Former co-president of the Maison de l’Acadie in Vienne (86), where she is from, Amandine Servant is passionate about this culture. She moved to Canada in 2019… and intends to stay there.
Three years ago, in New Brunswick, you joined Le Grenier musique, an agency that manages the careers of artists. What exactly does your job consist of?
Amandine Servant The main mission of the agency is to develop emerging artists, all French-speaking, but who can produce albums in English since we are in a bilingual province. We follow about fifteen artists and groups, mostly from New Brunswick, and a few from Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Gaspésie. We also take care of their media promotion. Also, we are a label and release an album almost every month. To make musicians known beyond our province, we participate in various festivals: Contact in Ontario, Festival en chanson de Petite-Vallée in Quebec, Voyageurs, Contact East… In France, our projects are supported in particular by the Center Canadian culture in Paris. We also have support in Belgium and Switzerland. We try to be on all fronts… and it works!
What are the sure values and the rising stars of Acadian music?
Among the safe bets are former members of the Grenier musique such as Lisa LeBlanc or Joseph Edgar. As for future talent, Emilie Landry is on the rise. She recently toured France and Switzerland, had five Gala Country nominations and won first place in the International Songwriters Day Song Contest. Matt Boudreau is popular with his recent albums Ovni and Armageddon. And Chloé Breault, named to the East Coast Music Association, the greatest showcase for the Atlantic provinces, is promised a great career. In addition, we will soon hear about the group La Patente, which comes from Madawaska: full of energy and humor! Without forgetting Maggie Savoie, very poetic, who is not part of the Grenier musique, but who traces her path.
What does the cultural scene look like in Acadia?
It is very varied. We dare to mix genres, disciplines and languages. It is a little known scene, which deserves to be more. In Moncton, there is not an evening without music, theater or literature.
Take, for example, the bilingual literary festival Frye. The poetic creation is rich, as are the cinematographic and museum offerings. In November, the Festival international du film francophone acadien is held, where the directors are often present and discuss with the spectators. In music, the Francofête en Acadie, for professionals, and the Festival acadien de Caraquet, for the general public, are institutions. In short, there is a beautiful energy here, both relaxed and very dense.
What to make you stay in Canada…
For sure. There was not a single moment when I asked myself the question “why did I immigrate?”. I will apply for my permanent residence to be calm for at least five years, before considering citizenship.