The streets of downtown Appleton were filled with people from all over the Fox Cities and beyond, some traveling hundreds of miles for the live original music.
From July 31 to August 3, downtown Appleton's streets were filled with sound during the annual Mile of Music festival. Now in its 12th year, the free festival stayed true to its core mission of celebrating original music, featuring 700 shows from 200 independent artists and bands.
This year's event saw a 5-10% increase in attendance, according to NBC 26, and introduced new elements like pop-up performances that took place between scheduled shows. As in previous years, Lawrence University took part in the music-making.
Photos from 2025 Mile of Music
The Music Education Team (MET)—including Lawrence Conservatory faculty, students, and alumni—presented 40 hands-on music-making workshops during the festival for people of all ages. Participants were able to experience everything from bachata dance to Irish fiddle music, the blues harmonica to the didjeridu.
The Lawrence Chamber Music Festival returned this year, allowing advanced instrumentalists the opportunity to collaborate and perform alongside Mile of Music artists. This year, there were 43 students from 20 U.S. state, plus international students, working with Lawrence faculty and several guest artists. The four Mile of Music collaborators—BODHI, Natural Satellite, PEGASIS, and Whitney Mongé—represented several musical genres and geographic regions.
Lawrence venues drew thousands of festival-goers to campus for performances on the Lawrence Lawn Main Stage—located in front of Ormsby Hall—Memorial Chapel, and Harper Hall.
Lawrence alumni Michael Murphy ‘23 and Kate Stenson ‘24 were among the festival performers. Murphy played two sets, accompanied by Lawrence alumnus Ryan Erdmann ‘22. Stenson performed two sets alongside Jennifer Harlee, a member of her band Wine on Fridays (W.O.F.).
Lawrence photographers captured the music-making in action. See a sampling above and see a full photo gallery here. More photos will be added soon!
