The Symphony of Fire was an annual multi-day fireworks exhibition and friendly international competition held around the world. The fireworks were choreographed to music. It was presented at English Bay in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, and at the

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

waterfront of the

Ontario Place Ontario Place was an entertainment venue, event venue, and park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The venue is located on three artificial landscaped islands just off-shore in Lake Ontario, south of Exhibition Place, and southwest of Downtown Toron ...

theme park in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada until 2000, when these presentations were forced to seek new sponsors and, thus, the exhibition changed names. The Vancouver event, re-branded as the

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

Celebration of Light, is the only festival that continues today.

History

The event had been previously sponsored by

British American Tobacco British American Tobacco p.l.c. (BAT) is a British multinational company that manufactures and sells cigarettes, tobacco and other nicotine products including electronic cigarettes. The company, established in 1902, is headquartered in London, E ...

(with the branding ''

Benson & Hedges Benson & Hedges is a British brand of cigarettes owned by American conglomerate Altria. Cigarettes under the ''Benson & Hedges'' name are manufactured worldwide by different companies such as Rothmans, Benson & Hedges, Philip Morris USA, British ...

Symphony of Fire''), but once tobacco advertising restrictions were legislated by Canada's federal government in 2000, there were fears that the event would fail to receive sufficient funding to continue operations. The Vancouver event, with various sponsors, has been re-branded as the ''Celebration of Light'' and continues to operate under sponsorship from Honda. British American Tobacco informed Ontario Place Corporation, the hosts of the Toronto exhibition, that they could continue holding the annual event, but under a different name, as the ''Symphony of Fire'' trademark vested with Benson and Hedges. The Toronto event was renamed the ''Canada Dry Festival of Fire''; it ended in 2011. In South Africa, the event is still marketed under the name ''Symphony of Fire'' and is sponsored by a local radio station. They were presented at

Victoria & Alfred waterfront The V&A Waterfront, often referred to as The Waterfront and The V&A, is a mixed-use suburb in Cape Town, South Africa, featuring upmarket residential apartments, a major shopping mall, a marina, and multiple large hotels. The Waterfront sit ...

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

. The Cape Town events took place in 2000 and March 2006. Spain, Canada and South Africa took part in the 2006 event, with South Africa winning on the April 8th. The event has since been cancelled.

First events

*Vancouver: 4 July to 5 August 1990. Gold Jupiter Winner A. Caballer (Spain) with design by Alberto Navarro. First time using Pyrodigital Firing System. *Toronto: 1987 at Ontario Place. 1990 Gold Jupiter Winner A. Caballer (Spain) with design by Alberto Navarro.

References

tobacco.org: Tobacco firm ends funding of Symphony of FireSymphony of Fire in South AfricaKFM Symphony of Fire
in South Africa Fireworks in Canada Festivals in Toronto Festivals in Vancouver {{pyrotechnics-stub