Montreal has its first all-jazz radio station

[Guest Low Roller]

Montreal has its first all-jazz radio station

Make way for Couleur jazz

Montreal, July 2, 2003 - It’s been the dream of Montreal jazz lovers for 25 years. And it’s been the fondest dream of the organizers of the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal for what will soon be 25 years, as well: a year-round radio station devoted exclusively to jazz. That combination of energy and enthusiasm is pretty well unstoppable, so it’s with boundless delight that Radio Nord Communications Inc. and partner L’Équipe Spectra received today’s wonderful news: the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has approved their request for a French-language radio licence. Which means that Montreal - like other Canadian cities with a jazz station - will finally have its own: Couleur Jazz at 91.9 FM, starting 2004.

Better than that : Couleur Jazz will be the answer to an even older dream of Radio Nord Communications: to take its rightful place in the biggest radio market in Quebec.

Couleur Jazz will be broadcasting all of the different trends in the world of jazz. From Miles Davis to Lorraine Desmarais, and from Van Morrison to Norah Jones, B.B. King, Cesaria Evora and well beyond, of course. Every day, the new station will be a constant companion to lovers of jazz and all its musical cousins, including blues, bossa nova and worldbeat, bringing music lovers the latest in the constantly changing musical and cultural environment. And you can rest assured that Couleur Jazz will provide local artists the airtime they deserve, as well.

Vive la différence ! With Couleur Jazz, artists and listeners alike will get their due. For jazz artists - far too often ignored by conventional radio - it’ll be the year-round showcase they’ve always deserved. And for listeners, it will be a constant source of sounds from favourite and emerging artists. Couleur Jazz will put a buzz in the hearts of everyone who lives and breathes jazz in our fair city. And make no mistake: they are legion in Montreal. With the advent of 91.9 FM, a much yearned-for musical vehicle will be taking its rightful place in the Montreal radio landscape.

Top-flight broadcast expertise. By awarding a licence to Couleur Jazz, the CRTC has selected a group of partners with a vast and complementary expertise that’s been well-established for quite some time. Radio Nord Communications, founded in 1948, already operates 5 TV stations and 6 radio stations in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Ottawa Valley, East Ontario and Lower Laurentian markets. And as a partner in the ARTV consortium, L’Équipe Spectra is one of the biggest cultural enterprises in the country, with 25 years of experience in major lively arts and TV productions, not least of which is the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, which has been smoothly operating its own temporary jazz station these last 14 years for the duration of the Festival.

Couleur Jazz thanks the CRTC and everyone else who has lent their support to the project to make our shared dream a reality. The launch of Couleur Jazz will be timed to coincide with the Festival’s 25th Anniversary blow-out in 2004 - here is yet another cause for celebration! Couleur Jazz 91.9 FM Montreal.