ECMA logo courtesy of ECMA Website
Performance Photos courtesy of Island View Creations

The 15th Anniversary of the East Coast Music Awards took place in Halifax, Nova Scotia from February 13-16, 2003.  The ECMA's consists of a 4-day conference, wrapping up with the nationally televised awards show on the Sunday evening.  During the conference, there are seminars, trade shows, music showcases, meetings, jam sessions, concerts and much more, all to do with the music industry in the Atlantic Provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland).

Anyone who is anyone in the music industry, be it musicians, promoters, agents, or record labels, comes to this conference to scope out the next star, promote themselves to others in the industry as well as catching up with friends.  If you're a musician looking for an agent, or a graphic designer looking for clients in the music industry, the networking that you can do here is amazing!

Each year the conference gets bigger and everyone is trying to make themselves be heard and seen.  On walls and tables throughout the World Trade & Convention Centre in Halifax, you see posters for musicians, saying where you can find them performing over the weekend.  Over the 4 days, you can find jam sessions taking place, from meeting rooms to hotel lobbies, all hours of the day!

If you are a conference delegate, you have access to seminars, private industry showcases and the Buying Room, which is where artists set up a booth promoting themselves, and talent buyers can come and find musicians in the genre they are seeking.

For the public, you are able to take in concerts at local theatres, as part of the ECMA Concert Series, which featured performances by the Ennis Sisters, Mary Jane Lamond, Slainte Mhath, Lennie Gallant, The Cottars and John Gracie, as well as several others.  Practically every pub in Halifax had live music over the weekend, of all genres.  There was also the Up Close and Personal Stage at the Halifax Shopping Centre, where performers such as Aselin Debison, Samantha Robichaud, The Ennis Sisters and The Cottars gave a mini concert as well as signed autographs.  As well, there was the 72-Hour Jam Session which took place at the Convention Centre.  This stage had performers from all genres, performing a 30 minute set, one after the other.  It went from Noon on the Thursday until Noon on the Sunday.  So you could show up at 5am after some of the other jam sessions had finished and could still find music!  There was no shortage of music over the weekend!

The only thing that may have prevented some larger crowds at some of the venues outside of the Convention Centre and the buildings connected to it by pedways, was the weather!  The weather this weekend was one of the coldest on record with Valentines Day having a temperature of -42 Celcius with the windchill.  Unless you have experienced this temperature, you have no idea how it feels!  But it just meant you dressed warm if you went out but with the crowds in the venues and everyone dancing to the music you warmed up quite well!

The weekend culminated with the Awards Show on the Sunday evening, which was broadcast across Canada on CBC TV and CBC Radio.  

Here are some of the major award winners:

Album of the Year - Great Big Sea - Sea of No Cares (Producers Great Big Sea & P. Prilesnik)
Entertainer of the Year - Great Big Sea
Female Artist of the Year - Natalie MacMaster
Group of the Year - Great Big Sea
Instrumental Artist / Group of the Year - J.P. Cormier
Male Artist of the Year - Lennie Gallant
New Artist or Group of the Year - The Cottars
Roots Traditional Group of the Year - Barachois
Roots Traditional Solo Artist of the Year - Terry Kelly
Single of the Year - Here (performed by Crush, producer P. Prilesnik)
SOCAN Songwriter of the Year - Jimmy Rankin (Midnight Angel, performed by Jimmy Rankin)
Video of the Year - Sea of No Cares (Performed by Great Big Sea, Director Shawn Maher

The 16th Anniversary of the East Coast Music Awards takes place in St. John's, Newfoundland in February 2004.

Joe Butcher, Troy MacGillivray, Dave Gunning, Cathy Porter - Roots Room Showcase - 021303

Glenn Coolin, Troy MacGillivray, Patricia Murray, Rick Tersteg - Roots Room Showcase - 021303

John Diamond, Cathy Porter, Mary Jane Lamond, Wendy MacIsaac - ECMA Concert Series - Neptune Theatre - 021303

The Cottars - Roots Room Showcase - 021403

Sabra, Kendra & Troy MacGillivray - 72-Hour Jam - 021503

JP Cormier & Hilda Chiasson-Cormier - MusicStop's Tradeshow Booth - 021503

Fred Lavery, Aselin Debison - Up Close & Personal Showcase - Halifax Shopping Centre - 021503

Dominque Dupuis - Roots Room Showcase - 021503

Samantha Robichaud - Roots Room Showcase - 021503

Ellen MacPhee, Jeff Matheson, Cynthia MacLeod - Roots Room Showcase - 021503

  
Beolach - Roots Room Showcase - 021503

Glenn Graham & Andrea Beaton - Your Father's Moustache - 021503

Cheryl Smith, Troy MacGillivray, Andrea Beaton - Old Triangle Pub - 021603

Fiddles & Feet - OId Triangle Pub - 021603

Patrick Lamey, Heather Richards, Delores Boudeau, Cynthia MacLeod, Bruce Guthro, Joella Foulds - Delta Halifax Lobby Late Night Jam Session - 021603

For more info on the East Coast Music Association, check out their websites at http://www.ecma.ca

If you're interested in more Canadian Celtic Music, visit Kimberley's Canadian Celtic Music Website.

Thanks to JP Cormier, the 2003 East Coast Music Awards Winner for Instrumental Artist of the Year, we had a copy of his new CD "Velvet Arm, Golden Hand" which he released with his uncle Joseph Cormier, to give away to 1 lucky winner!

Congratulations to Audrey L. from Ottawa, Ontario who was the winner of this CD.  The answer to the question "What award did JP Cormier win at the 2003 East Coast Music Awards?", was Instrumental Artist of the Year!

Thanks to all who entered.  Keep an eye out for more contests!