Four Quebec-based musicians have been selected for the PHI North residency program, which focuses on musical production, exploration, and experimentation. In four different sessions throughout the year, each of these artists will have the opportunity to go on a creative retreat in the Laurentians to begin, continue, or complete a musical project.
Meet the artists
Gene Tellem:
Whether taking center stage as a DJ or working in the studio, Gene Tellem communicates her interpretation of house and techno with soul and playfulness, intuitively balancing the intellectual and the physical. Her productions are usually born out of the imagination and energy associated with electronic music events. She released her first output Who Says No in 2017 on Montreal's SOBO label, which later led to two releases on the London-based Wolf Music label. She launched her own label, Bienvenue Recordings, in 2019, making her way among the most influential players in the international house scene.
Mehdi Bahmad:
Between poet and pop persona and having grown up between Morocco, France and Quebec, the honey-voiced artist deploys a sensitive and aesthetic universe adorned with songs that are both intimate and poignant, marked by the singular duality of his journey between East and West. Coming from a visual arts background, Bahmad controls all creative aspects of his work and integrates dance and movement into his art.
Annie-Claude Deschênes:
Annie-Claude Deschênes lives and works in Montreal. Visual artist, singer, keyboardist and singer-songwriter, she is a member of the music group Duchess Says (Bonsound, Alien8 Recordings, Slovenly Recordings) and the formation PYPY (Slovenly Recordings). Each musical performance then becomes an immersive multidimensional experience where the public is stimulated as much by the sound side as by the visual and performative aspect. For her, visual art and music are inseparable.
Thanya Iyer:
Thanya Iyer is an enigmatic songwriter who crafts sparkling experimental pop music. Her live trio, with Pompey and Daniel Gélinas, wields acoustic and electronic instruments to flesh out these serene, spiritual compositions. Thanya and the band’s arrangements empower listeners to embrace mindfulness, aesthetic beauty and the interconnectedness of all things.
Acknowledgments
Many thanks to the selection committee composed of members of the PHI team as well as external members, including Benjamin Akpa, Patti Schmidt, Marika Anthony-Shaw, Lunice and Renelle Desjardins Chiasson, as well as Andrew Grey, Mylène Levesque, Alissa Zilberchteine, Philippe Rochefort, and Florence Kouassi.
An initiative made possible thanks to the support of SiriusXM in collaboration with Télé-Québec.
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