloe Meyers and Grégoire Jeay. It was a show with live music and dance, with selections from the 17th and 18th centuries.

Sunday, July 27th, 2025

True North Variations – Alexander Weimann played variations of the Canadian anthem on the piano. There was also a Q&A session at the end. The event ran at 2:00 pm at the ANNEX at 823 Seymour Street.

EMV Concert — Concert at the Orpheum (Photo by Jess MacAleese)

Tuesday, July 29th, 2025

Silk Strings – this show featured Emma Parkinson, EMV Festival Players and Chinese musicians. It was a combination of Baroque and traditional Chinese instruments. The concert took place at 7:30 pm at Christ Church Cathedral, located at 690 Burrard Street.

Thursday, July 31st, 2025

The Enchanted Forest – a concert featuring the works of Jean-Féry Rebel and Francesco Xaverio Geminiani. There was a pre-show chat at 7:00 pm before The Pacific Baroque Orchestra took the stage at 7:30 pm. The event was held at the Vancouver Playhouse at 600 Hamilton Street.

Visit earlymusic.bc.ca for the festival’s official website.

Pacific Baroque Orchestra

Friday, August 1st, 2025

Bach & The Heavens – a concert featuring The Gallo Chamber Players took place at Christ Church Cathedral at 690 Burrard Street. The show began at 1:00 pm and featured works by Bach, Marini, Nelson, Fischer and more.
Forgotten Harmonies: Schubert & Friends – three performers put on a show at Christ Church Cathedral starting at 7:30 pm. This concert featured Magali Simard-Galdès, Simon Poirier and Olivier Godin. Music was by Schubert, Bhagwati, Lachner and more.

Saturday, August 2nd, 2025

De Juer et de Baler – medieval flutes and percussion played by Norbert Rodenkirchen and Pierre Hamon. This concert began at 7:30 pm at Christ Church Cathedral. There was also a pre-concert chat 30 minutes before the show. You could expect to hear playful tunes inspired by the 13th and 14th centuries.

Tuesday, August 5th, 2025

Bach Cantatas: The Ascent – the Pacific Baroque Orchestra was joined by Magali Simard-Galdès, Jacob Perry and Drew Santini. This concert celebrated the work of Bach with two different Bach Cantatas. It started at 7:30 pm at Christ Church Cathedral.

Festive Cantatas Christmas Concert

Thursday, August 7th, 2025

Figments & Fragments: Marenzio to Mozart – Abraham Ross and Simon Poirier performed unfinished works by Mozart, Ross, Marenzio, and more. The concert happened at Christ Church Cathedral at 1:00 pm.
Bach’s Musical Offering – Chloe Kim, Grégoire Jeay, Margaret Little and Christophe Gauthier united to play pieces that were originally written for Frederick the Great. This show took place at 7:30 pm at Christ Church Cathedral.

Friday, August 8th, 2025

Mozart’s Requiem – the final concert of the series featured one of the most famous music pieces of all time. The show featured Magali Simard-Galdès, Emma Parkinson, Jacob Perry, Drew Santini, the Pacific Baroque Orchestra and the Vancouver Cantata Singers. It happened at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, located at 6265 Crescent Road at UBC.

See the Early Music Festival‘s official website for full details about what’s happening and when.

Other Early Music Vancouver Concerts

If you like classical music, especially music played as it was originally done in the era of its composers, you’ll love this series of concerts! Early Music Vancouver hosts concerts at other times of the year too, at least one a month. Concerts in the fall and early winter of 2025 include the following:

Sunday, September 14th, 2025 – Eric Guo in Recital at the Vancouver Playhouse.
Saturday, September 27th, 2025 – Amanda Forsythe Sings Handel at Christ Church Cathedral.
Thursday, October 9th, 2025 – Consone Quartet at Christ Church Cathedral.
Saturday, November 1st, 2025 – Schubert & Boccherini: Mimosa String Quintet at Christ Church Cathedral.
Saturday, November 15th, 2025 – Tafelmusik: Brilliant Baroque at the Chan Centre at UBC.
December 12th and 13th, 2025 – Handel’s Messiah at Fraserview Mennonite Brethren Church and The Orpheum.

Visit the earlymusic.bc.ca website to learn more about the above concerts and the organization behind them.

Pacific Baroque Orchestra (Photo by Jess MacAleese)

About EMV

The EMV Summer Festival is presented by Early Music Vancouver. The performing arts organization is one of the largest in North America. EMV has been a big part of Metro Vancouver’s cultural scene for over 50 years. The team hosts over 40 events each year, much to the delight of music lovers in Metro Vancouver.

EMV presents artists from different parts of the world to local audiences. The organization also produces its own shows with its in-house band, known as the Pacific Baroque Orchestra. EMV tends to focus on music from the Baroque times, which is from the 1800s.

The organization also usually has a number of concerts over the winter holiday season. In 2022, for example, its main Christmas concert was Festive Cantatas: J.S. Bach Magnificat & Cantata BWV 110. See our article about Early Music Vancouver Concerts for information about performances at other times of the year.