THE OPENING WORD
BY KURT DAHL, SASKMUSIC PRESIDENT
I am incredibly honoured to be writing my first message to you as President of SaskMusic. This organization has been near and dear to me since I first started playing music in my teens (just a few short years ago). I remem- ber playing the Flatland Music Festival organized by SaskMusic sometime in the late ‘90s and thinking that there was really something special about this
organization and the music scene that it supported.
For those of you I haven’t met, I play drums in One Bad Son, practice entertainment law across the country, and have been a SaskMusic board member for several years. I owe my involvement with SaskMusic to two people; two people who are unfortunately no longer with us. The first is Neil Meckelborg, a well-known and well-loved producer/ musician in the province who produced One Bad Son’s first two albums, and who suggested back in 2005 that I join the Board. A few years later I did just that, and a few years after that Neil was gone.
The second is Derek Bachman, who encouraged, advised, and men- tored me from the day I met him until the day he left this world. Derek encouraged me to re-join the Board when I moved back to Saskatoon from Vancouver, and put the idea in my head to help SaskMusic re- launch the Legal Program. While my friend Derek was gone before the program recommenced in 2015, his spirit forms the backbone of it.
In this great future, you can’t forget your past. My first President’s mes- sage is dedicated to Neil and Derek.
I also want to take a moment to acknowledge the amazing job that Michael Dawson has done as Executive Director since taking on the role, as well as the staff who have worked so hard under his leadership this past year. This organization is in great hands and it’s an exciting time for our members.
I’ve said this for a long time, and I feel like it’s never been more true than it is today: there are more extremely talented musicians per cap- ita in this province than anywhere else in the world. I say that without hesitation to people from Toronto, Vancouver, New York, Lloydminster.
I look forward to meeting all of you in person, and helping you make the most of your careers in any way I can. If you have questions, need advice, or want to chat about your favourite record, please don’t hesitate to email me at
kdahl@murphyandcompany.com. My door is always open.
BY MICHAEL DAWSON, SASKMUSIC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Welcome to The Session; and welcome to 2017. Every time I write a greeting I seem to begin by talking about how fast the time has gone, but the truth is when we’re in the thick of things it never crosses my mind. It’s only when I finally take a moment to sit and reflect on the last few months that I realize how much has happened.
As you graze through the pages of this issue you’re going to come across information about all the activity both SaskMusic and some of our featured members have been up to. The truth is we’d have to publish an encyclopedia-length anthology every three months to cap- ture a snapshot of everything that Sask. artists are doing. Behind the scenes however, we are also hard at work continuing to develop our Export Program, strategizing workshops, and laying down the founda- tion for some exciting announcements in the coming months.
In addition to presenting showcases for Saskatchewan artists from Hamburg to Montreal and from Warsaw to Regina last fall, our staff also took an estimated 200 business meetings with the international music industry. At each of these events, and many others, we are on the ground attending and participating in panels with industry lead- ers. We are committed to building ongoing relationships across many territories in order to help our membership access new markets and grow their audiences. There are a number of reasons this remains a priority, but the most immediate is that all conversations and research continue to cite live performance as the number one revenue genera- tor for musicians. We recognize that, in short, this means full-time musicians need to expand their touring circuits.
Our workshops continue to be curated to meet our members’ needs. If you have never attended a SaskMusic workshop, I sincerely encourage you to take a risk and join us at one of our upcoming events. They are welcoming and accessible. As a reminder, they are also free with your SaskMusic membership unless otherwise noted.
One last exciting point of note at this time is that we are in the final stages of plotting a SaskMusic Board governance training session for our organization this spring. We have a wonderful Board Of Directors, including many new faces at the last AGM. We believe that SaskMusic must remain healthy and high functioning on all levels if we are going to ensure our continued success.
I invite you to reach out to me at any time if you have questions about our organization or your personal career. It’s important to me to always be available for our members. I want nothing more than to see you reach your own goals. I’m confident that the same can be said for all of our staff.
WWW.SASKMUSIC.ORG
SASKMUSIC THE SESSION - FEBRUARY 2017, VOL 30.1
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