16th Annual Maple Blues Awards

BLUES ARTISTS FROM COAST-TO-COAST FEATURED AT 16TH ANNUAL MAPLE BLUES AWARDS

Performers include Matt Minglewood, Nanette Workman, Carlos del Junco, Suzie Vinnick, Steve Strongman, and The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer

A cast of some of the best national blues musicians will be performing at the 16th annual Maple Blues Awards gala on January 21 at Koerner Hall in Toronto. The Maple Blues Awards is Canada’s national blues celebration, recognizing outstanding musical achievement and gathering blues musicians and music fans from across the country each year.

Canadian blues luminaries and emerging new talent will be performing at the gala concert and are all current nominees. This year the performers include Juno Award winner Matt Minglewood from Nova Scotia, Quebec blues artist and Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame inductee Nanette Workman, multiple Maple Blues Award winners Carlos del Junco, Harrison Kennedy, Suzie Vinnick, and Steve Strongman from Ontario, and British Columbia’s dynamic blues duo The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer, all backed by The Maple Blues Band featuring current and past Maple Blues Award nominees and winners Gary Kendall, Michael Fonfara, Teddy Leonard, Al Lerman, Tom Bona, Chris Whiteley, Pat Carey and Chris Murphy.

The January 21st gala event will be hosted by popular actor and blues artist Raoul Bhaneja and is considered to be the premier blues event of the year. Tickets for the not-to-be-missed Maple Blues Awards are on sale now for $35 - $65 and can be purchased at the Weston Family Box Office, located in The Royal Conservatory’s TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning at 273 Bloor Street West, Toronto, by calling 416.408.0208 or online at www.performance.rcmusic.ca. Following the awards and concert will be the popular after-party, featuring live music and performances from some of the evening’s winners.

The Toronto Blues Society is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to the promotion and preservation of the Blues.

The Royal Conservatory's magnificent Koerner Hall is a 1,135-seat venue designed in the tradition of the classic “shoebox” venues of Europe. Recognized as being among the world’s greatest concert halls, the Toronto Star has called it "the best concert venue in Toronto."