The Mixto Festival started in 2019 as an outgrowth of the bloc parties and showcases put on by not-for-profit music presenter Uma Nota Culture. Since then, Mixto has grown to become one of the most intriguing and dynamic summer events in the city.
Described as an intercultural event by the organizers, Mixto shines a much needed light on a range of music and musicians from around the world that are often ignored or forgotten in the local scene here where anglophone and white are the norm.
“We have friends from all over the world”, says festival co-founder and director Kristyn Gelfand in an interview with The Grind. “We like good music wherever it comes from. We’re not limiting ourselves to like music that’s only sung in English.”
The bloc party aspect lives on with the many activities for young and old alike. “Part of our mandate is that it’s an intergenerational party”, Gelfand says, “so we want people to come with families.”
This, plus miraculously not charging admission, creates an open, inclusive, and welcoming communal atmosphere that is rare in Toronto’s live music scene.
Gelfand says on the morning of our interview she was chatting with someone who told her, “Last year, being at Mixto kind of restored my faith in Toronto.” It’s a sentiment I’ve heard elsewhere too.
This will be Mixto’s second year at Trillium park, and the free, all-ages event is once again packed with an extensive lineup of live bands, DJs, and food vendors. Much of the music at the festival has a “highly rhythmic, dancefloor focus,” as Gelfand puts it, drawing from numerous genres and traditions, including Latin American, Caribbean and African, which will appeal to anyone who wants to experience new music or dance the night away.
Highlights include Saturday’s headliner Bia Ferreira, an Afro-Brazilian artist, who will be bringing her self-described MMP (Música de Mulher Preta (or “Black Woman Music”) to the stage. She’ll be accompanied by Brasa, a new collective of local Toronto musicians, who will perform reggae renditions of Ferreira’s typical blend of soul, rap, funk, and MPB (Brazilian popular music) .
A local highlight is Toronto’s Orbital Ensemble, an energetic Tropicalismo (Brazilian art movement) meets psychedelic prog-rock band, who will be celebrating the release of their debut record Orbital.
Experimental Colombian cumbia band Frente Cumbiero, who recently performed at the Montreal Jazz Fest, is one of the Sunday night headliners to check out. And local queer-led gospel slash R&B choir Inkloosiv Voices is on a bit earlier in the day.
Comfortable shoes are recommended and an umbrella or rain jacket is good to have in case of sudden showers.
Mixto is also accepting donations to help in their efforts to keep the event free. It’s truly a one-of-a-kind event in this city and well worth getting lost in its magic.