Music lovers looking to extend their summer festival high should head south for the weekend. The Carlsbad Music Festival kicks off a three-day cultural bonzanza this evening in Carlsbad, California, where over thirty different artists will stage performances ranging from the avant-garde to lo-fi electronica to bluegrass jug bands. 

Billed simply as “adventurous music by the beach”, CMF seems to resist classification. But its roots are in the contemporary tradition – orchestral musicians who are classically trained, but specialize in performing newly composed and experimental music. 

Founder Matt McBane, a violinist and composer himself, created the festival in 2004 out of a combination of “dissatisfaction and love.” Unhappy with the lack of public opportunities for contemporary musicians, he wanted to turn Southern California into a place that let them thrive. 

Given the growth of the festival and its ability to attract headlining new music stars, he’s made not just a little progress.

Previous festivals have featured two Pulitzer Prize-winning composers – David Lang and Caroline Shaw – and drawn crowds in the thousands.

“Matt McBane has programmed some of the most cutting edge and exciting repertoire being composed today,” reports upcoming CMF artist HOCKET, the piano duo of joint composer-performers Sarah Gibson and Thomas Kotcheff. “His vision is to reach as large an audience as possible.”

The Carlsbad Music Festival’s spirit of inclusiveness probably has a lot to do with its appeal. It offers something for everyone without watering down any one artist’s clout. And, the diversity of programming embraces the music aficionado’s catholic tastes.

So for those equally excited by virtuosic acoustic performances and the possibilities of audio technology, to folk ballads’ raw simplicity and to the bombastic flourishes of street jazz – to music itself, what it might be and is – this is the festival for you. And this year’s lineup promises to be no less thrilling.

All three mainstage artists are performers with a visionary force. Pan-genre violinist Todd Reynolds closes Friday night with a tour through New York composers and selections from his rapturous album Crossroads. Saturday’s finale is Vicki Ray, the brilliant pianist and SoCal new music vanguard. And sitarist Pandit Kartik Seshadri, renowned Indian Classical musician, closes the entire festival on Sunday. 

The mainstage concerts are the only ticketed events. The rest of the artists offer free, mostly outdoor performances scattered throughout the town. Highlights include Euphoria Brass Band’s New Orleans-inspired jazz, psychedelic electronica by Inspired and the Sleep, and toy piano duos newly written for HOCKET.

Did I mention that Carlsbad is also one of the Southland’s airier beach towns, perfectly situated for pastel sunsets and subtropical breezes? Between that, a stellar selection of restaurants, and an embarrassment of musical riches, Carlsbad is where you want to be this weekend to rest your body and recharge your brain.

Reach Guest Contributor Elizabeth Nonemaker here.