Annual Rochester Lilac Festival

Sunday, May 18, 2025 at 1:00pm

Highland Park
450 Highland Avenue
585-473-4482

Celebrating 127 years in 2025! Featuring stunning gardens in an Olmstead-designed park, with hundreds of varieties of lilacs and other flora. This 10-day event features live music all day, everyday from 10:30am-8:30pm with local and national musicians.

Schedule of Events:

1:00 pm: Mountain - River - Traveler

Mountain · River · Traveler weave together Chinese musical traditions with powerful grooves and electrifying energy, creating a sound called "supercharged Chinese folk". The group features traditional instruments - most notably the Pipa - alongside the standard guitar-bass-drums setup. Fresh yet familiar, traditional yet modern, Mountain · River · Traveler effortlessly break down musical boundaries to forge new sonic frontiers.

2:30 pm: Reddy Hollow

Born in the winter of 2020 from a yard-retired camper in rural, Western NY, Reddy Hollow fuses infectious ear worms with tight, unrelenting indie rock. Singer-songwriters at heart, dual frontmen Matt Geffers and Noah Parshall sculpt songs that scratch at the tribulations of love, money and an easier life that's seemingly always out of reach.  Their debut EP released in 2024 has garnered over 25,000 streams across platforms and has attracted the attention of theindyreview.com and Roc City Mag among others. The band recently finished production on their yet to be released sophomore EP.

4:00 pm: All Them Squares

All Them Squares is an up-and-coming alt-rock band from Rochester, NY, who have quickly gained recognition for their Eclectic sound and energetic live shows. The Band was originally Formed in 2020 by Guitarist Jordan Foehner and Vocalist Cece Vile for what was then only a studio project, due to the pandemic. The Band currently features Vocalist Cece Vile, guitarist Jordan Foehner, guitarist Pat Kingsley, bassist Will Westveer and drummer Juan "Jay Cali" Calixto. Their debut EP, "Vol. 1" which released in Oct. 2024, showcases a blend of catchy melodies, driving guitars and drum grooves you can dance to. "All Them Squares" is definitely a band to keep on your radar! The band has already began writing new material and are booking performances both locally and regionally.

5:30 pm: Coral Moons

Coral Moons is an indie pop band that formed on the shores of Boston and recently relocated to the woods of Upstate New York. If they're not tending to their gardens, taking film photos with vintage cameras, or drinking homemade wine by the fire, they're touring nationally and hitting up major music festivals on the way.

The solitude and stillness of the cabin has had an immersive impact on lead singer and songwriter, Carly Kraft (she/her). She describes a week at their home studio in the woods, caring for her chickens, as a healing experience. Seeking refuge to heal old wounds, moving to the countryside has forced her to slow down and reclaim what was always hers - her songs.

7:00 pm: Beach Weather

Beach Weather is an American rock band based in the fictional town of Beach Weather, U.S.A., and consists of members Nick Santino, Sean Silverman, and Reeve Powers.

Over the last few years, Beach Weather has quickly crossed off some of its bucket list goals. You might have caught the band live on Jimmy Kimmel or experienced their loud live show at BottleRock Napa Valley, Hangout Music Festival, and Shaky Knees, or on tour with the likes of The Beaches and lovelytheband.

Leaving behind the fictional world of their debut album, Pineapple Sunrise, a fictional resort to escape all anxiety and insecurity, the band's sophomore album boasts a more confident approach taking place in the desert, where only the strong survive. The desert also plays a role in the band's start, meeting in Arizona.