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Fort Langley Jazz and Arts Festival

Fort Langley Jazz Festival

The Fort Langley Jazz and Arts Festival is a music festival in the summer each year. Some of its events are free and others are ticketed.

This is one of our favourite festivals of the year and highly recommended. In 2025 the festival runs from July 24th to 27th with the amazing Cool Blues Show happening on the 25th.

Click the links below to jump to information about specific topics, visit fortlangleyjazzfest.com for the festival’s official website, or continue reading to learn all about the festival.

 


This article contains the following information about the festival:

Where & When | Free & Ticketed Events | Pre-Festival Events | Tribute to Motown & More | Youth Concert Series Showcase | A Tribute to Duke Ellington | Cool Blues Show | Jake & Elwood’s Blues Brothers Revue | Festival Art Zone | Free Weekend Concerts | JAZZ AWE Concert | History of the Jazz Festival | Festival Video | Tips & Advice | Other Information


 

Fort Langley Jazz Festival

 

The Fort Langley Jazz Festival

In 2025 the Fort Langley Jazz Festival runs from Thursday, July 24th, until Sunday, July 27th. At the festival there are both indoor and outdoor venues with free and ticketed shows. As many as 20,000 people usually attend over the course of the four days.

 


Click Fort Langley Jazz for the festival’s official website.


 

Where and When

The Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival takes place in the heart of Fort Langley. The main venue is usually the Community Hall which is located at 9167 Glover Road.

The community of Fort Langley itself is located on the Fraser River in the northern part of the Township of Langley on the opposite side of the river from Maple Ridge.

The first event of 2024 was the Tribute to Motown and More at the Community Hall. It happened on May 3rd, so a couple of months before the actual festival. It’s an early fundraiser that helps support the rest of the festival in the summer. Details about this in 2025 are to be confirmed.

The Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival in 2025 runs from July 24th to 27th. On the second day (July 25th), there is the Cool Blues Show at Fort Langley Community Park. It’s a ticketed event with live music, food trucks, a beer garden and more.

The festival has free live music outdoors throughout the Saturday and Sunday. There are two stages in front of the Community Hall, in addition to vendors and other activities nearby.

 

Fort Langley Jazz with Christine Jensen

 

Free & Ticketed Festival Events

Below is information about the festival’s various events that took place last year. Some were free and others were ticketed. The 2025 festival will be similar, but with exact details to be confirmed.

 

Pre-Festival Events

Prior to the actual festival on the last weekend in July, there were a few events earlier in the spring and summer to help people get warmed up and ready for the main events. There was a Tribute to Motown and More event in May as well as the Youth Concert Series Showcase on Sundays between late May and the middle of July. See below for details about each of these.

 

Tribute to Motown & More

In 2024 the Tribute to Motown and More event happened at the Fort Langley Community Hall on Friday, May 3rd. The event ran from 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm and featured a silent auction and live music by Big City Soul. All proceeds from the auction helped support the festival. Admission to the event cost about $35 per person.

For more information, visit the Fort Langley Jazz Festival website.

 

Youth Concert Series Showcase

In 2025 there is the Youth Concert Series Showcase that leads up to the festival. It runs on the Sundays of July 13th and 20th outside the Fort Langley CNR Station. On the weekend of the festival there are more performances featuring youth bands too.

To learn more, click Youth Concert Series Showcase.

 

A Tribute to Duke Ellington

On Thursday, July 25th in 2024, there was another ticketed concert at the Fort Langley Community Hall. It took place in the venue’s ballroom from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. The show was a tribute to the legendary Duke Ellington.

Music was performed by the Fred Stride Jazz Orchestra and tickets cost $25 per person. There was limited seating at the venue and concert goers were advised to purchase tickets early.

To learn more about the event, see the Fort Langley Jazz Festival website.

 

Members of the Fort Langley RazzMaJazz Ensemble

 

Cool Blues Show

There are also ticketed concerts in 2025 at the Fort Langley Community Park, located at 9089 Nash Street. It’s just a block or two from the Fort Langley Cemetery and St. Andrew’s Church.

In 2025 the Cool Blues Show happens on one day. At the park are multiple concerts with Blues & Roots music. There are also food trucks, a beer garden and an artisan market. Headlining acts in 2025 include Steve Marriner & Local Electric and Angelique Francis.

Early bird admission to the Cool Blues Show starts at $55 for adults (ages 19+) and $33 for youth. Kids ages 11 and under enter for free when attending with a paying adult.

For more details, see the official Cool Blues Show page.

 

Jazz at Fort Langley Community Park
Jazz at Fort Langley Community Park

 

Jake & Elwood’s Blues Brothers Revue

One more ticketed event was for fans of the Blues Brothers. It was a night of dancing and live music by Jake and Elwood’s Blues Brothers Revue. The tribute concert took place from 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm on Saturday, July 27th, 2024. It was held in the ballroom of the Fort Langley Community Hall. Tickets cost about $40 each.

Those in attendance were encouraged to dress up in their best Blues Brothers-inspired attire as everyone got their photo taken for free in a photobooth.

To learn more about the event, visit the Fort Langley Jazz Festival website.

 

Fort Langley Jazz Festival

 

Festival Art Zone

On the weekend of July 27th and 28th, there was also a Kidz Zone featuring face painting, a colouring contest, origami art and other activities. The weekend also offered an Art Market along Mary Street, with beautiful art to see and buy.

There were free art workshops for all to enjoy. Advanced registration was required for each. The first workshop was the Summer Florals Watercolour Workshop with Julie Yep. It ran on the Saturday from noon until 1:00 pm. Then, from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm, the same artist hosted a Polaroid Landscapes in Watercolour workshop.

On both the Saturday and Sunday at 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm, there were one-hour Mehndi (Henna Art) workshops with Baljeet Kaur. After practicing on paper, participants got the opportunity to apply their designs onto their own hands. Sichen Grace Chen also hosted Metallic Object (Acrylic) workshops on the Sunday from noon to 1:00 pm and from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Participants got to learn how to paint metallic objects.

Another art-related activity at the festival was the Opus Outdoor Painting Challenge. It was a chance for artists to paint a new piece and have their work put on display. Festival attendees then voted for their favourite pieces. Prizes were available for the winners.

 


Click Fort Langley Jazz for the festival’s official website.


 

Jazz Festival Crowds in Fort Langley

 

2024 Free Concerts on the Weekend

There were free outdoor performances in front of the Fort Langley Community Hall on the Saturday and Sunday of July 27th and 28th.

There were two stages at the 2024 event. The Conwest Main Stage featured the headlining acts of the free festival. In between those performances, there were also young and Indigenous artists performing on the Rising Spirit Stage. Schedules for both stages are below.

 

Conwest Main Stage Schedule

 

Saturday, July 27th, 2024

  • 11:00 am Ensemble Gergana
  • 12:15 pm Hutchinson Andrew Trio (HAT)
  • 1:30 pm Hilario Duran Trio
  • 3:00 pm Dino and The Sound of Soul

 

Sunday, July 28th, 2024

  • 11:00 am – Maureen Washington Quartet
  • 12:30 pm – South Van Big Band
  • 1:45 pm – John Korsrud
  • 3:00 pm – Wild Blue Herons with Horns
  • 4:00 pm Arnie (Lek’hoosh) Leon

 

Jazz Musicians Outside Fort Langley Train Station
Mardi Gras Parade Outside the Station Museum

 

Rising Spirit Stage Schedule

 

Saturday, July 27th, 2024

  • 11:45 am – Jaiden Christie (the Secondary School Rising Jazz Star Winner)
  • 1:00 pm Norine Braun
  • 2:15 pm Hayley Wallis

 

Sunday, July 28th, 2024

  • 12:00 pm – Steven Rutherford (the Post-Secondary Rising Jazz Star Winner)
  • 1:15 pm – James Vickers Band
  • 2:30 pm – Pat Calihou

 

In addition to the above, there was also the Mardi Gras Strolling Parade on the Saturday, from 9:30 am until 10:00 am. It started from the site of the Fort Langley Farmers Market at St. Andrew’s United Church and made its way down Glover Road to the Community Hall. Participating in the parade in 2024 was the RazzMaJazz Ensemble.

 


Click Fort Langley Jazz for the festival’s official website.


 

JAZZ AWE Concert

Closing the festival was the JAZZ AWE Concert at the United Church at 9025 Glover Road. The event featured live music mixed with a Sunday church experience. It started at 4:30 pm on Sunday, July 28th, with performances by the Maureen Washington Quartet. Tickets for this event were available online by donation. The event was an “Alternative Worship Experience (AWE).”

 

Noxious Obs Society Band at Fort Langley Station
Noxious Obs Society at the CNR Station

 

History of the Jazz Festival

The Fort Langley Jazz Festival is a fabulous event! It’s fun, family-friendly and affordable, and it takes place in a beautiful setting. It also features amazing Jazz musicians and concerts.

Since its founding in 2018, the festival took place as a live event in its first two years and then as a primarily virtual event in 2020. In 2021 it ran as a hybrid festival with a mix of pre-recorded, live-streamed and in-person concerts and events. Since 2022, the festival has been fully back with lots of in-person activities each year.

 


Click Fort Langley Jazz for the festival’s official website.


 

Fort Langley

 

Jazz Festival Video

To give you an idea of what to expect, check out the following video that features the sights and sounds of the festival from a past year. As you’ll see, there is lots of live music as well as art displays and food to enjoy.

Featured in the video are Mike Vaneyes (in the distance), Blues Hoodoo, the local Rotary Club (at the pancake breakfast), and the Conga Cartel.

 

 

Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and suggestions to help you make the most of your Fort Langley Jazz Festival experience.

TIP #1: You can park for free on various streets in the town of Fort Langley. Go early, though, to improve your chances of finding a spot that doesn’t require you to walk too far. Parking is also available at 8870 Glover Road (in the parking lot of the Fort Langley Evangelical Free Church) and at 9095 Glover Road (at Living Waters Church).

TIP #2: Take your own blanket or chair to sit on.

TIP #3: If it’s a sunny day, don’t forget to take a hat and sunscreen. Bottled water is a good idea too.

TIP #4: Don’t spend all your time by the main stages in front of the Community Hall. Walk around and explore the area and all the activities on offer.

TIP #5: Dogs are allowed at the festival as long, as they are on a leash. You are also welcome to bring your own food. There are food trucks, though, so you can buy your meals and snacks on-site or around town too.

TIP #6: The festival venue is a smoke-free environment. That extends to vaping as well as other products legalized in Canada.

TIP #7: While you’re in the area, consider visiting the Fort Langley National Historic Site. It’s a very interesting place.

 

Fort Langley Jazz Festival Crowds
On the Lawn Outside the Community Hall

 

Other Information

For more information about the event, see the Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival website.

To learn more about the area, see our articles about Fort Langley and the Fraser Valley.

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