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JUNO Award Week in Ottawa

by Robin Moir, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 180 (Ottawa, ON)

The week leading up to the April 2 JUNO Awards was exciting here in Ottawa. Not only were we able to sign a first-time, Canada-wide, three-year deal with CARAS for a CFM JUNO Agreement, but we were able to join in the fun of a city jam-packed with Canadian talent and fans! In all previous years, the agreement was signed year-to-year and negotiated between CARAS and the local of jurisdiction for the year’s event.

Nightclubs and bars were rockin’. There was a JUNO Cup Jam March 30. This year’s JUNO Songwriters’ Circle was hosted by 12-time JUNO Award winner and Local 180 (Ottawa, ON) member Bruce Cockburn, live at the National Arts Center April 2.

The 2017 JUNO Allan Waters Humanitarian Award went to Canadian singer-songwriter, educator, activist, and humanitarian Buffy Sainte-Marie, Ph.D., a member of Local 802 (New York City).

Ottawa also had something special planned for Sainte-Marie. The Speaker of the Senate, the Honourable George J. Furey Q.C., the Honourable Marilou McPhedran C.M., the Honourable Lillian Eva Dyck, the Honourable Sandra M. Lovelace Nicholas C.M., and the Honourable Murray Sinclair invited guests and members of Local 180 to a Senate event called “Celebration of the Power of Music,” honouring Sainte-Marie.

It was a remarkable occasion—the first time in the history of the Senate that music was celebrated. The first part of Sainte-Marie’s speech was dedicated to an initiative that the CFM has been lobbying for with the air transportation industry: carry-on allowances for musical instruments.

We were delighted to welcome such a powerful advocate for such an essential issue to our industry. We were also pleased to meet and greet many who believe, as we do, that the time has come for all air transportation corporations to offer musicians instrument carry-on opportunities.

“Minister of Transport Marc Garneau’s office is currently juggling a new passenger bill of rights, which we believe will address the issue of musicians travelling on airlines with musical instruments. We are so grateful to Sainte-Marie for her unsolicited support,” explains AFM International Representative from Canada Allistair Elliott. “We are committed to seeing this issue through to the end as we represent the interest of all musicians in Canada.”

Last but not least, Local 180 has been lucky to welcome Jacob Dioszghy as an intern. Dioszghy is a singer-songwriter and producer who is planning to study law. He is First Nations, like Sainte-Marie. Dioszghy’s mother was thrilled to discover he would have the opportunity to share in this wonderful event. Little did she guess that he would have a photo taken with one of her all-time favourite First Nations artists: Buffy Sainte-Marie.

International Musician, Organizing

2015 Juno Canada’s Music Awards in Hamilton, Ontario

 by Daniel Calabrese, AFM Canada, Contract Administer

2015 Juno Canada’s Music Awards

(L to R) AFM International Representative from Canada Allistair Elliot; Local 293 member Laura Cole; and AFM Canada Contract Administrator Daniel Calabrese

Every year since 1970, the Juno Awards have recognized Canadian musical artists and bands for their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. This award show has grown in the past 45 years, becoming the biggest award show for Canada’s music industry.

For several days prior to the award presentations, events are held in the host city as part of “Junofest.” Local venues open their doors to host around 120 concerts by local and national artists. Hotels are filled with musicians, musician representatives, and music lovers from around the country for this annual tradition. Hamilton, Ontario, hosted this year’s Juno Awards. I was fortunate to attend Junofest, along with AFM International Representative from Canada Allistair Elliott. Together we witnessed some of the best musicians Hamilton has to offer.

Our trip to Hamilton began with a visit to Local 293, the Hamilton Musicians’ Guild. Local Secretary-Treasurer Brent Malseed and President Larry Feudo were great hosts, taking us to see the best up-and-comers, along with some of Hamilton’s well-known musicians. I was pleasantly surprised to see the amount of local talent in Hamilton.

One of those performers was previous Juno winner and long-time Local 293 member Rita Chiarelli. She is Canada’s most highly acclaimed female roots and blues artist. Chiarelli just released the soundtrack for her award-winning documentary, Music from the Big House. With one Juno Award and four subsequent Juno nominations, she is known across Canada as “the goddess of the blues.”

2015 Juno Canada’s Music Awards

(L to R) AFM Canada Contract Administrator Daniel Calabrese, Local 293 (Hamilton, ON) Secretary-Treasurer Brent Malseed, Rita Chiarelli of Local 293, AFM International Representative from Canada Allistair Elliott, and Local 293 Executive Board Member Janna Malseed.

It’s no wonder Hamilton has hosted the Juno Awards six times. The awards provide an opportunity to celebrate Canadian music from the past year, not only on a national level, but on a local level. The awards recognize the legends as well as new break-out artists. At Junofest 2015, I saw that the city of Hamilton is proud to embrace and show off its local talent to Canada.

Hamilton Musicans’ Guild showed its pride for the musicians. Local 293 also has a lot to celebrate this past year because it has doubled its membership since the last convention. It’s nice to see how much these local officers get out to shows, pay attention to their music scene, and educate local musicians about the AFM. “We’re doing it one musician at a time, and it seems to be working out for us,” says Malseed.

Overall, it’s always refreshing to see the celebration of Canadian music in one city with musicians, composers, managers, and representatives all in the same place promoting and embracing Canadian culture through music. I look forward to next year’s Junofest in Calgary and I hope for another equally successful event.