The Okanagan Guitar Festival is back July 10-13 with classical guitar stars and winery concerts.

The Okanagan’s celebration of classical guitar is back with favorite festival stars plus fresh faces, new venues and musical firsts! From July 10 to 13, the 4th annual Okanagan Guitar Festival returns to Kelowna with a beautiful weekend of guitar downtown and new this year in West Kelowna. The festival offers a full program of concerts, masterclasses, and workshops with some of Canada’s best classical guitarists - Daniel Bolshoy, Luis Angel Medina, Tejay Liao, Gwenyth Aggeler and Alec Pearson.

“I’m excited about three new things this summer,” says Alec Pearson, the festival’s founder and artistic director. “We’re adding concerts in the beautiful setting of Grizzli Winery in West Kelowna.   We’ve got a sparkling new competition winner, Gwenyth Aggeler performing a solo concert.  And festival favorite since the beginning, the brilliant Daniel Bolshoy is back with an incredibly ambitious and beautiful program of three concertos including Rodrigo’s famous Concierto de Aranjuez.”

This year, the festival continues its tradition of offering top-tier performances in stunning venues like St. Michael’s Cathedral with the addition of Grizzli Winery.  There are also a variety of start times to make it easier for everyone to attend. Here’s the concert line-up:

  • Thursday, July 10th, 6:30 pm, Grizzli Winery: Join returning festival favorites Luis Angel Medina, an acclaimed and award-winning performer and educator, and Tejay Liao, a guitarist merging science and art in his approach and technique, in a concert of enchanting classical guitar repertoire.

  •  Friday, July 11th, 5:30 pm, Grizzli Winery:  Catch a rising star in the classical guitar world, Gwenyth Aggeler, multi-award-winning young artist who has earned top honours at international competitions including Calgary’s GuitarFest West.

  • Saturday, July 12th 7:00 pm, Cathedral Church of St. Michael and All Angels:  Don’t miss this special evening with Daniel Bolshoy, who will perform three remarkable guitar concertos including Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez, Ponce’s Concierto del Sur and a brand new jazzy work by Chris Brubeck.  Pianist Christine Ngai, and guitarists Alec Pearson and Gabriela Pimentel will accompany  Daniel in this concert spectacular.   Daniel Bolshoy, is a world-renowned performer, who has performed with over 60 orchestras worldwide — including the Okanagan Symphony.

  •  Sunday July 13th,   2:30 pm at St. Michael’s Cathedral:  The festival wraps up with a free concert featuring participants and faculty.

Alongside the concert series, the festival offers an intensive and welcoming educational experience for guitarists of all ages and levels with masterclasses and workshops led by this year’s faculty. These sessions, also held at St. Michael’s Cathedral, provide a unique opportunity for participants to study with some of the best in the field.

Whether you’re a guitarist or like so many people just love classical guitar, don’t miss the 2025 Okanagan Guitar Festival.  Find out more about all of the festival faculty and performers here Musicians & Faculty — Okanagan Guitar Festival

St. Michael’s Cathedral (Cathedral Church of St. Michael’s and All Angels) is downtown at 608 Sutherland Avenue, Kelowna and Grizzli Winery is at 2550 Boucherie Road in West Kelowna. 

Festival registration and concert tickets are now available. 

  • 3 Concert Pass - General: $70, Senior 55+/Student/Youth $50

  • Single Concert Tickets – General $30, Senior 55+/Student/Youth $20

  • Full festival registration for guitarists starts at $200 ($230 after June 14).

For tickets, registration and complete information visit https://www.okanaganguitar.com/ or email Alec Pearson at okanaganguitar@gmail.com

 

Valerie Boser