‘Another level’: Music festivals bring crowds and cash back to Nova Scotia towns

Luke Ettinger · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 18, 2026 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours ago

The artists are centre stage at summer music festivals, but organizers are also expecting an economic boost. 

Bainfest, which started on a deck 15 years ago, has moved to the North Shore Recreation Centre in Tatamagouche, N.S., in part to accommodate a better sound system.

Festival organizer Bain Blois said the event, which has room for up to 500 attendees each night, is the largest music showcase at the venue in years.

“The closest thing to this would be like Oktoberfest, which ended before COVID,” he said. “Some people say this is kind of like rejuvenating Oktoberfest. In a way it is, but it’s kind of taking it to another level as well.” 

Blois expects area businesses will reap the benefits of the festival, a sentiment echoed by organizers of Parrsboro Band Days. 

“The motels, the inns, the Airbnbs, the bed and breakfasts, the campgrounds, they’re all full. They’re packed,” said Dave Forbes, chair of the Parrsboro Band Association. 

The more than 50-year-old event started as an opportunity for the local citizens’ marching band to showcase their skills. About 40 former marching band members still take to the stage annually. 

“They bring their instruments from wherever they are — Halifax, Ontario, the States, and wherever they’re living,” Forbes said. “It’s like a reunion.”

In addition to brass, the event includes about two dozen blues, rock, and country acts. 

Forbes said that while attendees don’t need to buy tickets, a hat is traditionally passed around for donations.

The Parrsboro event is located at the bandstand in the heart of town.

Holding festivals in a central location significantly increases economic spinoffs, according to Sara Taylor with Rock the Hub. The music festival in Truro’s Civic Square is returning next weekend after a three-year hiatus. 

“We’ve really noticed that there’s not nearly as many events happening in central Nova Scotia as there were a few years ago, and we wanted to be part of bringing some of that vibrancy back to downtown Truro,” said Taylor.

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