Appleton is a city in and the county seat of Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States. A small portion of the city also extends into Calumet and Winnebago counties. It is situated on the Fox River, 30 miles (48 km) southwest of Green Bay and 100 miles (160 km) north of Milwaukee. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 75,644, making it the sixth-most populous city in Wisconsin. It is the principal city of the Appleton metropolitan statistical area, which had 243,147 residents in 2020 and is included in the greater Fox Cities region of Wisconsin.
Wisconsin was settled largely by European immigrants in the late 19th century. This immigration led to the popularization of galops, schottisches, waltzes, and, especially, polkas. Classical composers and conductors from Wisconsin include Hans Balatka, Hugo Kaun, Eugene Luening, and Theodore Steinmetz. Among Wisconsin's contributions to rock music were Les Paul, an electric guitar pioneer known as the "Wizard of Waukesha". The Steve Miller Band, with Milwaukee's Steve Miller, had three #1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 from 1973 to 1982. The Chordettes from Sheboygan, Bon Iver from Eau Claire, and Garbage from Madison all had albums on the Billboard 200.
The Festival international de Jazz de Montréal is an annual jazz festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montreal Jazz Fest holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz festival. Every year it features roughly 3,000 artists from 30-odd countries, more than 650 concerts, and welcomes over 2 million visitors as well as 300 accredited journalists. The festival takes place at 20 different stages, which include free outdoor stages and indoor concert halls.
The Ottawa Jazz Festival held in Ottawa, Canada, is a music festival held annually, and celebrates its 45th anniversary in 2025. It showcases a wide range of jazz genres, including swing, jive, fusion jazz, hot jazz, boogie as well as diverse cultures and traditions. The festival claims to bring "a wide range of Canadian and international musical greats to Canada's capital." Additionally, it features new and emerging talent covering a spectrum from pop and rock to lush harmonies. While jazz is the core focus, the festival also includes music from genres such as such as blues, rock and indie.
Blossom Music Center, locally referred to simply as Blossom, is an outdoor amphitheatre in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, United States. The venue is the summer home of The Cleveland Orchestra and the site of the ensemble’s annual Blossom Festival. Blossom Music Center is owned by the Musical Arts Association, the Orchestra’s parent organization.
The Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States (SEAMUS) is a nonprofit US-based organization founded in 1984 that aims to promote the performance, creation, and research of electro-acoustic music in the United States. SEAMUS comprises composers, performers, and teachers of electroacoustic music and is known for its annual conference, which provides a venue for the presentation and performance of electro-acoustic music from around the world. The organization was formed in 1984 as a U.S. chapter of the International Confederation of Electroacoustic Music (ICEM) which had been formed 2 years prior in Bourges, France. The U.S. representative to ICEM, Jon Appleton, suggested to composer Barry Schrader the formation of such a chapter in 1983 and the inaugural meeting was held at the California Institute of the Arts in November 1984. Significant supporters have included CalArts, ASCAP, and The Alexander Family Foundation.
Established in 2002, the Rochester International Jazz Festival takes place in June of each year in Rochester, New York. It is owned and produced by RIJF, LLC, whose principals are John Nugent, Co-Producer and Artistic Director, and Marc Iacona, Co-Producer and Executive Director.
AC Entertainment is a music promotion company based in Knoxville, Tennessee. They are the co-producers of the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival with Superfly Productions and the producers of the WayHome Music & Arts in Barrie, ON, the Forecastle Festival in Louisville, KY, Big Ears Festival in Knoxville, TN, and the Mountain Oasis Electronic Music Summit in Asheville, NC. They also specialize in venue management and services, event booking and production and event marketing and sponsorships. They are also talent-buyers for several venues across the Southeast.
Appleton North High School is a comprehensive secondary school in Appleton, Wisconsin that is part of the Appleton Area School District. Opened in August 1995, it is the most recently built of the three four-year public high schools in the district. The school has 1,780 students. The school colors are gold, silver and navy blue. The school's nickname is the Lightning.
MidPoint Music Festival (MPMF) was an annual three-day independent music festival and music industry conference held in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, from 2001 to 2017. The event took place every September in the city's downtown and historic Over-the-Rhine entertainment district. It was founded by Cincinnati musicians Bill Donabedian and Sean Rhiney. The festival was acquired in 2008 by Cincinnati CityBeat, a weekly alternative newspaper. In 2016, it was acquired by Music and Event Management Inc. (MEMI).
Montreal was referred to as "Canada's Cultural Capital" by Monocle Magazine. The city is Canada's centre for French-language television productions, radio, theatre, film, multimedia, and print publishing. The Quartier Latin is a neighbourhood crowded with cafés animated by this literary and musical activity. Montreal's many cultural communities have given it a distinct local culture.
The History Museum at the Castle is a local history museum located in downtown Appleton, Wisconsin across College Avenue from Lawrence University. Owned and operated by the Outagamie County Historical Society (OCHS), the museum has previously operated under the names The Outagamie Museum and The Houdini Historic Center. The building was earlier known as Masonic Temple. In 2018 the museum was a recipient of the 2018 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, the highest honor given to a museum or library in the United States.
The Jacksonville Jazz Festival is an annual Jazz Festival held in Jacksonville, Florida.
The Universal Music Plaza Stage is an outdoor amphitheater located in Orlando, Florida. The venue opened on February 21, 2009, and is located within Universal Studios Florida, in the New York section of the park, replacing the former attraction, The Boneyard. It hosts 15–20 concerts per season. The amphitheater can hold 8,000 spectators in standing-room capacity.
The Tramlines Festival is an annual music festival held in Sheffield, UK. The festival was originally free to attend, but now requires tickets. The line-up consists of national and local artists. The festival was curated and organised by a panel comprising local venue owners, promoters and volunteers. The name of the festival is inspired by the city's tram network. Tramlines held its first festival in 2009, which attracted 35,000 fans and was seen as a huge success, and 2010's event doubled that figure. The success of Tramlines Festival 2011 led to the event winning 'Best Metropolitan Festival' at the UK Festival Awards. Superstruct Entertainment, the live entertainment platform backed by Providence Equity Partners, owns the festival after it entered definitive agreement for the acquisition of several live music and entertainment festivals from Global Media & Entertainment and Broadwick Live.
Cory Chisel and The Wandering Sons is an Americana, folk rock band that started in Appleton, Wisconsin. The band consists of Cory Chisel and Adriel Denae. Past members include Rick Setser, Paul Mannone, Miles Nielsen, Daniel McMahon, Adam Plamann, Noah Harris, and Charles Koltak. The band gets its name from the wandering, fluid nature of the musicians that work with Chisel and Denae.
The Milk Carton Kids are an American indie folk duo from Eagle Rock, California, United States, consisting of singer-guitarists Kenneth Pattengale and Joey Ryan. They began making music together in early 2011 and have recorded and released six albums. Their first two albums were released free of charge online. They were featured on the Peacock TV show Girls5Eva with their song, New York Lonely Boy. Their instrumental and vocal style has been likened to that of Simon and Garfunkel.
The Lawrence University Conservatory of Music, a constituent member of Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, offers undergraduate degrees in music, music performance, education, theory, and composition. Founded in 1874, it is one of the oldest operating conservatories in the United States. The conservatory is known for a five-year dual degree program which allows students to graduate with both a music degree and a degree in another academic discipline. Through the Performing Arts Series, the Lawrence Community Music School and other programs, the conservatory extends access to music to the surrounding community.
The Rochester Fringe Festival, held annually in Rochester, NY since 2012., is one of the three most-attended fringe festivals in the United States. In 2019, the festival attracted more than 100,000 attendees. Held for 12 days in September, the festival features more than 500 performances -- more than a quarter of which are free of charge -- in established venues such as theatres, art galleries and cafes, as well as pop-up, site-specific shows in streets, parking lots, and tents throughout Rochester's East End and Neighborhood of the Arts districts near Downtown Rochester.
The Up Here Festival is an annual art and music festival, staged each summer in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. Based on the theme of beautifying and transforming the city through public art, the festival blends the creation of new public murals and installation art projects with a lineup of musical performances.
