Judges and Staff

We are currently on hiatus

Acoustic Nights Montreal
Teen Songwriting Competition 2011
Sat Jun 25, 2011, 2-4pm

Current Roster

• Annie Becker

  
  www.anniebecker.com Annie Becker's soulful, sultry voice and undeniably playful charisma will have your feet tapping before you know it. A self-described urban hippie living in Montreal, Annie's music is flavoured with a blend of pop and soul, layered on top of a folk foundation. Although Annie's artistic journey is one of connectivity and humanity, her collective outlook stands in contrast with the fierce individuality of her music. A frontwoman to be reckoned with, Annie can effortlessly lead a big band performance but remains a solo artist through and through. She is most comfortable as her own one-woman band, often rocking just her guitar, a loop pedal and a mountain of creativity. Nowhere is this more evident than on the streets of Montreal, where she regularly entertains passersby with her acoustic guitar and infectious good humour. With the release of her debut album All About the Beez Neez through Montreal record label Ambrosia Music, Annie is ready to bring her music to the world. Whether it's at packed clubs, intimate coffeehouses, busy street corners or bustling music festivals, those who come across Annie will no doubt walk away with a smile on their face and a melody in their head.

• Daniel Grozdanov

  
  
  Major in Biophysics, Daniel Grozdanov is a guitar player, producer and sound engineer who's worked on multiple music projects in the Montreal area. He's available for recording contracts and demo productions.

• Hadi Adel (Bad Weather a.k.a. Rough Draft)

  
  www.badweather.bandcamp.com
  
  He is inspired by a lot things...from the temperature to the everyday struggle. Therapeutic and refreshing, ambient melodies flirt with chaotic story lines and draw a carefree landscape...with a twist of hip hop.

• Johanne Desforges

  
  www.johannedesforges.com
  
  Performer, voice coach, composer, singer, instrumentalist. My passion has always been and still remains the voice. Understanding the instrument then teaching it to all who are as passionate as I am.

• Jonathan Rosner

  Jonathan is a versatile, forward-thinking and fast picking guitarist. His current projects involve producing, composing and arranging songs crafted from his home studio. He's also a noted session musician as well as an energetic performer. Among his most recent achievements are winning first place at FestiBlues 2010 in Montreal. He is specialized in techniques such as pop-slapping and prefers playing funk and blues, even though his field of study is classical. Jonathan is honoured to be involved in helping the next generation of artists. His numerous years of teaching groups of students and giving private lessons have given him the skills and understanding on how to motivate people. He looks forward to this exciting opportunity to be involved with the Acoustic Nights Teen Songwriting Competition.

  www.youtube.com/user/MrJRosner

• Kristen Bussandri

  
  myspace.com/kristenbussandri Hailed as an arresting female vocalist by the New York editor of Mix Magazine, Kristen Bussandri is long-legged sultry brunette who will stop you in your tracks with her stellar pipes and warm, sophisticated brand of country-rock. Garnering comparisons to Alison Krauss, Bonnie Raitt and Janis Joplin, Kristen's singular voice is at once polished and honey-sweet but peppered with a bluesy, gritty rasp - lending itself equally well to the sassy Blues-based songs and heart-wrenching acoustic ballads she crafts with passion. A native Montrealer, Kristen got her start in the industry by working backstage in concert promotion for Canadian impresario Donald K Donald before moving to New York City, where she went from answering phones as an intern in the Brill Building to singing on tracks mixed by super-producer Phil Ramone (Bob Dylan, Phil Ramone). Recently back in Montreal, Kristen has teamed up with award-winning guitarists Rick Haworth and Olivier Boyer-Masutti, who envelop her voice is layers of acoustic and electric guitar, sustaining a laid-back, burnished, Indian-summer feel. The result of Kristen's sound and style is a refreshing new voice in the world of Canadian music that hooks the listener leaving them craving for more (Samantha Kaufman, SongCircle Music).

• Matt Lipscombe

  Montreal's Me, Mom, and Morgentaler gave birth to a promising new singer-songwriter. Emerging from the shadows of these 5-time winners of the Montreal Mirror's Readers' Poll, Matt Lipscombe now steps into the limelight. A singer-songwriter in the folk tradition, he takes the stage with an acoustic guitar and enchants the audience with his beautifully crafted songs. He has performed in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. His debut record, Folk Tales, released in 2007, was critically well-received. In July 2008, he performed at the Quebec Off Festival in Quebec City. In October 2009, he performed live on CBC radio, appearing on the Christiane Charette show - the most popular radio show in Quebec. In 1988, he co-founded the ska-funk circus, Me Mom and Morgentaler. Countless tours across North America followed with 50,000 records sold. All along, Matt Lipscombe wrote the songs that propelled the band to legendary status. Nowadays, the troubadour is in the studio recording his second English-language record, a solo-acoustic offering slated for a release date of April 21st 2011. He is also taking part in the NSAI songwriting seminar in Nashville Tennessee in early April 2011.

• Mehdi Cee

  
  www.boombapcats.com Mehdi Cee has been a songwriter for the past 15 years. He has been writing and co-producing music for the past 10 and has been at the forefront of the conscious underground Hip-Hop scene in montreal for the past 3. His first record from his group, The Boombap Cats, entitled Step in the Alley received rave reviews from all over the world and continues to do so. He has recently organized GIGANTE, a collective of the best Montreal based rappers. He is about to release his second album in the summer of 2011.

• Melina Soochan - Producer

  
  www.melinassoochan.com A native Montrealer, Melina is a soulful and sophisticated singer/songwriter and pianist, whose style is a distinctive yet unique blend of pop, indie, jazz and blues. A classically trained pianist with touches of jazz, she pushes herself beyond the limits of conventional pop and adds a little something extra to every track. Melina is no stranger to the stage. Her first love is live performance, whether alone or with her jazzy quartet. When she's not in the studio recording songs for her debut full-length album Hold On (due summer 2011), you can see and hear Melina in various venues and events in and around Montreal and Toronto. She currently sings every Thursday at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel, where she showcases popular jazz and contemporary songs as well as her quirky original music. In 2009 she released a 6-song EP City of Love, and since then independently produced 3 music videos, X-Ray Eyes (currently on rotation on Bravo! and CJNT), City of Love (the title track of her EP) and more recently The Mama Song, as promo for her upcoming album. Melina is also an avid entrepreneur, having founded the Acoustic Nights Montreal singer-songwriter series. This year her organization is expanding into the youth sector and has produced the first annual Acoustic Nights Montreal Teen Songwriting Competition! Melina believes in supporting local music and art.

• Natalie Harvey

  
  
  Natalie is an active artist, entrepreneure and philantropist. Along with helping out with most Acoustic Nights since its conception in 2009, she recently put her Artist Alliance Productions company on hold to pursue full-time studies in psychology, to be able to coach the next generation of artist-entrepreneures like her.

• Sabrina Correa

  
  www.sabrinacorrea.com Sabrina is a soulful singer-songwriter trained in Classical and Jazz. She holds a bachelor's degree in Jazz Performance from McGill University. Her compositions can be heard on radio stations throughout the city. Sabrina's performances have also been broadcasted on Canadian television networks, including CTV, Bravo, and Musique Plus. She has performed at venues such as: The Montreal Casino, Place-des-Arts Montreal, The Montreal International Jazz Festival's Tribute to Paul Simon Concert, to name a few. Solo or with her band The Coral Reefs, Sabrina delivers each performance with heartfelt passion.

• XLi!M

  
  www.myspace.com/xlimS
  
  XLi!M represents the cultural interbreeding of the formerly colonized African countries. In 2003, he formed a rap group, LE KLERGÉ. In 2007, he chose reggae as a means of expression and, in 2009, is awarded the bronze Syli of world music. With a smile on his face, he promotes peace, love and acceptance of oneself. In 2010, Xlim starts his Montreal mini-tour Djénina : l'Expérience, living proof of the musician's role as messenger. His first album is scheduled for release in 2011. XLi!M is par excellence a jovial fellow who extends his good mood throughout the world