Music Matters: Musical poets, rockers and urban groovers added to Cultural Olympiad 2009

Just in time for Christmas giving

Vancouver, BC – Music Matters—a sonic sampler of some of the brightest bands and singer/songwriters currently invigorating Canada’s pop music scene will spill into Vancouver dance halls, theatres and clubs this winter as part of Cultural Olympiad 2009. And the first series of tickets priced at approximately $30 are available now—the perfect Christmas gift for the music lover on your list.

Cultural Olympiad 2009 and the province of British Columbia will welcome the nation, hosting 14 additional music concerts by musicians from virtually every pocket of the country. The concerts build on the Canadian alternative/pop music portion of the Cultural Olympiad 2009 program, with musical styles spanning alt-rock, hip hop, fusion, and electronica. Concerts will be staged at some of the city’s hippest venues for live music, such as the venerable Commodore Ballroom and the re-energized Biltmore Cabaret.

“Our Music Matters events will showcase the vitality and diversity of Canada’s popular music scene, from up-and-coming bands to established artists who are building Canada’s reputation globally as a hotbed of modern music,” said Robert Kerr, program director, Cultural Olympiad of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. “This eclectic mix of contemporary musicadds an essential popular culture component to the Cultural Olympiad 2009 program announced in October.”

A hot line-up of BC talent, including Jillian Lebeck and Steve Dawson, is joined by Somali-born rapper K’NAAN, Kanye West collaborator Esthero, Montreal-based Bell Orchestre, featuring members of Arcade Fire, and Juno award-winning rocker Hawksley Workman. Newfoundland balladeer of a thousand songs Ron Hynes and Indio Saravanja from the Northwest Territories are among the featured crop of singer/songwriters, while Thunderheist from Central Canada will get the dance floor hopping with their electro-pop party funk. Vancouver’s Said the Whale and The Sadies of Ontario will add their eclectic stylings to the musical offerings.

Cultural Olympiad 2009 will run from February 1 to March 21 and features more than 400 performances and exhibitions across the Games region, including the February 12 One Year Countdown Celebration at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre headlined by multiple Grammy and Juno award winner Sarah McLachlan and the February 6 double bill of Broken Social Scene and Tegan and Sara at The Orpheum. Additions to the program include:

• Three shows at the Commodore Ballroom turn the spotlight on some of Canada’s hottest bands: music from la belle province, featuring Quebec bands Bell Orchestre, Besnard Lakes and Beast on February 19; Juno award-winning alt/rock singer/songwriter Hawksley Workman and Chad VanGaalen on February 27; and rap/hip hop/ electronica artists K’naan and Esthero on March 11.
• New Songs, New Voices, a four-night series at the Waterfront Theatre, casts a spotlight on the poetic words and soulful music of the next wave of great Canadian singer/songwriters. Performers include Ron Hynes of Newfoundland, New Brunswick’s David Myles and Jillian Lebeck of British Columbia on February 25; and Nathan Wiley of Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia’s Rebekah Higgs and Jen Lane of Saskatchewan on February 26. On February 27, Christine Fellows of Manitoba, Alberta’s Asani and Indio Saravanja of the Northwest Territories take centre stage.  The series wraps up on February 28 with Steve Dawson and Hannah Georgas, both of BC, and the Yukon’s Kim Beggs.
• Live at the Biltmore, set in one of the city’s coolest places to hear emerging alt/indie music, features some  of the newest bands and will be held February 13, 21 and 28, as well as March 6, 13, 14 and 20. George Leach of British Columbia, Alberta’s Michael Bernard Fitzgerald and Sherry Ryan of Newfoundland and Labrador perform on February 13, while Cadence Weapon of Alberta and Thunderheist from Ontario and Quebec take the mic February 28. On March 6, British Columbia’s Said The Whale, Montreal’s Karkwa and Lucie Idlout of Nunavut take the stage, followed by The Sadies of Ontario and New Brunswick’s Julie Doiron on March 13.  The Sadies do an encore performance on March 14 with Rich Hope of British Columbia, and Juno winner Alex Cuba closes out the series.

Tickets for the Commodore shows are currently on sale. Tickets for the Biltmore and Waterfront Theatre shows go on sale January 10. Tickets and details about these shows and other Cultural Olympiad events are available at vancouver2010.com/culturalolympiad. 

About the Cultural Olympiad

The Cultural Olympiad is a series of multi-disciplinary festivals and digital programs showcasing the best in Canadian and international arts and popular culture. Launched in 2008, this multi-year celebration features an expanded program in 2009 (February 1 to March 21, 2009). The program culminates with the 60-day Cultural Olympiad 2010 (January 22 to March 21, 2010), which begins before and continues throughout the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Partnerships

Corporate

Bell is proud to be a Premier National Partner and the exclusive Telecommunications Partner to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, and the presenting sponsor for the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad. Bell is Canada's largest communications company, providing consumers with solutions to all their communications needs, including telephone services, wireless communications, high-speed Internet, digital television and voice over IP. Bell also offers integrated information and communications technology (ICT) services to businesses and governments, and is the Virtual Chief Information Officer (VCIO) to small and medium businesses (SMBs). Bell is wholly owned by BCE Inc. For information on Bell's products and services, please visit www.bell.ca. For corporate information on BCE, please visit www.bce.ca.

Government

The Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad (CODE) is grateful for the support of the Government of Canada and the governments of all of Canada’s provinces and territories and their respective cultural agencies: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nunavut, Northwest Territories and Yukon.  In addition to the Cultural Olympiad’s government and corporate partners, CODE is proudly supported by the Canada Council for the Arts and the National Film Board of Canada. New Media BC and Wavefront Innovation Society are also both active participants in the project.  The National Presentation and Touring Program is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts.

About VANOC

VANOC is responsible for the planning, organizing, financing and staging of the XXI Olympic Winter Games and the X Paralympic Winter Games in 2010. The 2010 Olympic Winter Games will be staged in Vancouver and Whistler from February 12 to 28, 2010. Vancouver and Whistler will host the Paralympic Winter Games from March 12 to 21, 2010. Visit vancouver2010.com.

Contact
VANOC Communications
mediarelations@vancouver2010.com