Music in the Park concert series opens summer season in Caledon

July 9, 2026 · 0 Comments

By Muhammad Hamza

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

With back-to-back performances by the artists, Caledon’s “Music in the Park” summer series began last week at Dennison Park in Southfields Village.

Hosted by the Town of Caledon, the event was held on July 2 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and is scheduled to run every Thursday throughout July through the end of August.

Despite the high temperatures residents sat down on the benches at the outdoor seating area to listen to the bands.

Lorie Harrron, a resident of Caledon, who has been consistently attending the weekly festival for the last three years, says it was a pleasant experience for her, and the event is a good reflection of the community.

“There is a wide variety of music displayed, so I find it’s a very good repertoire,” she said.

“I really enjoy the variety that they have. There are a lot of different performers, from very young to senior citizens.”
Harron added that such events provide opportunities for residents to network and meet people from diverse cultural backgrounds.

“It’s a wonderful way to create some new friendships,” she said. “I think music is something that is universal and joins people together in love, harmony and sharing.”

The first performance in a two-hour show was given by Wilson and The Cast Aways, an indie-folk band with a style of sharing stories in songs, supported by banjos, acoustic guitars, mandolin and more.

After their performance ended at 7 p.m., Shelagh Haney, who calls Caledon her home, took the stage and performed songs from her albums while playing guitar.

Harron said that she enjoyed both performances, and some songs were familiar to her.

“The first group had some beautiful harmonies, and I also appreciated the soloists,” she said.

“There was quite a wide repertoire. There are a lot of songs that I recognize, but all of them are songwriters in their own right, and there are a lot of new songs that they created themselves.”

Not only did residents enjoy the event, but the performers as well.

Haney, who grew up in Caledon, said it was a great experience to perform here again.

“It is really cool to come and play back on the familiar grounds,” she said.

Haney said many songs she wanted to sing she didn’t perform that day, like “the Eagles and modern songs”, because she was feeling “a little bit more sentimental than rocking out”.

She said she preferred old storytelling songs while performing and described her music style as “Canadiana” because of that storytelling aspect.

“It’s like a mixture of country, folk, and Americana—I call it Canadiana because it’s got more storytelling; I feel like there’s a Canadian element to that,” she said.

“Canadian music is a bit more connected that way, I think, to the human spirit than I find Americanized music.”

Through August 20, the final date, many other musicians and artists are set to join the festival, including Caledon Concert Band, The Trio Kings, Inka’s Band, Nix Ironstone, No Refunds and Friends, Holli Ward, and others.

While highlighting the significance of these events, Sofia Clements, a member of the Town of Caledon’s organizing team, said that while similar events are common in Toronto, she was pleased to see a smaller community like Caledon bringing people together through live music.

“I am really happy that a much smaller community is doing it too… I think that what’s important about it is… there doesn’t have to be a million people to bring a community together. I just think that something small and intimate like this has just as much value.”