New at Mundial Montréal this year: the formation of our programming committee. An important addition to our structure that will have allowed us to unite forces and opinions with 7 professionals carefully selected on the basis of their skills and background.

More than 350 applications were received following the call for applications launched this winter. First of all, thank you to all the artists who have shown an interest in Mundial Montréal. What an honor to be able to discover so many talents, year after year.

Selecting and curating the artists in the official showcase was no easy task for the members of the jury and for the Mundial Montréal programming team. However, we are happy to announce that the selection is now closed. Some artists have already been unveiled, and others will follow over the next few months!

Discover our showcasing artists!

We are proud to introduce you to the 7 members with whom our team has collaborated over the past few months in the selection, curation and programming of artists in official showcases.

Alfredo Caxaj – Artistic Director of Sunfest based in London, ON 

Since arriving in Canada in 1985 during the height of political repression in his native Guatemala, Alfredo Caxaj has truly made a difference in his adopted community of London, Ontario. Caxaj has served for more than two decades as the Executive and Co-Artistic Director of the non-profit Sunfest-London Committee for Cross Cultural Arts Inc. Since debuting in July 1995, Sunfest has grown into “Canada’s Premier Celebration of World Cultures” with an annual attendance of more than 210,000. Alfredo has contributed to the JUNO Awards World Music Advisory Committee, and as a juror for the Ontario Arts Council, the Department of Canadian Heritage, the Canada Council for the Arts and several international music markets.

Alannah Johnston – Artistic Director/Executive Alianait Arts Festival based in Iqaluit, Nvt  

Alannah Johnston joined Iqaluit’s Alianait Arts Festival in late 2016 as a festival coordinator. In 2020, she became the organization’s executive director. Over the years, Johnston helped grow the number of Inuit and Indigenous performers filling the festival’s line-up each year, something she says remains an ongoing goal for the organization. She is also heavily involved in Nunavut’s performing arts scene and can be found at almost any live show in Iqaluit, or any stage featuring Inuit talent in the territory or country.

Catherine Pépin – Broadcaster and journalist at CBC/Radio-Canada based in Montreal, QC 

Catherine Pépin has hosted the program “Un nomade dans l’oreille” for the past dozen years on Ici Musique (Radio-Canada), the unmissable event for fans of global music. Appreciated by listeners from all over the planet, this program is both a real journey and an inexhaustible source of discovery, carried by the enthusiastic animation of Catherine. Catherine Pépin has also hosted several special programs in front of an audience as part of the Francofolies de Montréal, the Salon du livre de Montréal and the Nuits d’Afrique festival. She presented DJ sets in Montréal and Québec.

Isabel Soffer – Co-director of GlobalFEST based in Newark, NJ 

Isabel has been at the forefront of cultural programming, arts advocacy, creating and running a performing arts organizations and building community in the USA for over three decades. She has been instrumental in developing the American global music scene as co-founder/co-director of globalFEST and The Generators and director of Live Sounds and previously at World Music Institute as Director of Programming. Isabel has produced more than fifteen hundred of concerts with artists from more one hundred countries and nations and has produced seven albums, three of which were nominated for Grammys. Her curatorial work includes concerts, festivals, conferences, educational programs, public art projects, and recordings.

Max Merrifield – Artistic director of Festival Boreal in Sudbury/founder of Bloom Festival 

Max Merrifield is the executive director of Northern Lights Boreal Festival, an annual summer music festival in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. It is one of Canada’s oldest music festivals in continuous operation. Merrifield is also the founder of Bloom, NLBF’s newest festival, featuring a mix of world music, with other genres including folk, rock, hip hop and pop music.

Marc Fournier – Columnist and Broadcaster at CBC/Radio-Canada Vancouver, Canada 

Born in Montreal, Marc got his first DJ/Selector gig in a shack in the mountains of Rwanda as a teenager. Since then, he has been sharing his love for music on stage and on the airwaves in many countries. Based in Vancouver since 1986, he writes articles and reviews on Turtle Island’s Indigenous music for Songlines Magazine and works in broadcasting.

Paméla Kamar – Co-founder and Artistic Director of Vision Diversité

Paméla Kamar, co-founded Vision Diversité in Montréal alongside her mother Aida Kamar 16 years ago. Kamar’s deep knowledge in the world music industry and her artistic expertise enabled her to identify and accompany artists whose creativity is nourished by musical influences from all over the world. She is a member of the Board of Musication, the juries of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec as well as the Révélations Radio-Canada in mixed music.

Want to Become a Juror? 

Would you like to get involved on the programming committee, or even select a colleague from the industry? We would be happy to hear your suggestions! Do not hesitate to contact our team by replying to the following email!