Thank you!
Make Music Day 2026 was a great success, we’d like to thank all the performers and attendees for showing up and enjoying an afternoon of sweet tunes in the canyon
Special thanks goes out to the following volunteers for ensuring the day went off without a hitch:
- Shane Burroughs
- Jennifer Youngs
- Neal Rosenfeld
- Kat High
- Spencer Blattel
- Patricia Moore
- Barbara Webb
- Allyson Dawn Su
- Jaime Sol Black
- Sean FayeCullen
- Tiburon
- James & Ester Houlahan
- Heather Bryant
- Lloyd Sax
Lineup
Participate
To be included on the official Make Music Topanga map, you MUST register your band or venue using the link below:
SIGN UP HERE
The deadline to be included here on the website is: June 12th, 2026
If you don’t get your act together in time, it’s ok! There will also be an open jam or two, which will be listed on the map below. You do not need to sign up for those, just show up with your instrument!
About
Over 1,000 cities around the world are expected to throw citywide music celebrations on June 21, 2026, this year, specially falling on Father’s Day.
Ring in the summer with a worldwide day of music! Performed by Anyone. Free for everyone.
Worldwide Website: MAKE MUSIC DAY
Topanga will be one of them for the SIXTH year, and this year there is an emphasis on jamming together, with jam circles and open jams being a main theme for the day. Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to bring their own instrument to jam whenever and wherever their hearts desire.
This will be a magical musical event, made by the community for the community…here’s the origin story:
It all started many years ago, in France.
In 1982, France’s Ministry of Culture dreamed up an idea for a new kind of musical holiday. They imagined a day where free, live music would be everywhere: street corners and parks, rooftops and gardens, storefronts, and mountaintops.
And, unlike a typical music festival, anyone and everyone would be invited to join and play music, or host performances. The event would take place on the summer solstice, June 21, and would be called Fête De La Musique. (In French, the name means both “festival of music” and “make music!”)
Amazingly enough, this dream has come true. The Fête has turned into a true national holiday: France shuts down on the summer solstice and musicians take over. Almost 8% of the country (5 million people) have played an instrument or sung in public for the Fête de la Musique.
Three decades later, the holiday has spread throughout the world and is now celebrated in more than 120 countries. In the U.S., the presenting sponsor is the NAMM Foundation
Support
For businesses or individuals interested in sponsoring (helping cover the cost of the rental of the main stage, sound equipment, and generators; printing flyers and signage; or advertising in local papers/social media; etc.) or who can offer in-kind donations, please reach out topanga@makemusicday.org.
Please check out our sponsorship levels to see how you can help support this fabulous day of music and get the name of your business or family out there in our community. We are so grateful for your partnership!
Volunteer
What can you do to help out? Spread the word, in person and online. This is a volunteer-led open source music festival that relies on the contributions of community members. Do what you want! Host a stage, pick up an instrument and join in at a jam.
One really helpful thing you can do, if you’re able-bodied, is to park a little further away on the Boulevard and save the parking lot spots for visitors and the less-mobile folk who need to park closer.
Got any questions or want to help support the event? Please email us at topanga@makemusicday.org
Thank you for making this one of the most enjoyable community days all year!
Frequently Asked Questions
Am I guaranteed a performance slot once I create a profile?
2026 UPDATE: PERFORMANCE AND VENUE SLOTS OPEN, TBA SOON
SIGN UP HERE
We work hard to match performers with a place to play that meets their technical and availability requirements. Idealistically, we dream of complete and total harmony.
However, it is possible that a performer’s availability doesn’t align with any available locations’ time slots. (Or that a performer needing electricity and PA can’t be matched with a venue offering exactly what is required. Or that the genre doesn’t fit with a venue’s vision.)
It’s the old struggle between supply and demand. We are doing our best to encourage more locations to open up to meet the enthusiastic response from our artistic community. We also encourage musicians to be as flexible as possible on what their performance needs are and timing.
If things are looking tough, the City Admin will reach out to individual performers to figure out options.
We so our best to matchmake. Even so, we admit that it doesn’t always work out perfectly and that’s OK too.
Can kids perform?
Yes. For kids under 13, we require that their parent or guardian create their performer profile and use care when linking to external profiles. (Or avoid external links altogether if it is outside the family’s comfort zone.)
Please note that the responsible adult who creates this young person’s performer’s profile will be the point of contact. Kind of like being an artist’s manager!
Do the performers get paid?
Make Music Day is not a paying gig, but tips are allowed! A sign with your VenMo or PayPal info can be displayed during the performance, and venues may provide tip jars. (Though you are always welcome to bring your OWN self-styled tip jar for cash tips)
Does Make Music always take place on a Saturday?
Because June 21st is always International Make Music Day, and just like your birthday, it doesn’t always fall on a weekend.
How do I explain this concept most accurately?
First off, thanks for being so excited that you want to help promote. To keep things simple, you might describe Make Music Topanga in this way:
Make Music Topanga is a local extension of an International DIY Music Festival. Through a match-making portal, both locations wanting to host and performers (of any skill level/genre/age group) wanting to do their thing for an audience can create a profile.
Venues can request particular performers, musicians can request particular venues…and when the City Admin blesses the union, it’s “go time.”
There are 3 rules to Make Music Day:
- Always June 21.
- Always Free to the Public.
- Always MUSIC!
How do I see who is playing?
2026 UPDATE: PERFORMANCE AND VENUE SLOTS OPEN, TBA SOON
I have a location to offer. Now what?
Message and invite signed up musicians to perform at your venue.
I want to perform. Now what?
Create a profile. Here’s a tutorial video to walk you though the simple process:
How to Create a Performer Profile
You’ll be able to request a slot at a published location. If there aren’t very many available when you first sign up, check back. We all know Topanga is about deciding last minute. Venues may reach out to request you perform. You can approve or decline.
Topanga Admin will have final approval on pairings of venue and performer, just to ensure no one performance interferes with the audio of another one nearby.
The venue will reach out to you directly to communicate details. You can also email them and introduce yourself!
JUNE 3, 2026 is the last day to sign up. (Pitter patter!)
Is this for professional musicians?
Like a good improv class, the answer is “Yes, And…” Because Make Music Day is for everyone! All skill levels. All ages. All genres. You can sing (or not) you can sing (and not play), as long as it is music.
What kind of “venues” can sign up?
Coffee shops, galleries, retailers, restaurants, backyards, front-yards; anywhere with a space for it and desires to vibrate the earth anew with music.
When’s the deadline to sign up?
2026 UPDATE: PERFORMANCE AND VENUE SLOTS OPEN, TBA SOON
All locations and performers’ profiles must be entered by the end of the day on June 3, 2026.
(Real talk: the longer you wait, the less choice there may be on locations/performers to match with…so pick the pace that’s right for you and don’t say we didn’t warn ya.)
Who “runs” Make Music Topanga, exactly?
Nationally, Make Music Day is sponsored by the NAMM Foundation and there is a team of organizers who provide support and assets to all the cities that want to participate.
Locally, it is 100% volunteer-run…so all the ‘ideas’ are pure Topanga.
Our volunteer steering committee is all Topanga residents. Our role is publicity about signing up and attending, communication, “match-making” between venues and artists (when additional help is needed), and various logistical stuff.
Our venues/locations are all Opt-In and can request specific performers and curate the vibe of the music at their location for the day. Each location “runs” its own performance schedule — and is responsible for all equipment provided, communication with the performers about the time to arrive, etc.
The core organizers are always here to provide guidance on making arrangements and securing performers, but alas, none of the steering committee members are running to Topanga Lumber to get you an extra extension cord on the day.
Who promotes this event?
WE ALL DO!
The magic is the community-wide support, coming together to make a great day for everyone! There is no one entity responsible for this event, merely people coming together to enable individual businesses/locations to host a line-up of musicians if they so choose!
- The volunteer steering committee does the broad strokes about getting sign-ups and attendance going–flyering, local paper coverage, hitting all the event calendars, etc. Our site will have a Listing Map that populates about three weeks out with confirmed sets and locations, so attendees can plan their caravan paths.
- Each location and performer taps into their friends and social media followers to announce they are taking part! This is essential to ensure that we don’t miss a beat when it comes to attendance!
Just tag our social @MakeMusicTopanga and use our hashtags so we can share your great work with our growing group of followers and music fans. Be creative. That’s kind of our thing in these here hills.
#MakeMusicTopanga #MakeMusicDay2025
