Harvest FAQs
When is the Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival this year?
The Festival runs from Tuesday, September 13 to Sunday, September 18, 2011.
Where is the HJBF?
The Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival takes place in over 25 different venues in the heart of Downtown Fredericton, New Brunswick.
When and where do tickets go on sale?
Tickets go on sale on Saturday, May 14th at 9am through www.ticketpro.ca or by calling Ticketpro at 1-888-311-9090. Please note that this is a one-time sale of tickets and passes, so once supplies sell out they are gone. The Harvest Store opens in July. Any non-sold out show or pass will be available for purchase at the store at that time.
How do I redeem my voucher for an Ultimate Pass?
You can redeem your Ultimate Pass voucher prior to the Festival – between July 17 and September 17 – at Harvest Central (81 Regent Street) or during Festival week, either at the Merch Kiosk (corner of Queen and Carleton) or at the Free Festival kick off show in the Mojo Tent on Wednesday night. Please note that for Ultimate Passes, you must redeem your voucher prior to attending your first show.
What do I do with my print-at-home tickets and passes?
Your print-at-home ticket works in the same way as any other ticket you would purchase. The printed tickets will be accepted at the door of the event you are attending. If, however, you printed off a pass voucher (Ultimate or Nightly), you will have to redeem that voucher to receive your pass. Please see above for instructions on how to do so.
Can I buy tickets at the door?
Most Harvest shows sell out in advance. For sold out shows, there will be a limited number of tickets sold at the door before each show and later in the evening, extra tickets are often put on sale if space permits.
What kinds of passes and packages are available?
We have several packages, depending on what you’re looking for. The Bell Aliant Ultimate Pass will get you into shows in all four main tents (Blues Tent, Mojo Tent, Hoodoo House and Barracks Tent) from Thursday to Saturday. There are nightly passes available for Friday and Saturday, which get you into the four main tents on whichever night you choose. Playhouse shows are not included in the packages, but certain Playhouse tickets can be added to the Ultimate Pass for discounted prices. For more detailed information on tickets, packages and passes, please see our tickets page.
Where can I see a full Festival schedule?
The full schedule is available both on our schedule page and in the official 2011 program, available at Harvest Central (81 Regent Street) or at a number of community businesses all summer long.
Are there any discounted prices for students?
The Barracks Tent has a line up that is specifically geared toward a younger crowd, so all evening shows at that venue are offered with a discounted student rate. There is also a student ticket package available. See the ticket page for more details.
Are there any free shows at the Festival?
Of course! We have several free shows and even a few completely free venues! The King’s Place Stage has free shows during the day all week. Officer’s Square offers afternoon free shows Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Both the Electric Tannery Stage and Acoustic Stage on Queen Street have free line-ups in the evenings. In the afternoons the Fredericton Convention Centre will provide free jazz shows, and the Barracks also has various free afternoon shows. There is a sprinkling of free shows in other venues throughout the Festival.
Where can I purchase official Harvest merchandise?
Shirts, sweaters, hats and other great Harvest merchandise is available prior to the Festival at the Harvest Store (81 Regent Street), and during the Festival at the Harvest Store, Harvest Retail Outlet on the corner of Queen and Carleton, or in our venues. Drink tokens will also be available in advance at the Harvest Store.
Where can I stay in Fredericton?
Please visit www.frederictontourism.ca for a listing of hotels in the Fredericton area. There are many hotels on our Park & Ride route (see below), including Delta Fredericton, Lakeview Inn, Comfort Inn, Howard Johnson, Fredericton Inn, and Best Western. Please note, there are no campgrounds in operation during the Festival, and downtown hotels that are within walking distance fill up about six months in advance of the Festival.
What’s the best way for me to travel to the Festival?
In an effort to reduce gas emissions and congestion in the downtown area, we recommend that you use Harvest’s Park and Ride program, which is now more convenient than ever. On the Saturday of the Festival (September 18th), you can also take advantage of our public transit system, which will be completely free all day, thanks to a partnership with the City of Fredericton.
How do I use the Park and Ride?
Park your car in the FREX parking lot (on the corner of Smythe and Saunders Streets) and catch a ride on a bus that runs every 20 minutes to Wilmot Alley on Queen Street, in the downtown. This runs from 3pm-3am on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Park and Ride also makes a separate run to many southside hotels – including Lakeview Inn, Comfort Inn, Howard Johnson, Fredericton Inn, Amsterdam Inn and Best Western – and to the Student Union Building on campus. This route has pick-ups from 5-6 pm, and 7-8pm, and returns between 11pm-12am and 1-2am on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Is there parking available downtown?
There will be a limited amount of parking available behind city hall and in the King’s Place parking garage. Because of the limited space, we encourage as many patrons as possible to park at the FREX on Smythe Street and take advantage of our Park and Ride program.
How is Harvest “Green and Clean”?
The Festival is committed to being more environmentally-friendly by reducing greenhouse gas emissions produced by the Festival by 32 tonnes. Our initiatives include using cup receptacles to store and recycle cups while cutting down on the amount of garbage, encouraging vendors to serve food with biodegradable containers, developing a Park and Ride program for patrons, as well as a shuttle for musicians, to cut down on gas emissions, and of course, recycling, recycling, recycling!
Can we bring our own seating (i.e.-lawn chairs) to shows?
We ask that you don’t bring your own seats into the tent venues. We will have seating available at most venues. In fact, this year we have more bleachers and picnic tables than ever before in both our Blues and Mojo tents. However, lawn chairs ARE permitted at the Officer’s Square shows.
Can I bring my own alcohol into the venues?
Outside beverages are not permitted in the venues. The festival reserves the right to check bags at the entrances, so to avoid delays, please do not try to bring outside beverages in. At all our 19+ venues, we have stocked bars with a selection of beer, wine, liquor, and coolers, as well as some non-alcoholic drinks and energy drinks. You can buy multiple drink tokens for discounted prices, prior to or during the Festival.
Can children come to the Festival?
Many of our venues are 19+, but we have 49 shows on free stages, all of which are all ages, and there is a completely family-friendly venue at Officer’s Square. In addition, Harvest presents Congo Square on Saturday morning, which is a family event specifically geared toward children. Minors are also allowed to attend Playhouse shows, and the early shows at the Blues Tent, as long as they are accompanied by an adult.
Can I bring my pet to the Festival?
No, pets are not permitted on Festival grounds, unless for seeing-eye purposes.
Will there be food served?
There will be a number of food vendors set up in the Festival area, as well as a number of restaurants in the downtown area. For a listing of downtown restaurants and shops, please visit www.downtownfredericton.ca.
Can I bring a camera into the venues?
Out of respect for the artists, we ask that you do not bring cameras or recording devices into the venues.
How can I get involved in volunteering for the Festival?
You can register to be a volunteer on our website in late July. This is the only place you can sign up to volunteer. We try to be very flexible in terms of time, location and position that you work, but some positions fill up fast!
I am a musician – how do I apply to play at the Festival?
We will accept artist submissions (promo kits or EPK) from Maritime performers ONLY between October and January for consideration in the next year’s line up. For the 2011 Festival, busker applications will be accepted until mid- August 14 by emailing .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
