Country Thunder cancels Calgary festival citing sound restrictions, construction

CALGARY – A major multi-provincial music festival has cancelled this year’s show in Calgary, citing construction and noise levels that the city contests should not be an issue.

Country Thunder Alberta announced it would cut its scheduled concerts two days before its shows were set to begin on Friday.

The festival’s late cancellation is the second such dispute over sound level restrictions introduced this year, after a recent social media spat between the city’s mayor and the province’s premier over how they could affect events during the city’s signature festival, the Calgary Stampede.

Megan Benoit, a manager for Country Thunder Music Festivals, said organizers met with city officials Wednesday morning and reached an impasse over decibel levels the festival says were reduced too much.

Organizers said construction and changes to the site also affected their decision, but noise levels were the final straw.

“We would not have been able to run the festival the way that we would want to,” said Benoit.

The City of Calgary said that’s a departure from how they believed the meeting went, stating the festival seemed satisfied with mitigation plans over the weekend.

The two sides also couldn’t publicly agree on what maximum decibel levels were being implemented.

Speaking to reporters, Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas quoted a recent CityNews article from Monday that quoted organizers saying the changes wouldn’t affect the festival’s plans.

“If this was a major problem for months and months and months, why did they say two days ago it wasn’t an issue?” said Farkas.

Farkas called the festival’s statements a “blatant mischaracterization.”

City council debated sound limits and noise curfews Tuesday, after a spirited squabble between Farkas and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith over how the changes would affect some events held during the upcoming Stampede. 

Farkas said the city is respecting residents, while Smith has said it’s cutting into festival fun.

Sam Blackett, press secretary for the premier’s office, said Wednesday that “it is unfortunate for concertgoers, venue operators, and the many businesses and workers involved to see a festival in Calgary cancelled after so much time, planning and investment has already been made.”

“This reinforces our view that the city and stakeholders should come together to find a solution that allows these events to continue in a way that works for both businesses and surrounding communities.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 24, 2026.