Lumsden, Sound of Music tour kick off Burlington's tourism season

With just two days to go until the curtain rises on Canada’s largest free outdoor music festival, the city’s business leaders celebrated the launch of the summer tourist season Tuesday morning - right across the street at the Art Gallery of Burlington.

The breakfast event was hosted by the Burlington Chamber of Commerce and featured a sports analogy-laced keynote speech by Ontario Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport Neil Lumsden, who shared his WIN (What I Notice) strategy with the appreciative sold-out crowd.

His message for the local businesses - especially the tourism operators who continue to battle back setbacks stemming from the pandemic and the ongoing labour shortage - was one of observe, adapt and change.

“You don't win every battle, right? That's the way it is,” said Lumsden. “But what do you do? You step back and take 20 seconds and you figure out a solution and you get better. And when you're surrounded by people that think that way. It's ridiculously common. It's crazy. It's uplifting. It's enlightening.”

Sound of Music Executive Director Myles Rusak took the mic after Lumsden, and pumped up the crowd before inviting them on a tour of Spencer Smith Park, where workers were busy erecting festival fencing and stages and assembling midway rides.

“Burlington has heart,” he said, referring to the 10,000 or so volunteers who support local organizations and initiatives such as the AGB, the Burlington Performing Arts Centre and the scores of other events and non-profit agencies in the city.

“If you come back on Thursday, you are going to see hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people in (volunteer) shirts. And that's all they're working for. They get a shirt and a thank you and that is the heart that I speak of with this city.

“I love it. I love my role and Burlington tourism.”

Sound of Music fun facts courtesy of festival executive director Myles Rusak: 

• Sound of Music is Canada’s largest free outdoor music festival.
• The festival is NOT named after the movie - the organizers just thought it had a nice ring to it.
• The 2022 SOM attracted 500,000 attendees.
• The festival started in 1980 as a parade to showcase the Burlington Teen Tour Band (there is still a parade on the Saturday morning of festival weekend).
• At one time, SOM boasted five stages - that has been reduced to three, to optimize the sound quality.
• Sound carries: residents across the water in Stoney Creek can hear it, loud and clear, and let festival organizers know about it.
• Volunteers are the heart of the festival - last year 1,200 volunteers donated 6,000 hours to make it run smoothly.
• The SOM staff is made up of three people - during the pandemic, it was down to two.
• Speaking of the COVID years, the festival ran live stream shows featuring Walk Off the Earth and Monster Truck, who played to an audience of one at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre (and thousands of fans online).
• Sound of Music is completely free; ticketed performances were introduced several years ago, but that has been suspended, post-COVID.
• The SOM stages are equipped with lightning rods and grounded to draw any potential strike away from the crowd.
• Speaking of weather: if there are reports of lightning within a 6 km radius, the festival grounds are cleared.
• During the 2019 NBA final game, the music was put on hold so the crowds could watch the Toronto Raptors win their first title giant screens.
• Many area bands took the SOM stage before they hit it big, including July Talk, Walk Off the Earth and Arkells (who were paid $500).
• SOM is NOT operated by the City of Burlington; it is an independent, non-profit organization.