The Board of Directors of SaskMusic is pleased to announce the appointment of Michael Dawson as the new Executive Director of SaskMusic, effective March 2, 2015.
The Human Resource Committee, appointed by the SaskMusic Board of Directors, conducted a cross-Canada search, reviewed applications from all over the country, and interviewed a select group of applicants before coming to this decision.
SaskMusic’s previous Executive Director, Derek Bachman, passed away suddenly on December 10, 2014 following a brief illness. Dawn Woroniuk, SaskMusic President, states, “We very much miss Derek; his place in our hearts, and his considerable impact on our music scene, will not be forgotten. What we believe he would want most is for SaskMusic to move boldly forward, and for us to uplift one another in the continued development of our industry. We are thrilled to welcome Michael to the team, and look forward to continuing on with our mission!”
Michael Dawson brings with him a diverse range of experience in the music industry, including tour booking, artist management, marketing and promotion, and sponsorship management. Dawson spent five years serving as the Artistic Director of the Culture Exchange, where he booked and/or promoted over 400 concerts a year, before moving on to become the talent buyer for a number of venues in Western Canada. He is also the Artistic Director of the Gateway Music Festival.
Dawson brings to this position a wealth of hands-on industry experience. As the current lyricist and multi-instrumentalist with Library Voices, Michael has performed at countless national and international events including Liverpool Sound City, SXSW, NXNE, Pop Montreal, CMW, Ottawa Blues Fest, Virgin Music Fest, Edgefest, and the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Library Voices was named the 2012 Sirius XM “Alternative Artists of the Year” and has been nominated for four Western Canadian Music Awards and six CBC Radio 3 Bucky Awards. Dawson also previously owned and operated Young Soul Records, part of the EMI Associated Labels Division, releasing more than a dozen albums by Saskatchewan-based artists, and has participated in numerous juries including FACTOR (The Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings) and the Lieutenant-Governor Awards.
Mr. Dawson will be based out of SaskMusic’s Regina office, and states, “It is with great excitement that I am joining forces with SaskMusic. It's an honour to be a part of such a highly-respected association. I look forward to working with all of our members and helping to achieve continued growth for our world-class roster of artists and music industry professionals.”
Please join us in welcoming Mr. Dawson as our new Executive Director.
SaskMusic is a non-profit association that represents, promotes and develops the commercial music industry of Saskatchewan. We offer programming including artist listings, career consults, workshops, marketing and export assistance, networking opportunities and much more. Our artists and music professionals hail from across the province, and work in pretty much every genre you can imagine. We are a source of information and resources for both the public, and the music industry. If you have questions, we can help. We are the voice of Saskatchewan music.
