The Muskoka Lakes Music Festival returns for another season with some great events and a wide range of musicians who are at the top of their profession.

One of the highlights of the season is Jasper Wood who took home top prize for classical album of the year (A Child’s Cry from Izieu) at the Canadian Independent Music Awards held at the Royal York in Toronto.

Wood will be featured along with David Jalbert, winner of the prestigious Virginia Parker Prize Canada Council for the Arts, at the community centre in Port Carling on July 17.

This season will begin with the renowned Flavours of Muskoka. The seventh year of this gourmet festival will see 20 of Muskoka’s finest chefs and as many vintners and brewers on June 25.

Tickets are still the best buy in town at $60 with a tax receipt for a portion of the ticket price and funds going to support the award-winning Kaleidoscope Arts in Education programming.

The 10th anniversary of the Kaleidoscope Children’s Festival will begin three days later on June 28 at the centre and the popular Kaleidoscope music and arts summer camp will run from July 7 to 11 and 21 to 25. Both weeks have been fully subscribed in the past.

The performance portion of the summer will swing into full gear on July 10 with the talented Toronto All Star Big Band and the Serenaders. This bunch proves that there is no better way to begin the summer in Muskoka than with a big band dance.

July 24 sees the 2007 winners of Ontario’s Best Performer/Entertainer (Variety) take the stage at the centre. Fiddlers 3 have been dubbed the ceilidh (kay-lee) band of the 21st century.

The centre is turned into a children’s theatre for a few weeks as The Ugly Duckling moves into the centre July 27 through August 2 and The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, enters on August 3 to 10 as Mirador Productions once again joins the festival.

July 31 will see the return of one of the best jazz vocalists we have had at the festival. After hanging out and doing her thing at the Metropolitan in the Big Apple, Adi Braun returns to Port Carling.

The festival is honoured to be presenting Sylvia Tyson on August 7. She is a Canadian legend who for decades has helped to shape the Canadian music industry and influenced artists from all over the world.

August 14 Muskoka’s own Jack Hutton, along with some very special friends, will pay tribute to Canada’s all-time best ragtime piano player John Arpin.

Winding up the festival season this year will be one of Canada’s most exciting cultural projects – a high energy Caribbean jazz ensemble that brings together four Cubans, two Canadians and a Trinidadian who have truly honed their chops. The sounds of steelpan, piano, sax, bass, trumpet and percussion will ring out on August 21 as Canefire takes centre stage.