on 2/11/03 6:03 PM, Lawrence Joseph at lawrence.joseph@mcgill.ca wrote:

Hi Mike,

...

As far as I can tell, the only thing that has changed about the tradition is that Michel Levasseur *has* announced some concerts in advance. It's not at all usual to see the full schedule announced before the end of February.

Sorry, but I do not agree. Sometimes the exact dates and times are not announced this early, but the full set of acts is usually announced sometime in Feb. Now they say the other 18 acts will only be announced in April! This is very late, definitely later than in all previous years as far as I can remember, and I do indeed think this is a break with the past.

Sorry, I hadn't noticed that the full schedule will not be announced until April.

The harm in NOT announcing the rest is that it leaves those of us with either a job or a shortage of cash (and these two groups should more or less include just about everybody!) with a decision to make that is more difficult than in past years. With other festivals going on at or near the same time, should one decide to go or not? Knowing only 25% of the shows makes it more difficult, and waiting until April is not an option for many, as job vacations, saving enough dough, etc. often needs to be planned in advance.

I am not so concerned about myself, I will surely go (for the 16th straight year!). But what about those in the US, say, trying to decide based on so little information? Again, what's the harm in announcing all shows, if, as you say, they are already known? If it is a marketing gimmick, I am not convinced that it is well advised.

I agree completely on this point. You should send Michel Levasseur an e-mail to this effect. --Mike