ESTEVAN - Former Estevan resident Michael Dawson has gone from being at the helm of the music scene in Saskatchewan to being at the forefront of music in Western Canada.
Dawson, who was hired as the executive director of SaskMusic in early 2015, stepped down from the role in late 2022 to take on the same job with the Western Canadian Music Alliance and Breakout West.
Dawson described the alliance as an umbrella organization that stems from a partnership between the four western provinces and territories.
"Under the umbrella of that organization, we present the Western Canadian Music Awards annually … where we recognize artists and the industry working in Western Canada, and we present Breakout West, which is a very successful music festival," he said.
Breakout West, which will be held in Kelowna, B.C., in October, boasts three nights of music. Spectators purchase a wristband that gets them into multiple venues. More than 50 musicians perform, with most coming from Western Canada but a few travelling from elsewhere. The event shifts annually to different cities in Western Canada.
"In addition to the festival piece, we also run a conference, which is focused on business development and professional development opportunities for musicians and industries, so with that, there are folks that come from literally all around the world to be a part of it to speak on panels and to have one-on-one meetings with artists," said Dawson.
At the 2022 event, Dawson said there were more than 900 one-on-one meetings between artists from Western Canada and industry delegates from Canada and beyond.
"It's been wonderful," said Dawson. "There's always a transition period when you accept a new role, but the team and the staff are so amazing, and getting to work with all of the partner organizations and all those things come together, it's been really great," said Dawson.
He loved his time working with SaskMusic, including the staff and the members, as Saskatchewan's music community has a lot of wonderful people, but the opportunity presented itself. Dawson noted he spent eight years on the board of directors for Breakout West through SaskMusic, helping him with his transition.
"It was incredibly valuable," said Dawson. "I've worked in the non-profit sector since I was a teenager, really, in different capacities, and so that side of things I'm familiar with, and obviously the nuances of each role are very, very different. I learned so much at SaskMusic. I'm so grateful for the folks I get to work with there."
And SaskMusic remains a partner organization with Breakout West.
Dawson said he wanted to work with SaskMusic because he appreciated the musical talent in the province. And he has been able to work with artists professionally and see the work ethic, talent and knowledge of the people in Saskatchewan.
Now he's gaining an appreciation for the talent in Western Canada.
"I've certainly never doubted the quality of talent here and the calibre of artists working in this part of the province, but really I think one of the exciting things is the sense of community that you see," said Dawson.
And while he has a new job and is now working in Vancouver, he still manages to devote some time to projects of his own. Dawson has long been a member of Library Voices, the Regina-based pop-rock group that includes five members from Estevan: Dawson, Paul Gutheil, Brennan Ross, Mike Thievin and Carl Johnson.
"Those guys are all my closest friends, and we're in touch all of the time," said Dawson.
They have taken the opportunity, when possible, to play the occasional show, especially if there's the opportunity to partner up with a charitable organization or cause.
"We're very, very slowly working remotely and back and forth on some new ideas for new material and eventually I think we'll make another record. It's hard to know the timelines. People are busy with careers and raising families and stuff."
A Library Voices rock musical named The Curst, which had been discussed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic reaching Saskatchewan in 2020, made its debut at the Dancing Sky Theatre in Meacham in the spring.
"Most of the Library Voices were there and said it's a wonderful experience," said Dawson.
He is also still working on his own material, describing it as his hobby.
"I put out my own solo record last month, and then I have a new, good jazz collective with some folks. The guys from Library Voices are a part of that, and we had a record coming out in middle of July as well."
The project is called the Peace Flag Ensemble and the record is called Astral Plains.
"It's a subdued, sort of quiet pre-jazz project. It's quite melodic and laid back, and there's a lot of Paul Gutheil saxophone on it, and Mike Thievin from Estevan plays drums on it, and Travis Packer of Estevan plays bass on the project as well.
"For us, I think it's really fun to have something that's creatively in a new direction, and gets us to use a part of our brains we're not always using in a rock-and-roll band."
