lifenow

2026 Windwood Music Festival Brings International Artists to Airdrie

Story by Stacie Gaetz

Summer 2026

The Windwood Music Festival will return to Airdrie from August 26 to September 6, bringing a series of creative music performance projects designed by international artists. Gathering in Airdrie for a two-week residency, the participating musicians explore what it takes to create projects that celebrate sustainability, community, and the arts in all its forms.

During the residency, artists explore local landscapes and draw inspiration from Airdrie’s natural beauty. The resulting projects are presented in public spaces around Airdrie — including a park, brewery, market, and farm — to showcase a unique collaboration between community members, local spaces, and music.

Organizers of the festival aim to showcase the beauty of connection between land and people in an increasingly divisive and disjointed world. The festival offers artists the opportunity to live that connection and bring projects to life that positively impact the well-being of the community.

Celebrating its fifth season, the 2026 festival centres around the theme “Arrivals.” Co-founders Maitreyi Muralidharan and Tong Wang shared the artistic vision behind this milestone year:

“‘Arrivals’ encompasses many of the stories that we have heard from the Airdrie community, including our own story as a festival,” says Muralidharan.

“We wanted to pay tribute to our home, Airdrie, and its community. Windwood arrived in Airdrie in 2022, and is only a small dot in Airdrie’s timeline, with so many incredible creatives coming before and after us. From the start, we have known that Windwood could not have started anywhere else; it is truly the land and its people that have made the festival what it is.”

Wang adds that Windwood exists because organizers believe in music as a connecting force and that Airdrie is a place where this connection can flourish.

“As we reflect on Windwood’s arrival story, we find ourselves reflecting on the arrival stories of the people who have built their homes here, the creatives and visionaries who have helped shape this city in small and large ways, and the stories that the land holds from before any of us were here,” she adds.

“Through musical collaborations, Windwood will celebrate Airdrie and the land and people that shaped its history and continue to build its future.”

The highlight of the residency is the outdoor festival Community Arrivals on September 5 from 2 to 8 pm at Nose Creek Park. Featuring the musicians of the Windwood Music Festival, Calgary Civic Low Brass Ensemble, local youth musicians, food trucks, vendors, and local community organizations, this full-day event celebrates the ways in which we each thrive when our community thrives. Bring your friends, your families, and pets to this free celebration of music, land, and people.