Cantos at the King Eddy
National Music Centre Project Update June 2010
As the architects finish up with schematic design, the marketing team is getting ready to unleash the new National Music Centre (NMC) brand. After extensive stakeholder consultation, Cantos and its branding consultant, Identica, have come up with a brand and visual language we feel capture the heart and soul of music and of the National Music Centre.
Cantos and NMC fans can sneak a peak at the new look during the Stampede this year at the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame July 9-20, 2010.
Keep your eyes open in future issues of our Music Matters montly newsletter for the new brand’s debut!
National Music Centre Project Update May 2010
Allied Works Architects are busy consulting staff and stakeholders to ensure the design of the new building will meet the needs of the organization for the long term. Each of our teams, i.e. programming, collections, marketing, development, administration and so on, are voicing their needs and aspirations for the national music centre with the architects and program planners taking notes on how to design the best possible space to bring these dreams and aspirations to fruition.
This is a very technical part of the design of the National Music Centre project that looks at how staff and end users will interact with the space. Where should the loading dock be? How do people naturally engage and move through exhibits? What sorts of areas need to be adjacent to one another? How will future growth in collections and programs influence the design today? How will technology be integrated into the design?
Stay tuned as we move through this phase towards a final conceptual design for the project!
Cantos Hits the Junos
Executive Director Andrew Mosker made his way to St. John’s, Newfoundland in April for the annual Juno Awards. Despite being stranded in Halifax on the way there due to fog and on the way back due to volcanic ash clouds, the trip was a resounding success.
Not only did Andrew get face time with the movers and the shakers of Canada’s music industry, he was thrilled when Canadian music giant Ross Reynolds, recipient of the 2010 Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award talked about the National Music Centre project at length in his acceptance speech. This recognition and declaration of support for the project put the National Music Centre vision directly in front of the national music industry en masse for the first time.
We’re very much looking forward to working with the Canadian Association of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) on the 40th Anniversary Junos in Toronto in 2011.
National Music Centre Project Update – April 2010
While our fundraising team works diligently to secure additional funding for the National Music Centre project, Allied Works Architects and the Cantos project team have completed the pre-design component of the project with some compelling findings. Conclusions from pre-design include how the National Music Centre at the King Eddy project will position and distinguish its uniqueness against similar organizations around the world and how the building itself will accommodate those needs.
This pre-design report, which compared the National Music Centre at the King Eddy project with institutions like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, The Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, the Experience Music Project in Seattle, and Cite de la Musique in Paris, among others, found that National Music Centre at the King Eddy project has the potential to compete and be unique in the international marketplace given the desired use of the living collection of keyboard and electronic instruments as well as the vintage recording equipment that currently make up a significant portion of the total holdings within the existing collection. Of course, Cantos has been unique since its inception in using its collection for public engagement and it’s great to know that, moving forward, we continue to break ground as music centre for the 21st century.
The next step on the architectural front is schematic design, which will establish the general scope, conceptual design, scale and relationships among the components of the National Music Centre at the King Eddy project with the result of a clearly defined, feasible concept and detailed construction budget.
Cantos has also embarked on the creation of a master programming plan for the National Music Centre project that will strategically identify a menu of specific programs that will enable the transformation of our organization. The plan will examine how the National Music Centre project can address the needs of musicians, school children, seniors, the medical and educational communities, residents of East Village and Calgary as a whole as well as music lovers across Alberta, Canada and around the world. The plan will develop detailed strategies around educational programs, live music programming at the King Eddy and much much more. Stay tuned for more exciting developments!
City Council Approves $25 million for National Music Centre Project
City Council gives the go-ahead for the project that will catalyze the revitalization of the East Village with music
Calgary, January 26, 2010 – Cantos Music Foundation is thrilled to announce City Council today approved a $25-million commitment towards the building of the National Music Centre project at the site of the King Eddy in the East Village.
“We are ecstatic,” says Andrew Mosker, executive director. “This endorsement from the City gives our project the credibility and the momentum to bring the National Music Centre to fruition. We truly believe this is a monumental decision on the part of the City to build a strong, vibrant community that all Calgarians can be proud of – and we commend them for their vision and their commitment to making Calgary a cultural leader in this country and for putting another piece of Calgary on the international map.”
Cantos’ National Music Centre project, an 80,000-square-foot facility on the site of the legendary King Edward Hotel, will integrate the world-renowned living Cantos Music Collection, the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame Collection, recording studios, education and public programming, performance space, public radio broadcasting space, seven-days-a-week live music venue, music and wellness research centre, artists-in-residence programs and more.
“This project is the first of its kind in Canada and the world,” says Mosker. “It will be a hub for all things music in Canada that will not only tell Canada’s national music story but celebrate and foster the creation, performance and preservation of music through a wide array of public programs.”
The City will release $2.5 million in “seed funding” that will allow design work to continue with the architectural team and allow for Cantos to continue building support and awareness across the country in 2010. The payment of the balance of the $25-million commitment is contingent on similar commitments from the provincial and federal governments as well as support from corporate and individual donors.
Play Your Part!
The City of Calgary’s visionary gift of $25 million has set Cantos Music Foundation’s National Music Centre project on the path to realization. This transformational initiative will lead the redevelopment of a vital inner city neighbourhood and shape Calgary, Alberta and Canada’s cultural landscape for many generations to come. Your support of this initiative is vital to its success, and we encourage you to Play your Part!
Monthly giving is easy on the pocketbook – for example, a gift of $30 a month, or a dollar a day, adds up to an annual gift of $360 per year, making a substantial contribution in manageable, monthly installments. It’s also very easy to do – just click here to Play your Part and become a monthly supporter.
Cantos’ National Music Centre Project Update
This has been the year the Cantos National Music Centre project came to life! Through our international architectural competition and public presentation process, Calgary, Alberta, Canada and the world now know what we’re up to here in the East Village.
The Cantos team is working hard to secure funding for the national music centre project. Based on current estimates, $120 million is required to construct a 80,000-square-foot facility on the King Eddy site and adjacent sites as well as maintain as build an operating endowment to ensure the long-term sustainability of the centre.
Cantos’ national music centre project is one of 15 recommended by Calgary Arts Development to city council as much-needed arts space and all three levels of government have been positive about the project. We continue to discuss the possibilities on a regular basis.
In the meantime, architectural partner Allied Works is busy with the pre-design phase of the project together with our newly-appointed project manager, Sandy Fisher. We are anticipating that work will begin on the site sometime in 2010.
On the marketing side, our team, together with Vancouver’s Identica, is busy conducting market research across the country to give us some direction on a new brand for the project. To date, we have conducted online and telephone interviews as well as a very interesting dialogic research session with a number of stakeholders and members of the public here in Calgary.
Your ideas and feedback are always welcome! Please don’t hesitate to contact us at info@cantos.ca or phone (403) 543-5115.
The Vision: Canada’s Only National Music Centre
Canada’s music story deserves to be told. Cantos’ recent acquisition of the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame, is a bold step towards realizing our vision of creating a facility that celebrates Canada’s remarkable music legacy and serves the national music community by providing a world class centre of music innovation, creation and discovery.
The Cantos at the King Eddy project will be the catalyst for the revitalization of one of our city’s most historic communities. It’s visionary, it’s bold, it’s unique and this iconic project will help shape the architectural and cultural future of this dynamic city.
Cantos envisions a world-class music education, entertainment and experience destination by incorporating, expanding and honouring the existing historic King Edward Hotel.
Part education research centre, part museum, part recording studio, part live music venue, this newly refurbished and upgraded 80,000-square-foot facility will create a new space for innovative and creative programs for people of all ages.
The Location
East Village was the birthplace of the city 130 years ago. It is nestled at the scenic confluence of two rivers. It is steeped in visions of the past and dreams of the future while wrestling with the social issues of the present. It is home to the homeless. It is heartbreaking and dream-making at once.
Now, Calgary’s East Village is on the verge of becoming one of the most innovative communities in Canada. It will become a crossroads: a public place where music becomes the catalyst for fusing innovation, discovery and renewal, creating a district unrivalled anywhere in Canada. The revitalization of the King Edward Hotel as a new music centre is the beginning of a bigger long-term vision; the King Eddy is the soul of this district; the first major revitalization step of many that will catalyze a vision that is bold, big and destined to put another piece of Calgary and Canada on the international map.
Play Your Part
Can you imagine Canada’s national music centre right here in Calgary? Are you inspired by the concept of a renewed, vibrant East Village? Can you picture you and your family enjoying performances and programs at Cantos at the King Eddy? Then help us make it a reality by playing your part!
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