BandFest 2026 at Laurier: Registration

BandFest — a three-day honour band experience for all school-age musicians of woodwinds, brass, and percussion instruments. Students will participate in a short on-site seating placement activity (audition) upon their arrival on Friday evening.

Students will be placed in one of the following groups:

• Gold Band — Grade 5- 8 or beginner to 2 years
• Purple Band — Grade 9/10 or 2–3 years playing experience
• Hawk Band — Grade 11/12 or 3+ years playing experience

Event Schedule

• Friday, January 9 — 5:00 - 6:00 p.m.: Registration in The Mezzanine; 6:00–9:00 p.m.: Full ensemble rehearsal
• Saturday, January 10 — 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. & 1:00–6:00 p.m.: Full rehearsals + time for dedicated sectionals
• Sunday, January 11 — 2:00-4:00 p.m.: Public concert

Registration Notes

The first "name" field in the registration form refers to the name of the student musician being registered to participate in BandFest. There are fields later on in the form for the parent/guardian and music teacher name.

Finding Us

Outdoor signs will be posted for all events to guide you to the correct entrance. Please check for these signs when you arrive, as entrance locations may vary by event.

To find the Theatre Auditorium and Maureen Forrester Recital Hall, navigate to: Savvas Chamberlain Music Building - 75 University Ave. West, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3C5

Parking

• White permit parking lots are free of charge after 4:30 p.m. on weekdays and during the weekend until 2 a.m.
• Gold permit parking lots are free of charge after 10 p.m. on weekdays and during the weekend until 2 a.m.
• At all other times, Pay & Display parking is available. The closest lot to the Faculty of Music is Lot 20, which is registered as Lot 3501 in the HonkMobile app. Payment can be made by credit card or cash at the machine, or through the HonkMobile app.

Accessibility

For full accessibility information when attending events at Wilfrid Laurier University’s Faculty of Music, please refer to our Theatre Visitors’ Guide.