November 28th, 2013
Mongrel Media & 4479 proudly present the Canadian Premiere of Inside Llewyn Davis, and an evening of Canadian Music in support of the charity MusiCounts.
Tickets for the event are available now, and include:
*You MUST bring your paper ticket to BOTH events for entry, as well as PHOTO ID
Screening starts @ 7:30pm: TIFF Bell Lightbox, 350 King Street West, Toronto, ON
After Party doors open @ 9:30pm: Adelaide Hall, 250 Adelaide St W Toronto, ON
The event is generously sponsored by TD Bank Group, Steam Whistle Brewing, and Adelaide Hall.
Inside Llewyn Davis – Official Trailer:
Mongrel Media
In the fifteen years of distributing films in Canada, Mongrel Media has built a reputation as an innovative company with discerning taste. They have developed long lasting relationships with filmmakers and international sales agents from around the world who have entrusted them with their beautiful films. Mongrel Media is proud proud to be a wholly-owned Canadian company bringing to Canadian audiences the best of World and Canadian cinema.
4479 Toronto
4479 is a campaign to position Toronto as one of the greatest music cities in the world – to create energy and action around the concept of Toronto as a music city.
MusiCounts
MusiCounts, Canada’s music education charity associated with The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS), is helping to keep music alive in schools across Canada. MusiCounts’ mission is to ensure that children in Canada, regardless of socio-economic circumstances or cultural background, have access to a music program through their school. MusiCounts includes Band Aid musical instrument grants, the MusiCounts Teacher of the Year Award, Scholarships, and other music education initiatives.
November 22nd, 2013
Today, Toronto’s Economic Development Committee unanimously supported an item on the Toronto Music Sector. The item included a report from the General Manager, Economic Development and Culture, titled Toronto Music Sector (Collaborating for Competitiveness – Implementation Action 6), that includes a series of recommendations & initiatives to advance the music industry. This staff report comes after a unanimous motion at City Council in July endorsing the Toronto-Austin Music City Alliance.
There was a terrific turnout from the music community to support the report, several of whom gave deputations on the item. Here is a snapshot of what each had to say:
Graham Henderson of Music Canada began the deputations giving credit to the many members of the music community who have worked hard to raise awareness about the importance of commercial music to Toronto’s economy, job creation, investment attraction, tourism, and general quality of life. He also noted the work of many people at City Hall, who have worked diligently on this effort.
Speaking of the highly successful trade mission to Austin, Henderson noted that while Austin had many offers from cities around the world to establish a sister-city relationship, they chose Toronto because they recognized the huge economic opportunity.
Jesse Kumagai of Massey Hall emphasized the economic value of live music in Toronto. Kumagai noted that Massey Hall has 59 employees, and tonight will be putting on concerts at Roy Thomson Hall, Massey Hall, and the Winter Garden Theatre, generating $400,000 in economic activity in one night. Kumagai also spoke highly of the Austin mission, discussing best practices learned from organizations like Austin City Limits, which draws more than 75,000 people per night, the majority of whom are tourists. When asked about Toronto’s concert market, Kumagai said Massey Hall has seen consistent support from ticket buyers, as well as growth in summer festivals, with economic activity scaling accordingly.
Bill King of the Beaches International Jazz Festival highlighted the 1million-plus people who attend the free festival each year. He noted a music office would be very beneficial, as it would allow all members of Toronto’s music sector to come together.
Maia Davies of Ladies of the Canyon brought an artist’s perspective to the meeting, saying that it was the wealth of venues and presence of the majority of the music industry that drew her to Toronto. “The Horseshoe Tavern, Massey Hall, The Winter-Garden Theatre, the Dakota Tavern, the Cameron House, Lee’s Palace, the Opera House, The Phoenix, this is where Toronto music lives,” explained Davies.
She also spoke of the need to market Toronto’s scene and “establish ourselves on the international scene in a more significant way.” She noted that the province has taken a significant step in this direction with the Ontario Music Fund, and urged the committee to follow suit.
Jeff Cohen of Collective Concerts spoke as a venue owner, identifying issues related to bureaucracy and red tape, saying “I have a feeling I am being regulated to death.” He says he can fight and win against the red tape, but unlike Austin, there’s no Music Office here to help deal with the problems. He was supportive of today’s item, noting that as a venue operator, any initiative to alleviate red tape gives the idea that city council has your back. “We need a music office and advisory board so we can get all parties, including resident associations & BIAs involved: that will bring more festivals to Toronto,” said JC as he closed his deputation.
Noah Mintz, owner of the Lacquer Channel Mastering, spoke about the growth of Toronto’s recording sector. While Toronto’s recording studios were in decline in the 1990’s, there has been a strong resurgence in the past 5 years, said Mintz, citing artists like Feist, Rush, Drake, Blue Rodeo, The Tragically Hip and more who have chosen to record in Toronto. When asked what led to the increase, he cited the opening of new studios downtown, including Noble Street Studios, and Revolution Recording, which feature talented engineers. Mintz said there is a need to continue this momentum, noting the education facilities that graduate more than 300 students per year in the field.
Next, Andrew Weir of Tourism Toronto spoke of the significant impact of music on tourism in the city, noting that music is at the top, or near the top, of reasons most tourists come to Toronto. “Music is an experience visitors can take part in every part of the city,” said Weir. “Every single night there is music in this city.” His presentation made the impact of music on tourism in Toronto very clear: “It drives business, it drives tourism, it expands yield while they are here, and it drives repeat visits.” Councillor Shelley Carroll cited this as a reason for Toronto’s music strategy, tweeting that “Music events drive immediacy of travel decision-making. Thinking of going to [Toronto] turns into going.”
Rob Lanni of Coalition Music spoke of the importance of professional development and education for artists. “We need to nurture and look after emerging artists,” said Lanni. “All artists are entrepreneurs, so we need to teach them entrepreneurial skills,” speaking of Coalition’s role as an incubator. “We don’t sell the dream at Coalition, we explain the opportunities in the music industry,” said Lanni.
Ray Williams of the Scarborough-based Music Marketing Inc. spoke next, calling Toronto a leader in the technology space. His company won a Grammy Award for significant technical contributions to the recording field for their Melodyne pitch correction software.
Che Kothari of Manifesto Toronto emphasized the importance of having artists on the advisory board. When asked if the artist community is listening to progress made on the music front at City Hall, Kothari said that the opportunity provided by the Ontario Music Fund, combined with municipal efforts has had a “galvanizing effect” on the artist community.
Following the community deputations, Councillor Josh Colle thanked the chair and community for their input. Colle said the discussion is really about jobs and tourism, noting that today’s deputations came mainly from entrepreneurs who are creating jobs in Toronto. “People in the music industry are lining up to work with us,” said Colle. “Let’s let them in.” He also recalled his trip to the Google office on the Austin business mission, highlighting the way the local music scene is used as an attraction for young workers.
Councillor Shelley Carroll said it was important to get the advisory board started, noting that the benefits will come over time. She said it is important to recall the experiences learned from the creation of Toronto’s film board, which has evolved over time. She spoke highly of the Arts and Craft Field Trip festival this past summer, noting it generated very few noise complaints and many benefits for Fort York. After the meeting, Carroll tweeted congratulations to the Toronto music community for pushing City Hall to bring a new approach to this important industry.
After speaking highly of Toronto’s diverse live music offerings, Councillor Raymond Cho called the music item the most exciting item he’s seen at the Economic Development Committee agenda in his short time on the committee, adding he will support the report.
Councillor Gary Crawford then moved two amendments to the report, the first expanding the artist representative on the Advisory Board from one person to a pool of four, to account for artists’ busy schedules. The second amendment clarified the categories of stakeholders for the Advisory Board, giving a better representation to the breadth of the industry. He then said he will be supporting all of the recommendations, adding that we cannot underestimate what we have as a city.
Councillor Ana Bailão said that the music item is great for our city, noting that Toronto is competing in the global economy, and the way to do that is with a good quality of life, which music is a big part of. She spoke highly of Councillor Josh Colle’s passionate support on the item, which we certainly agree with.
Councillor Michael Thompson then moved a motion to accelerate the process of stakeholder appointments to the Advisory Council, with the report to be presented to City Council at its meeting on December 16-17. He also moved that the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Economic Development Committee serve as the nominating panel to review the stakeholder applications for membership and select the candidates to be recommended for appointment to the Toronto Music Industry Advisory Council.
All motions were carried, with the committee unanimously supporting the item.
November 15th, 2013
Toronto City Council has sent a clear message that it recognizes the importance of Toronto’s music sector. Over the past few months there have been several key decisions surrounding music:
- the unanimous support for the Toronto-Austin Music City Alliance, which was made official last month during the trade mission to Austin;
- the unanimous vote to request that the Federal Government extend the Temporary Worker Fee exemptions for musicians to all venues, an issue that is of great importance to the city’s live music community; and,
- a motion to refer the fate of the iconic Sam the Record Man sign to the deputy city manager for consideration, which will allow for more input from Toronto’s music community and hopefully lead to the sign being restored and displayed in a prominent location.
Council members, representing the full political spectrum, have signaled their support for music.
Yet, we still wait for the implementation of two key recommendations from the music community:
the creation of a Music Office and Music Advisory Board at City Hall.
The creation of a Music Office at City Hall was one of the recommendations outlined in the Accelerating Toronto’s Music Industry Growth – Leveraging Best Practices from Austin, Texas report, commissioned by Music Canada and released last year. A Music Office would “create a valuable alignment between the City and the commercial music industry in Toronto,” the report found.
The Music Office could provide coordination across the various city departments that deal with issues relating to live music events and venues, as well as act as an Ombudsman and clearing house for music business operators. The report notes this could make a significant impact in “re-engineering the business/government interface to stimulate job creation and investment attraction,” one of key recommendations made by the Toronto Prosperity Institute’s 2011 report, Establishing The Path To Growth.
The groundwork for a Music Office has already been laid; the City of Toronto recently issued a job posting for a Sector Development Officer (Music), working in the Economic Development & Culture division.
Councillor Michael Thompson, chair of the city’s Economic Development and Culture Committee spoke of the opportunities ahead of the Austin business mission: “We are looking at having a music office, similar to the city’s film office,” said Thompson. “There is a huge opportunity in the music industry.”
The City of Toronto’s Film Office has many success stories stemming from its long-time support of the film industry: over roughly 40 years, Toronto’s film and television industry has experienced rapid growth and established a worldwide brand as a “film city.” Last year, film and television contributed nearly $1billion to Toronto’s local economy.
The Accelerating Toronto’s Music Industry report recommends leveraging existing models in Toronto, such as the Toronto Film Ford, the Film, Television and Digital Media Unit, and the Toronto Film and Television Office to attract investment and stimulate economic development in Toronto’s music sector.
The infographic below, Tuning Up Toronto, visualizes these recommendations:
Click here for full size PDF
The Accelerating Toronto’s Music Industry Growth report also recommends the creation of a Music Industry Board to operate under the Economic Development Standing Policy Committee, which would serve as a conduit for music industry operators who have difficulty or suggestions for City policy issues that require further exploration or action. Its defined responsibilities would include, but not be limited to, working with the new City-staffed Music Industry Office to coordinate efforts on behalf of the music industry, strategic planning and advocacy with the Economic Development Committee for recommended Council action, proactively maintaining community relations with music industry sub-sectors on behalf of the City, and assisting the City with marketing and promotion of Toronto’s commercial music industry.
An informal task force with representation from the live music community has been meeting at City Hall under the direction of Councillor Josh Colle in an effort to demonstrate the benefits of an open dialogue between city staff and music operators. Interest in these discussions has been shown by dozens of others. Creating a more formal structure will allow the opportunity for more effective discussion, greater transparency and broader engagement of the music community.
On November 22nd, Toronto’s Economic Development Committee will consider an item on Toronto’s Music Sector, and will receive a report from City Staff titled “Collaborating for Competitiveness: Music Sector.” The report has not been published yet, but we are confident that it will contain policy recommendations that will strengthen Toronto’s music industry. We are anxiously awaiting the report and are hopeful it includes the creation of a Music Office and a Music Industry Advisory Board at City Hall.
November 4th, 2013
“Dear Ryerson U;
My name is Gord Downie, I am a singer. I have lived in Toronto for almost thirty years and long enough to remember ‘SAM The Record Man’. I always thought of Sam’s as more than just a music store. Sam’s was a meeting place. Kids from the city, kids from outside the city, indeed, kids from all across Canada knew what was meant by merely saying; ‘I’ll meet you at Sam’s.’
Everybody knew what that meant, everybody knew where that was, and if they didn’t, they had only to look for ‘the big Sam’s sign’. Kids would gather on a Saturday, browse the bins, listen to music, talk their ideas, make their plans.
I can think of no better icon, no better beacon, no better sign downtown for young people to rally around, to meet under. I can think of no other place in Toronto that would ‘get this’ – that would understand the importance of this – more than Ryerson University.
Dear Ryerson, please go with your initial impulse to purchase, save and proudly display this sign. It is a good one. For all kids past, present and future.”
– Gord Downie
