Symphony in the Park is a free outdoor evening concert with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra at Deer Lake Park in Burnaby.
Vancouver Symphony Concert at Deer Lake Park
The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra offers a free outdoor performance at Deer Lake Park. It usually takes place in either late June or mid-July. In 2025 Symphony in the Park was on July 12th. On the following day, on Sunday, July 13th, there was Opera in the Park at the same place.
(TIP: Another event you might be interested in is Symphony in the Park in Abbotsford. It’s with a different symphony orchestra that played on August 16th. It too is free, lovely and highly recommended.)
Where and When
Symphony in the Park happens on the Festival Lawn at Deer Lake Park which is located at 6450 Deer Lake Avenue in Burnaby. The lawn is in front of the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts. A special outdoor stage is normally set up for the day at the far end of the field, not far from the water. It’s a beautiful venue.
The event in 2025 was on Saturday, July 12th, from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. The same as last year, on the following day there was Opera in the Park with Vancouver Opera. That event also ran from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm.
What to Expect
Weather permitting, at the Symphony in the Park event you can expect a beautiful evening of classical music outdoors in the fresh air. You’ll see several thousand orchestra-lovers in lawn chairs or sitting on the grass spread out over the field at Deer Lake Park.
SYMPHONY IN THE PARK IN ABBOTSFORD
The event at Burnaby’s Deer Lake Park isn’t the only one in the Lower Mainland that involves classical symphony music at a beautiful outdoor venue. It’s also not an event with a completely unique name. Symphony in the Park in Abbotsford is another a fabulous event, and it’s also free to attend. The Fraser Valley event usually takes place at Mill Lake Park in mid-August.
The Repertoire
This past year’s repertoire showcased a variety of well-known pieces from movies and productions from the past, along with classical pieces. It included songs from the movies Star Wars, Jurassic Park, E.T and Howl’s Moving Castle.
Below was the program for the 2025 Symphony in the Park Concert.
- The Coast Salish Anthem
- William Tell: Overture (by Rossini)
- Carmen: Suite No. 1; No. 1 & 1a Prelude & Aragonaise; No. 2 Intermezzo; No. 5 Les Toreadors (by Bizet)
- Buzzer Beater (by Jared Miller)
- Star Wars: Across the Stars (Love Theme from Star Wars: Episode II) (by John Williams)
- Jurassic Park: Highlights (by John Williams)
- Samson and Delila: Danse Bacchanale (by Saint-Saëns)
- Howl’s Moving Castle: Symphonic Variation “Merry-go-round” (by Joe Hisaishi)
- E.T.: Adventure on Earth (by John Williams)
Tips & Advice
Below are some suggestions and important things to know to help make your experience at Symphony in the Park as enjoyable as possible.
TIP #1: Take a lawn chair, blanket and your picnic or other (non-alcoholic) refreshments.
TIP #2: Arrive early! If you hope to get parking anywhere remotely near the venue, get to Deer Lake Park at least a couple of hours before the show. There will be thousands of people and parking is limited.
TIP #3: If you can’t arrive early then get someone to drop you and your friends off at the park and then have them go find parking. Wish the driver luck, remind them in advance to wear good walking shoes, and then hope that if they do find parking somewhere that you’ll be able to find them later among the crowds. If the driver has a car with a bike rack, then taking a bicycle for the ride back to the park can be a good idea.
TIP #4: If you do arrive early, then explore the park. It’s a beautiful place.
TIP #5: If you’re ever in the City of Victoria on the BC Day long weekend, you might want to check out Victoria’s Summer Symphony Festival (which used to be called Symphony Splash). It’s a similar event, but with the Victoria Symphony Orchestra performing in Victoria’s Inner Harbour. That event is also highly recommended and includes a short display of fireworks at the end.
Other Things to Do
While at Deer Lake Park there are plenty of other things to do before the concert begins.
There are some beautiful gardens between the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts and the Burnaby Art Gallery just steps from the concert venue.
The walk around Deer Lake itself is exceptional. You can stroll along the trails and wooden boardwalks for as long as you like in one direction and then turn back when you’re done, or walk the whole way round. At the east end of the lake there’s a small sandy beach.
The Burnaby Art Gallery houses a small collection of art in a beautiful heritage building. It’s usually open from around noon until 5:00 pm on Sundays (or at least it was the last time we checked).
Burnaby Village Museum is just a 10-minute or so walk from the Festival Lawn at Deer Lake. It’s an exceptional museum with free admission and open from 11:00 am until 4:30 pm.
Other Information
Visit the City of Burnaby‘s website and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra‘s website for more information about this event.
Another similar event to this is Symphony at Sunset, which is also a free Vancouver Symphony Orchestra concert, but at Sunset Beach. Yet another free event hosted by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is VSO Day of Music which usually happens in early June. There’s Symphony in the Park in Abbotsford too at a different location and with a different orchestra. Opera in the Park also takes place in mid-July with Vancouver Opera.
Click Burnaby for details about the City of Burnaby.
Click Free Summer Concerts for a list of other free concerts taking place in the Lower Mainland.
Other articles that might be of interest include the following:
- Vancouver Events In July and August
- Festivals & Events Calendar
- Vancouver on a Budget
- Vancouver Activities in Summer
- Entertainment in Vancouver
- Vancouver’s Shows & Entertainment Calendar
