by Gil Carroll
The New Year is full of promise for Winnipeg musicians. Festival season is brewing, new releases are emerging, and Manitoba Music is here to help along the way. The January music meeting hosted by Manitoba Music takes place January 24-26 and will feature some huge players in the Canadian music community including label representatives, management professionals, and industry professionals of all kinds. Stylus caught up with Manitoba Music’s Training Coordinator, Roland Deschambault, along with program Manager, Sean McManus about the upcoming excitement at Manitoba Music.
Stylus: Why is it so important for Manitoba Music to host a meeting of this kind?
Roland Deschambault: We’ve chosen to use the tagline, “Music Industry Gathering. Heart of Canada. Middle of Winter” for the January Music Meeting to perhaps convey some of the feelings that both local and national artists and industry have about Winnipeg. We’re a somewhat isolated, small market city, and we’re a winter city, and we embrace that. Manitoba is flowing with incredible talent, heart, and visionaries and some say that winter is when artists stay indoors and create that magic. The January Music Meeting is just one more way to show that to the world.
Stylus: How does this meeting serve to benefit Manitoba based musicians?
R.D: We have such an incredibly strong community of artists and industry in Manitoba, and to be able to bring out some of Canada’s top music industry pros in a conference format to network with that community is an amazing opportunity.
Stylus: The Music Meeting conveniently coincides with the Big Fun Festival, how has the presence of a festival like Big Fun impacted Manitoba Music?
Sean McManus: Manitoba Music has been a supporter of Big Fun since the first year and it’s been great for us to see it grow and mature each year. The grassroots nature of the festival makes it a great reflection of the Winnipeg music scene, and having it January just makes it all the more so. We love that there is a festival like this in Winnipeg, focused on young bands and discovering new and emerging talent.
For more JMM info, wander on over to http://www.manitobamusic.com/januarymusicmeeting