Here are your 2023 Canadian Folk Music Award Winners from Sunday night

The second and final night of the Canadian Folk Music Awards unfolded Sunday evening live from the home of Vancouver’s Rogue Folk Club, and like Saturday’s show, it went off without a hitch.

Well, OK, the packed house posed a challenge for some of the winners, who had to make their way through a crowd to get to the stage, occasionally prompting presenters to wonder if they were in the house.

In fact, John Wort Hannam was so memorably surprised by his Contemporary Album of the Year win on Saturday night that he was still in the downstairs bar when it was announced, and he had to race upstairs.

I suspect that story will become part of CFMA lore.

Saturday nights winners: Here are your 2023 Canadian Folk Music Award winners so far

Speaking of John, he and T. Buckley closed down the show with a performance of “Wonderful Things” featuring a stage-full of nominees and performers, including Abigail Lapell, Shawna Caspi and Lenka Lichtenberg.

The evening also included showcases by Abigail, Digging Roots, Wesli, and Mama’s Broke.

And although I have praised the CFMAs in the past for not overdoing it on the guest presenters, this year’s shows featured a veritable who’s who of the western Canadian folk scene, including musician Andy Hillhouse of the Harrison Festival Society, Michelle Demers Shaevitz of the Mission Folk Music Festival, Tom Coxworth of CKUA, Vic Close of Fish Creek Concerts and Suze Casey of the Calgary Folk Club. And I have to say, it was great to see them all on stage. It felt like a family reunion.

Next year’s CFMAs return to St. John’s, NL, site of the 2008 event.

Book your ticket now!

Here’s who took home the CFMAs on Sunday night.