| We regret that due to COVID-19, the 59th Annual Highland Village Day Concert will not take place on the Highland Village hillside this year. We are currently working on a virtual musical presentation to mark the day. Please watch our social media channels for more details. |
Mark your calendars
59th Annual Highland Village Day Concert
August 1st, 2020
Join us for a fun, afternoon of Gaelic arts. Fiddlers, step-dancers, pipers, highland dancers, and more, come together to treat visitors to traditional Nova Scotia Gaelic culture in this outdoor concert overlooking the Bras d’Or Lakes.
Admission
$15 per person. Children 12 and under are free when accompanied by an adult. Concert runs from 2pm to 6pm with full canteen services.
The Concert
Picture it… a hill full of people, young and old, on benches and on blankets tapping their feet to the lively Cape Breton fiddle tunes being played on the stage below.
This scene is one witnessed every year at the Highland Village Day concert at the Highland Village Museum in Iona. With the beautiful Bras d’Or Lakes as its backdrop, and the abundance of local talent, Highland Village Day is a highlight of the summer, taking place on the first Saturday of August for five decades.
The History
August 4th, 1962 was a milestone in the Highland Village’s history. This day saw years of hard work recognized with the official opening of the museum. To mark the occasion an outdoor Scottish concert was held on site featuring traditional music, song and dance. This festival, called Highland Village Day was a great success. It brought together people of all ages to celebrate and preserve the Scottish Gaelic culture in Nova Scotia. Since that first Saturday in ’62 Highland Village Day has been an annual event. The first Highland Village Day saw dance competitions, fiddle players, Gaelic singers, step dancers and the Gaelic College Pipe Band take the stage.
Today Highland Village Day continues to be a favourite summer event showcasing the traditional music, song and dance of Gaelic Nova Scotia much the same way it did back in 1962. The stage at the Highland Village has played host to many talented performers. In recent years acts such as Great Big Sea, the Barra MacNeils, J.P. Cormier, Slainte Math, Carl MacKenzie, the Cottars, and many more have entertained the crowd on the hill.