'If you like the sound, head towards it': Rain dampens opening night but fans ready for Winnipeg Folk Fest

Festival-goers were excited to find out what fun the weekend will bring after heading to Birds Hill Provincial Park for Winnipeg's 48th Folk Festival.

"It's kind of like that beginning where it's like the rumbling before things get kind of crazy," said Mya Roy, who was at the mainstage for the first performance of the festival on Thursday.

"Everyone's settling in, you're running into people," she said.

Seventy-one bands are set to perform before the festival wraps up on Sunday. That includes Manitoba's own William Prince, who opened the night Thursday but whose performance was cut short by a heavy downpour.

Scottish artist KT Tunstall and the American indie folk band Fleet Foxes were also on Thursday's lineup.

Aimee Jennings attended the festival for the first time with her eight-year-old daughter. While she hasn't been in about 10 years, she said she's excited to see what it's like.

"We're just here to experience everything," Jennings said. "We're just going to walk around and take everything in."

Janine Patenaude, on the other hand, has been going since she was a teenager. She also spent about 20 years volunteering for the festival.

For Patenaude, folk fest is not only an opportunity to spend time with friends and family — it's a way to spend some time in nature.

"It's beautiful to be in the fields and the forests," said Patenaude. "A lot of other festivals are in cities, and this has the beauty of nature."

The festival opened with a blessing from Indigenous students at Lavallee School in Louis Riel School Division. 

The group, called the Thunderbird Singers, sang and played drums before William Prince took the stage.

Thirty-one different daytime workshops, or "jam sessions," will also take place over the weekend, said Chris Frayer, artistic director of the festival.

Anywhere from three to 15 people will perform on the same stage at once.

"Everyone will play a song and then the hopes are that we'll collaborate," he said.

A workshop on Saturday called All in the Family will feature Loudon Wainwright III, Lucy Wainwright-Roche and Rufus Wainwright.

Festival-goers can also expect to see other big names like Vance Joy, Emmylou Harris, the War on Drugs and Gregory Alan Isakov throughout the weekend.

"Follow your ears is a good piece of advice," Frayer said. "If you like the sound, head towards it."

This year, the festival also has a new mainstage, with upgraded lighting and sound and video screens hung on each side of the stage. It's made from 75 per cent recycled materials, the folk fest website says.

Organizers estimate about 60,000 people will be heading in and out of the festival until Sunday.

"I'm looking forward to all the great music," said Frayer.