Indigenous Music Development Program Travels North for Partnership with Winterruption Churchill

Press Release

January 28, 2026

The Indigenous Music Development Program (IMDP) at Manitoba Music is making its first trip to Churchill next month for Good Sounds North, a day of artist development workshops in partnership with Winterruption Churchill. The project is made possible by Manitoba Film & Music, the Manitoba Government, and FACTOR, the Government of Canada and Canada’s private radio broadcasters.

Running February 8 at The Churchill Theatre, the free sessions are open to the public and will feature visiting mentors including Winnipeg-based Anishinaabe and settler folk-soul musician Ila Barker, rock ‘n’ roll band The Haileys, singer/songwriter duo Dom & Jacob (Dominique Adams and Jacob Brodovsky), and singer/songwriter Cassidy Mann, who is also the Indigenous Music Development Coordinator at Manitoba Music. Churchill-based Indigenous artist Eden Lavallee will participate in a production workshop later in the week, alongside Barker and Winnipeg-based audio engineer Anthony Cenerini of The Foxhole Recording Studio. For more info on how to get involved, please visit www.indigenousmusic.ca/goodsoundsnorth 

Barker, who has presented several artist development activities in Churchill, has been instrumental in bringing the project north, by sharing her expertise as a consultant.

Good Sounds North will be a part of the fourth annual Winterruption Churchill, which runs February 6 – 8 and features live music, including the Good Sounds mentors and more, community workshops, and a special theatre performance. Find out more about Winterruption Churchill

“Connecting with mentors for creative and career-building collaboration is so important for emerging artists,” says Mann. “I’m excited for the Indigenous Music Development Program to share these opportunities with Churchill’s music communities for the first time. We’re grateful to Ila Barker and Winterruption Churchill’s Jason Klainchar for making Good Sounds North possible.”

Good Sounds North is an extension of the inaugural Good Sounds, a two-day residency for Indigenous artists and musicians in Manitoba aimed at creating connections and opportunities to learn more about the art and business of live performance. The pilot project ran in May 2025.

The IMDP was launched in 2004 to support First Nation, Inuit, and Métis artists and music companies develop sustainable careers in the music industry. The program delivers projects and services that respond to the needs of the industry as identified by a steering committee.

ILR4