Making music with friends is good for our mental health!
We are a friendly, informal association of filkers living mostly in Southern or Eastern Ontario. We welcome visitors from farther away. If you are a filker “from away” planning a visit to the greater Toronto area, please get in touch as soon as you can and we will try to welcome you. Event details are distributed by e-mail, and you are requested to RSVP to the host. There is also a Facebook page for United Filkers of Ontario
Please join the mailing list (https://groups.io/g/UnitedFilkersofONtario) for the address and other details, as well as updates on other filk events as the information becomes available.
The next online filk is Festival of the Living Rooms #27, March 14-16, 2025. Check its Facebook page for the Zoom link, or get it from the United Filkers of Ontario email. Contact jane at (@) garthsonleadership dot ca if you aren’t on either.
The next in-person filking will be April 4-6 in Markham. The home page here has more information.
We don’t have any upcoming house filks confirmed, and are looking for hosts.Please get in touch (contact info below) if you would like to host. It’s desirable to have space for at least 14 people, including some guitars and drums, arranged roughly in a circle. While we try to have about half of the circles in the GTA, locations have included Hamilton, Guelph, Niagara Falls, Midland and Prince Edward County. House filks usually run from about 2 to 10 p.m., with people dropping in when they can. They include an order-in or potluck dinner. Munchies and beverage contributions are always welcome. Some of our locations are reachable by public transit but most are difficult without a car. Filkers with cars give rides when space permits; just ask. Many of the host locations have pets so check with the host if you are allergic to cats or dogs.
Filk Bytes/Friends of Filk circles run almost every month on Zoom, thanks to the joint efforts of Cecilia Eng, Ken Lalonde, Peggi Warner-Lalonde and Sally Headford. The next Filk Bytes/Friends of Filk circle has not yet been scheduled. These wonderful volunteers also run the annual 24-hour New Year’s Eve filk. Join the Filk Bytes Facebook group if you can, and/or the Emerald Forest Filk newsletter (at friendsoffilk.org). That site provides information on upcoming filk events, both in person snd online.
Many Canadian filkers participate on international online filks, especially the Festival of the Living Rooms. Its next weekend of concerts and circles will likely be in March 2025.
Please remember that filkers who earn a living through music struggle financially since streaming music services pay so little. If you can, please buy their music on Bandcamp or wherever they sell, and support those who have a Patreon account. Here’s an example: https://www.patreon.com/lesliehudsonmusic. Bandcamp has some first Friday specials where they give their share to a charity or forego their share so the artist gets the full amount paid.
Whether or not you can afford financial support, please promote and attend in-person and online filk concerts. It keeps performers’ spirits up to have a good audience and lots of comments. Do the same for your non-filk favourite musicians.
About Us
We don’t have dues, and we don’t have anyone in charge. Various regular attendees who step forward and ask for dates host the house filks with a volunteer who coordinates it all and makes sure you all hear about it. Come sing and play with us! Or listen – we love having an audience for our songs. Bring acoustic instruments if you wish.
Our mailing list is an announcement-only list, about upcoming events or other items of interest to local filkers and potential filk visitors to southern Ontario.
Should you wish to contact anyone on this list, or let us know about your visit to the Toronto area (once travel and visiting resumes), please contact Jane: jane at (replace with @ and remove spaces) garthsonleadership dot ca.