From CultMTL: After a six-year absence, the Folk Alliance International conference returns to Montreal this week. 

The conference, whose 37th annual edition begins tonight at the Sheraton and runs until Saturday Feb. 23, is geared toward the folk music industry to showcase artists, host panels and workshops in the daytime, and offer networking opportunities. It is the biggest folk music gathering of its kind worldwide.

Nearly half (around 45% to 50%) of all attendees are artists, while agents, managers, presenters, venues and radio DJs, among other industry-facing roles, are also in tow. In other words, basically the entire folk music ecosystem is represented in some form or another during this five-day conference.

This year, visitors will be greeted to official and private showcases within various corners of the hotel from both domestic and international folk and folk-adjacent artists (this year’s country of focus is Portugal), with the International Folk Music Awards happening tonight to kick off the proceedings. Montreal’s own Allison Russell serves as the keynote speaker, and will be interviewed by NPR’s Ann Powers.

Learn more at this link.