It's still five nights of camping, but only four nights of music.

The Winnipeg Folk Festival is scaling back this year after spreading itself across five days since 2009.

Artistic director Chris Frayer said there is a shift towards making the festival more about the music.

"One of the things we are really focusing on is having people come for the music and the event that is happening at the festival site, instead of partying at the campground," he said.

The music starts Thursday night rather than Wednesday.

"The extra day kind of meant instead of a long weekend it was like a week off work [for people who wanted to attend]. We felt like tightening things up and getting back to the way that it was," Frayer said.

Camping still starts Wednesday with gates opening at 7 a.m. at Birds Hill Park.

The festival, which began in 1974 to mark Winnipeg's centennial, has grown into one of the continent's premier folk music events with attendance of over 80,000 during its annual run (of five days).

Some of the performers this year include Wilco, Kurt Vile and Robyn Hitchcock.

The entire lineup can be seen here.