Tune in to world music at Mundial Montréal
Discover the best in new world music at Mundial Montréal, from November 13 to 16, pairing Montréal's musical and cultural diversity with the world's. North America's World Music Summit features an industry conference and networking events alongside one-of-a-kind concerts open to the public, from free afternoon shows to intimate performances to late-night parties on the dance floor.
Nation by nation
Mundial Montréal shines the spotlight on talented emerging musicians while also drawing attention to the global socio-political climate at the summit's keynote talks and networking events. Fittingly, the theme of the festival's 8th edition is Mosaic Music, celebrating heritage and offering positive settlement practices for the future through education on colonized land. Mundial also shines the spotlight on the Indigenous music community in the 6th annual Indigenous Sounds Series, including panel discussions and performances by eclectic Indigenous artists.
Free afternoon showcases
Spend an hour or three listening to new music at Mundial Montréal's Free Afternoon Showcases, starting on the afternoon of November 14 at L'Escogriffe with Nunavut throat singer and folk-pop artist Riit, Groote Eylandt-Australian singer-songwriter Emily Wurramara, Swedish-Estonian traditional group Fränder and Inuit throat singing and electro from Silla and Rise. And on Friday, a free-with-RSVP CINARS Biennale showcase at Salle Pierre-Mercure features a Mediterranean-themed multimedia show by Tamar Ilana & Ventanas, Iranian-Canadian composer and Santur player Sina Bathaie, classical Persian music and jazz fusion duo Perséides and Québécois group OktoEcho, exploring the interludes between Middle Eastern, Aboriginal and Western sounds.
Night by night at Mundial
Opening night at the classy Cabaret Lion d’Or brings the Mundial mosaic to life with a genre-hopping showcase of female-fronted artists: Polish chant group Blisk from Toronto, Haitian-Canadian singer and guitarist Mélissa Laveaux, Korean janggu percussion master Kim So Ra, Eastern European electro-folk experimentalists DoVira and Catalan/Spanish rumba-flamenco musician Marinah. Find Wednesday night's party at L'Escogriffe with Montréal's high-energy hip-hop-meets-jazz Urban Science Brass Band, Sami-Norwegian yoik folk artist Elle Márjá Eira, the psycho-tropical grooves of Colombian Montréaler Ramon Chicharron, deep-funk brass band Cha Wa, Catalan-Spanish group Aurora, and the hip hop Afro-Caribbean sounds of Nomadic Massive's Waahli.
Thursday night's Back and Forth Showcase tradition continues, this year with alternating performances at L'Astral and Le Gesù, two of the city's best venues for sound – and barely a block away from each other. See Prince Edward Island bluegrass and Celtic dance band Gordie Mackeeman and His Rhythm Boys, Portuguese multi-instrumentalist Miroca Paris, PEI's Atlantic String Machine, Itamar Erez's jazz, flamenco and Middle Eastern fusion, OKAN's blend of jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythms, Czech Republic ensemble Clarinet Factory and energetic Swedish folk group Kolonien. And it's time to let loose as Mundial Montréal comes to a close on Friday night at Club Soda with party music courtesy of Montrealers Nomad’Stones, Ayrad's Andalusian, Berber, Moroccan and reggae rhythms, and masterful singer-songwriter and guitarist Daby Touré.
Robyn Fadden
Robyn Fadden was a Montréal-based writer and editor known for her curiosity, creativity and love for uncovering the hidden gems of the city. For over a decade, Robyn collaborated with Tourisme Montréal, bringing her vibrant voice and rich knowledge to stories about art, music, and local culture. Robyn had also covered major events for HOUR, MUTEK, ARTINFO, CKUT 90.3FM, and more. She passed away in September 2024, and while she will be deeply missed, her work will continue to inspire.