SPEAKERS
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--- Arnaud Delbarre --------
General Manager and Artistic Director of the Olympia since March 1, 2002
Northerner, husband, and father of two, Arnaud Delbarre, now 50, is the son of Francis Albert Victor Delbarre, the real name of Raoul Godewarsvelde, the popular singer from Lille, an icon who made his mark on his era – notably with Quand la mer monte (1969), which was later performed by Les Compagnons de la Chanson. The Delbarre family has been handing down the profession of photography from father to son since 1919, when the Maison Delbarre was founded.
This self-taught music lover (former bassist with the Stocks) who likes to describe himself, in tribute to his father, as an artisan of joy, was shown the door of every school he attended for chronic absenteeism and knocked around the working world (in a printing shop) until he was forced to take over the family photography business to save the inheritance of his mother (Andrée). His father died on April 14, 1977. Arnaud wasn’t even 18.
A weekday photographer and weekend musician, young Arnaud spent five years (1976-1981) catching every dance in the region, and in France. This period also saw the arrival of his first child, Julie, now 28.
In 1982, the Stocks rock band lost their bassist. Arnaud took his place. For the next 5 years, the Stocks played more than 500 concerts all over Europe and the United States (including one at the Olympia in 1982), and released their first two albums (with CBS and Warner).
Meanwhile, Arnaud Delbarre was starting a publishing and music production company (1987). He published artists from the north of France and produced Patsy, whose hit Liverpool is still getting regular airplay all over the radio. His friend Michel Delebarre, at that time Ministre de la ville (Minister of the City), asked him to look after “Les quartiers d’été” (Summer Neighbourhoods) – a cultural access program – under the State-Region planning contract. This adventure lasted two years (1990-1992). The regional council for Nord Pas de Calais put him in charge of the Nouveau Siecle, a 2000-seat performance venue in Lille, which he managed until 1994.
In April 1994, he took over Lille’s still-unfinished Zénith hall, which opened on November 26, 1994, with ZZ Top playing for a cheering audience of several thousand Lillois. He built the Zénith into France’s premier performance venue outside of Paris, providing the public with exceptional programming featuring a combination of French and international artists.
On January 13, 2002, Pascal Nègre (President of Universal Music France) offered him the management of the Olympia.
He took up his duties on March 1 of that year and began a complete rethinking process. International artists began to come back to the Olympia’s legendary stage (David Bowie, the Rolling Stones, Sting…). Today the famous music hall has reconnected with its audience, and no fewer than 320 performances were scheduled for 2004 alone.
In July 2003, Arnaud Delbarre bid his final farewell to the stage when he opened for Johnny Hallyday at the Parc des Princes. But he still regularly plays a few chords… with his son Jules, who is now 18 and is himself beginning to perform on stage. Will the family tradition continue?
The Olympia celebrated its 50th anniversary on February 4, 2004.
Arnaud Delbarre is treasurer and a director of Prodiss (Syndicat National des Producteurs, Diffuseurs et Salles de Spectacles).
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--- Terry McBride --------
President and CEO and co-founder, Nettwerk Music Group
Terry McBride is the CEO and one of three founders of the Nettwerk Music Group, which includes Nettwerk Productions (Canada’s largest independent record label), Nettwerk Management (artist, DJ and producer management), Nettwerk One (publishing), and Artwerks (graphic and fashion design). Founded in Terry's apartment in 1984, Nettwerk now has major corporate offices in Vancouver, New York, London, Boston, Nashville, Hamburg and Los Angeles. Nettwerk Management exclusive clients include such artists as Avril Lavigne, Barenaked Ladies, Dido, Stereophonics, Sarah McLachlan, All Saints and Jamiroquai. Since its inception, Nettwerk has released over 400 different albums with worldwide sales in excess of 100 million albums. Most recently, Terry’s attentions have focused on advances in digital technology, intellectual property rights and the future of music distribution.
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--- André Ménard --------
Co-founder and Artistic Director, Festival international de jazz de Montréal and Vice-President, L’Équipe Spectra
For close to thirty years now, André Ménard has been one of the most influential people on the Quebec arts scene. He has made a huge contribution to the cultural life of Montreal.
André Ménard was born in Tétreaultville, a working-class neighbourhood on the east side of Montreal. His ambition and taste for business revealed themselves at an early age. At the Collège de Maisonneuve, he was a pacesetter who organized live shows and started a popular film club. Even then, he already had a reputation as being an up-and-comer in the live performance industry.
Ironically, he wasn’t admitted for a communications degree at UQAM under the pretext that they were only looking for students who wanted to transform society. This setback shook him – but also motivated him.
He was put in charge of performances at the Théâtre Outremont, along with Paul Dupont-Hébert, as well as being a stage director for major events such as the St. Jean Baptiste celebrations on Mount Royal. In January 1977, he went into partnership with Alain Simard and founded Spectra-Scène.
By the early 1980s, he was beginning to miss the large-scale events of earlier years (Expo 67, the 1976 Olympic Games, etc.) and the significant cultural programs associated with them. So, with Alain Simard, he organized a series of concerts at the Place des Nations on Île Sainte-Hélène. The event attracted a crowd of 12,000: the Festival international de jazz de Montréal (FIJM) was born. Two years later, the concerts moved to downtown Montreal and became a huge hit with the public.
Over the years, the FIJM has matured into the largest music festival in Canada, and one of the most important jazz events in the world. Its international flavour is sustained each year by the participation of musicians from Europe and Africa, as well as North, South and Central America.
Spectra-Scène (renamed L'Équipe Spectra in 1993) grew in scale to become a veritable cultural empire. For the past 30 years, the company has been organizing mass events (the FIJM, as well as FrancoFolies since 1989 and the Montreal High Lights Festival since 2000), organizing live performances, and managing venues (Spectrum and Métropolis), artists’ careers, recordings and television productions.
André Ménard was also president of ADISQ from 1989 to 1991, years that were “among the most active and instructive of [his] professional life”.
He has been one of the most influential people on the Quebec arts scene for close to 30 years.
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--- David Pakman --------
President and CEO, eMusic
David Pakman has been a pioneer and entrepreneur in digital media since its early days. The majority of his career has been focused on developing new business models for the music industry which embrace the digital economy and benefit both artists and consumers.
As the CEO of eMusic, Pakman runs the world’s leading digital retailer of independent music, second only to iTunes in number of downloads sold. eMusic serves customers aged 25+, offering independent music and audiobooks in a universally compatible format at a great value. In the three years that Pakman has run eMusic, the business has grown by more than 450%. eMusic has sold more than 175,000,000 songs in the last three years -- more music than all of its competitors combined (except iTunes) -- and is now one of the most successful entertainment subscription services, with upwards of 350,000 paying subscribers and more than 8 million unique monthly visitors.
Pakman is a member of the Board of Overseers at Penn Engineering, is a board member of Knitting Factory Entertainment, serves on the Leadership Committee for the UJA-NY’s Music For Youth, and is an avid musician and songwriter.
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--- Valéry Zeitoun --------
Manager of the AZ label for Universal Music France
For the past 10 years and more, Valéry Zeitoun has been involved in promoting and marketing major artists such as Johnny Hallyday, Zazie, Florent Pagny, Khaled, Lara Fabian… not to mention U2, Elton John, Lionel Richie, Eminem. With this kind of experience under his belt, he was named general manager of the AZ label, a new unit of Universal Music Group. Valéry Zeitoun manages a small team of 14 people. He is a big-hearted man who stresses the value of work and the passion for music, key elements for success as a producer. He produces Chimène Badi, who he discovered when he was on the jury of the M6 network’s PopStar TV show. His latest discovery is Grand Corps Malade, whose lyrics just blow him away.
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