This isn’t a fluff piece, nobody paid me to say this, I’m not getting any special hook-ups for letting my opinion be known. Canadian Music Week is the best music event in Toronto.

In what other capacity can you spend $35 to pick from a roster of literally hundreds of Canadian and international artists over four days in 40 venues?

Canadian Music Week allows you to do that. Not all of them are going to become multi-platinum selling artists and you may never hear from some again, but there is a hoist of quality music to be heard and you never know; you might find the next Alanis, Jewel, Barenaked Ladies or Arcade Fire – and they’ve all played during CMW in past years.

The unofficial launch of CMW is Wednesday (March 7) during the Indie Awards at the Docks. Neverending White Lights, The Stills and recent Grammy winners Wolfmother are just a few of the names expected to play during the Indies, and a bunch of awards will be handed out as well.

Bessie Bullard, CMW’s communications director, believes that the quality of music coming from independent artists has improved over the past few years as these artists raise their profiles.

“The independent specter has really exploded because indie bands and indie labels really get behind themselves in doing the work and doing the marketing on their own behalves,” Bullard says. “They are not afraid to tour and get on the road.”

Also playing Wednesday will be new UK star Paolo Santini at Mod Club.

The fun begins Thursday and continues until Saturday. That’s when you get to map out a schedule of all the different bands you want to see (visit cmw.net for the list and schedule).

CMW also hosts a conference with panels and guest speakers for those in the music business. Some of the scheduled speakers include producer David Foster, rap legend Chuck D, Canadian Recording Industry Association president Graham Henderson, Electra Records founder Jac Holzman, Beyonce’s father and label boss Mathew Knowles, Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman and Nettwerk head Terry McBride.

Members of the Canadian music industry are joined by their international counterparts at the conference.

“The international community sees it as an avenue for exploring new talent and also getting to know more about the Canadian industry,” Bullard says.

On Saturday, new artists will be recognized at the Canadian Radio Music Awards. Tomi Swick, Eva Avila and Rex Goudie are some of the scheduled performers.

Foster, Chum chairman Jim Waters and SRO Management president Ray Danniels will be inducted into the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame on Thursday during the Industry Awards, while Triumph will be inducted during Saturday’s Radio Awards.

For more on CMW, visit cmw.net






Related Stories: