The Conseil Québécois de la Musique and the Festi Jazz international de Rimouski are proud to renew their collaboration for the Emerging talent Grand Prix.
The Emerging talent Grand Prix is a competition for aspiring professional jazz musicians, who are judged on their performances at the Festi Jazz international de Rimouski. Since 2011, the Festi Jazz international de Rimouski has dedicated a series of four shows in its program to emerging artists. At the end of the four performances, a jury selects an artist or group that has distinguished itself through its compositions, sense of improvisation, stage presence, arrangements, and rapport with the audience to be the winner of the Festi Jazz Emerging talent Grand Prix.
In 2024, the award was presented to Frank O’Sullivan, a guitarist and composer from Ottawa and a graduate of Berklee College of Music. The winner’s project was a quartet featuring Chris Vincent on trombone and keyboards, Emile Farley on electric bass, and Thomas Sauvé Lafrance on drums.
This group of musicians was chosen for their established musical rapport, having worked together in various musical contexts as instrumentalists. Frank also wanted to work with these musicians to reflect some of his main influences, such as experimental music, modern classical music, psychedelic rock, and contemporary R&B.
This year, the four selected groups will perform on Sunday, August 31, 2025, at the Chapiteau de la Place Festi Jazz Québecor in Rimouski.
The winning artist or group will receive various opportunities for exposure, including the organization of performances as part of a provincial, national, or international tour (to be determined based on availability).
The winner of the 2025 Festi Jazz – KSA, Lawyers and Notaries Grand Prize will also be invited to have a booth at the ROSEQ fall meeting. Finally, a representative of the winning group will participate in a clinic based on the program of the Conseil Québécois de la Musique – RIDEAU (Montreal) in February 2026 or jazzahead! (Germany) in April 2026.