Canadian Music Week
Cancels 2020 Edition,
Looks Ahead to 2021
To Reschedule or Cancel?
As CMW originally did, a few other events on
the Canadian music calendar have opted to
schedule for the late summer or fall rather
than cancel in hopes that gatherings will be
allowed again by then. They include:
• CMAOntario Country Week &
Awards: rescheduled from May to
Oct. October 1-4, 2020
• North by Northeast (NXNE):
rescheduled from June to Aug.
11-16, 2020
• Sing! The Toronto Vocals Arts Festi-
val: rescheduled from May to Sept.
22-Oct. 4, 2020
Rather than reschedule, a number of
other music festivals have decided to cancel
their 2020 editions entirely and instead look
ahead to 2021. Among those who have
cancelled are:
• Juno Week & Awards
• ECMA Week & Awards
• Edmonton Folk Music Festival
• Festival d’été de Québec
• Halifax Jazz Festival
• Montreal International Jazz Festival
• RBC Ottawa Bluesfest
• SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival,
and more.
After initially rescheduling from May to
September because of the COVID-19 crisis,
Canadian Music Week 2020 confirmed its
cancellation on May 4 th .
“We are hopeful of finding a date in
2021 to continue our nearly four-decade
tradition of bringing the world’s music and
music-makers to Toronto; however, we
will not make decisions ahead of events.
We will follow protocols and assess our
best options going forward,” CMW CEO
Danya Dixon said in an email to conference
delegates.
The 38 th edition of CMW was originally
going to take place from May 19-23 in
downtown Toronto. Then, in mid-March,
as the pandemic worsened and govern-
ments banned large public gatherings and
restricted travel, organizers rescheduled
the entire event for September 8-12.
“After extensive consultation with
industry partners, it has become apparent
that – at this point in the public health
emergency – September represented too
many unavoidable obstacles. Not least
of these would be the participation of
international artists and delegates, many
of whom might not be free to travel at that
point, and some of whom have already
declined to attend,” Dixon added in her
email. “Even in a best-case fall scenario,
wherein the spread of COVID-19 has been
mitigated and limited public gatherings
allowed, high-attendance events such as
concerts, sports, and conferences will likely
be the last public activities to resume. The
fallout is huge for events like ours and for
the entire music industry.”
For more information as it becomes
available, go to www.cmw.net.
CANADIAN MUSICIAN 17