Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville In 2014, FIMAV celebrated its thirtieth edition—a testimony to founder and artistic director Michel Levasseur’s vision and pragmatism. He has built a loyal audience, secured firm community, government, and industry support, and developed a team that year after year delivers[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Stuart Broomer Issue 123

Festival of New Trumpet Music: 2nd Edition. Featuring the instrument in all imaginable contexts, the Festival of New Trumpet (FONT) Music was founded in New York City twelve years ago by Dave Douglas and the late Roy Campbell, Jr. FONT Music Canada is now in its second year, imported north by former Montrealer Aaron Shragge (who helps[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Lawrence Joseph Issue 122

Send + Receive: A Festival of Sound, 16. Send + Receive (s+r), a sound-art showcase held annually in Winnipeg, is curated around a different theme each year. Its acknowledged aims are to highlight the contributions of women to sound art, to develop an audience for emerging local artists, and to utilize different venues from one[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Daniel Emberg Issue 121

30th Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville. The Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville (FIMAV) celebrated a milestone this year, presenting its 30th festival of musique actuelle—that unique French descriptor covering improvised music, chance, electronica, the avant edges of jazz, rock, folk, and world, and[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Stuart Broomer Issue 120

Whitney Biennial 2014 It would have been easy to walk into the Whitney Museum, head for the ticket counter and on to the elevators, while entirely missing the first of the pieces by more than one hundred artists in the 2014 Biennial. The sounds drifting down from the ceiling in the American composer-and-[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Kurt Gottschalk Issue 119

Harry Partch’s Delusion of the Fury. A resonant boom rippling through your body—that is the impact of the Marimba Eroica, arguably the lowest-pitched percussion instrument in existence. Four thick slabs of wood up to eight feet long—each placed over a sizable resonator—make you feel rather than hear its[...] Read more

Concerts and Events René van Peer Issue 118

Jazz em Agosto, 30th edition. Jazz em Agosto’s thirtieth edition added a few more performances than usual, but stuck to what it’s done so well for so long. The festival is presented by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, sponsor of a symphony, a concert hall, a major museum, and a modern art gallery, all in[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Stuart Broomer Issue 117

Suoni per il Popolo, 13th Edition. Long-running festivals conserve freshness by avoiding stale recipes based on previous successes. Montreal’s Suoni per il Popolo retains the same inviting aroma as the nearby twenty-four-hour bagel factories. With 150 sets of music, film, and workshops spread over eighteen days of[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Lawrence Joseph Issue 117

Festival International de Musique Actuelle, 29th Edition. A coup for Victo this year, the all-day Zorn@60 birthday celebration prompted the return of fans who had been absent for a decade or more. Long lineups winding from the downtown Cinema Laurier had local Sunday strollers stopping to inquire as to what event was drawing such a crowd. It’[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Frédérique Arroyas Issue 117

The Venice Biennale 56th International Festival of Contemporary Music. Using the words “Venice” and “music” together likely brings Vivaldi to mind. Or if one says Venice Biennale, thoughts turn to contemporary art or perhaps film or architecture. Yet the Venice Festival of Contemporary Music just marked its fifty-sixth edition. Why is it[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Jason van Eyk Issue 115

CONTACT Contemporary Music: INTERsection. Toronto, Ontario. September 1–2 2012. Billed as a Top 20 Billboard of Contemporary Music, CONTACT Contemporary Music’s INTERsection New Music Festival rang in its sixth year on September 1. Held in part at Toronto’s Yonge-Dundas Square, the festival ran for two days and featured as headliners the Bang on a Can All-[...] Read more

Concerts and Events Jesse Ship Issue 114