Government of Canada grants $199,927 in funding to Musique du Bout du Monde to promote festival to foreign visitors

Gaspé, Quebec, August 2, 2010 – As the Festival Musique du Bout du Monde gets set to open, the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of State for Canada Economic Development, today announced that the event’s managing organization, Musique du Bout du Monde, has been awarded $199,927 in non-repayable funding through the Community Diversification program to promote the festival’s 2010 and 2011 editions on markets outside Quebec.

Musique du Bout du Monde is dedicated to the production and dissemination of the performing arts and world music, primarily through its Festival Musique du Bout du Monde held annually in Gaspé. Now in its seventh year, this event has become an essential part of the summer line-up in Gaspésie, its unique formula offering the local and regional population and visitors alike the opportunity to explore the many attributes of world music (rhythm, dance, flavours, etc.). The varied program of activities also showcases the Gaspésie cultural scene and strengthens the City of Gaspé’s tourism potential.

“The financial support granted to help market this major Gaspésie cultural happening for the next two years clearly reflects the Government of Canada’s commitment to promoting our country’s attractions abroad. It illustrates our determination to support catalyzing events—like this Festival Musique du Bout du Monde—that improve the quality of life in Canada’s communities and encourage openness to the world. In so doing, we are bringing greater vitality to the Gaspésie tourism industry while helping to showcase our country’s beautiful regions,” explained the Minister of State.

This funding will be used to implement a commercialization strategy that will highlight the unique and exotic nature of the festival and focus on two components: “promotion and advertising outside Quebec” and “media relations”. Direct marketing and networking activities will be carried out to raise the festival’s visibility and reputation, including participation in the World Music Expo 2010 (WOMEX, the largest international trade fair for world music) and the event’s alliance with the Festival du Bout du Monde in Bretagne, France. Web 2.0 tools for event webcasting, concert downloading and so on, will also be developed. This campaign, part of the organization’s growth strategy, is based on the results of a 2009 study conducted by Segma Recherche to orient the event’s long-term development and positioning.

In 2009, this authentic and original music festival drew more than 40,000 spectators, contributed to the creation of four jobs, drew the support of countless volunteers committed to making the event a success and generated nearly $2 million in economic spinoffs. This year’s Festival Musique du Bout du Monde, which runs from August 13 to 15, will feature more than 250 artists and a wide variety of activities for visitors of all ages.

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Sources:

Karina Gagnon
Communications
Canada Economic Development
Tel.: 418-368-6048 or 1-866-368-0044
E-mail: karina.gagnon@dec-ced.gc.ca

Simon Bachand
Special Assistant, Communications
Office of the Honourable Denis Lebel
Canada Economic Development
Tel.: 613-996-6236
E-mail: simon.bachand@dec-ced.gc.ca