(Montreal) Quebec artists Alexandra Stréiliski, Philippe Brach, Thierry Larose and Bibi Club are among the 40 semi-finalists who make up the long list of the 2023 Polaris Music Prize for the best Canadian album of the year.
A 205-member jury considered a total of 221 albums before selecting the best 40. Jury members judge the offerings “solely on [their] artistic merit and without regard to musical genre or commercial popularity.”
The People We Love, by Philippe Brach, Neo-Romance by Alexandra Stréliski, The Sun and the Sea by Bibi Club, Sprint! by Thierry Larose or Once Upton a Time in Montreal by Murray Lightburn, appear alongside Multitudes, Feist, No Longer in The Surburbs, Dylan Sinclair, Amor Harcore by Isabella Lovestory and many others.
Albums competing for this prestigious prize, which comes with a cash prize of $50,000, must be released between May 1, 2022 and May 1, 2023.
“The Canada Council for the Arts is proud to once again present the Polaris Music Prize long list to support extraordinary musical talent from diverse backgrounds from across Canada,” Carolyn Warren said in a statement. Executive Director of Arts Granting Programs at the Canada Council for the Arts.
Of the 40 semi-finalists, ten will then be selected for the final stage of the competition. They will be unveiled on July 13, after which the winning album, chosen by a select jury of 11 people, will be announced at the Polaris gala which will take place on September 19.
Previous Polaris Prize recipients include Patrick Watson in 2007, Karkwa in 2010, Arcade Fire in 2012 and Pierre Kwenders in 2022.
