VAYA Online INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL: About the Festival
Festival Administration and General Information
Lorne Fiedler
Telephone: 778-868-0426
Email: gm@vayafestivals.ca
Mailing address: 313 Ninth Street, New Westminster, BC V3M 3V5
Objectives of VAYA
- to support and foster performing and literary arts education through bursaries and scholarships
- to give participants the benefit of expert criticism from unbiased adjudicators
- to provide performance and education opportunities for participants both at the festival and in the community throughout the year
History of the Festival
The VAYA Online INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL is an educational music festival produced by the VAYA Youth Arts Society. The organization was founded in the Spring of 1999 and became a non-profit society and registered charity in 2001. It was supported by three area Kiwanis Clubs until 2018, and up to 2021, was a partner of KPU’s (Kwantlen Polytechnic University) Music Department. Over the past twenty-two years, the number of entries has steadily increased, and the organization is now one of the largest of its kind in British Columbia.
In addition to the VAYA Online INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL, the Society produces the VAYA Online INTERNATIONAL ENSEMBLE FESTIVAL and the VAYA Online SPEECH ARTS & DRAMA FESTIVAL (which includes a creative writing component).
Upon the worldwide COVID-19 crisis of 2020, the VAYA festivals moved on-line. An on-line format will continue to be a component of the festivals going forward, enabling performers worldwide to take part.
The Society is a member of Performing Arts BC ( the provincial performing arts competition) and MusicFest Canada (the national competition for concert bands, jazz bands, orchestras, and choirs).
Many thanks to our volunteers who contribute so much to the smooth running of the festival.