Things are getting balmy for this edition of Festival International Nuits d’Afrique de Montréal! For its 27^th edition, from July 9 to 21, the music festival is celebrating the Montreal sun with an homage to the Sahara, from Mauritania to the Sudan passing by Morocco and Chad. Our fair city will be welcoming over 500 artists from over 30 countries for 90 shows and events…

The Festival International Nuits d’Afrique de Montréal helps you get in the mood as of June 25 with its special app that will let you manipulate a poster or T-shirt into a 3-D African dance. It’s a trippy start to a fest that will launch with Algeria’s desert rocker Hasna el Becharia, kicking things off on July 9 with her gravely voice and androgynous ways that recalls John Lee Hooker. She’ll pave the way for the likes of zouk legends Kassav’ (July 13); the Caravane pour la paix, on July 17 – an award-winning project of cultural resistance from Mali; ska originators The Skatalites, from Jamaica, on July 18; and African legend – and multiple Grammy-winner – Angélique Kidjo, who’s the patron saint, as it were, of this year’s edition (July 19). It’s star packed!

The free outdoor fun lasts from dawn to dusk in the main site downtown from July 18 to 21. The whole area surrounding the Loto-Québec stage will transform into the Village des Nuits d’Afrique, where a bona fide souk will add rhythm and warmth to the already happening Ste-Catherine Street. As dozens of shows play all day long onstage, vendors will sell their wares at the Marché Tombouctou while kids can get their faces painted in the Village des enfants. Between shows, storytellers, musicians and dancers will keep things hopping – literally – and give workshops in everything from gumboot to capoeira, percussions and samba.

The grand finale – after days of music and the two mega parades – happens on July 21, and presents none other than the Orquesta Aragón, from Cuba. Since 1939 this orchestra has been creating happy, festive music to light our hearts. Make sure you head to Balattou after, where every night of the fest starting at 11 pm the after party begins. Habitués know that’s where the fun is at.

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THE DETAILS

Festival International Nuits d’Afrique de Montréal, July 9-21, 2013

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When Quebec signer and piano man Gregory Charles grew up, his Trinidadian dad and Québécoise mum filled his imagination with stories of cozy music clubs lit by candlelight and the warmth of some international megastar’s dulcet tones. Well, he’s built himself such a club, and in it he serves the world’s greatest hits – all in a single show…

Right there on the edge of the St. Lawrence in the Old Port, lies the Vintage theatre – a custom-made temporary music club where patrons sit at little round tables stage-side and enjoy the a tumbler of whiskey while watching a dazzling light show and listening to live music that spans gravelly Joe Cocker to mellifluous Adele. Charles conceived of this show to match his particular talents, which are incredible: name a song, any song, and chances are he – and his gifted band – can play it to perfection. Not only that, they’ll mash it up with another song, or two – or three, and potentially play with the lyrics to address something that’s going on in the crowd.

There was never a more interactive show than this one – from the moment you buy you’re tickets, you’re invited to fill in a questionnaire and tell Charles and his peeps all about your musical tastes. The show is different every night, based on people’s suggestions – there are polls of the whole audience (which is your favourite music decade?) but also specific shout-outs, and thanks to an instant-messaging system, pretty funny live banter between Charles and audience members.

The mood of the whole one-man show is definitely vintage, because you get to hear tunes from decades past, but also very new age. Charles has found a way to make the constant use of one’s smart phone a fun thing, rather than an annoying one. But overall, it’s really about the music – it’s crazy how adaptable his voice is, and his piano playing is flawless, whether he’s doing Stevie Wonder or Billy Joel. And of course, who he’s doing is up to you!

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THE DETAILS

Vintage, on the Jacques-Cartier Quai, until July 14, 2013 (with possible extension)

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(nature in the city) With all the urban activity and entertainment that Montreal offers in the summer, a walk through Montreal’s Mount Royal Park on a sunny afternoon (or morning, if you’re so inclined) can be a refreshing break. In fact, it’s fairly easy in Montreal to find yourself surrounded by trees, chirping birds and other urban wildlife, whether at a park like Mont Royal or Lafontaine or at the Botanical Garden, where a new arboretum interpretation trail opens this weekend. Dedicated to ecology and education, the 40-hectare arboretum is to 7000 trees, so be sure to breathe in all the fresh air they’re making as you wander through. Return to explore the urban outdoors right downtown at Place Émilie-Gamelin (at the corner of Berri and Ste-Catherine), home all summer to food trucks, DJs, performances, art installations, a fruit market and giant chessboards, every day until 6 p.m.

(art in the street) See art in action along a 2-kilometre car-free stretch of Saint-Laurent Boulevard, from Sherbrooke to Mont Royal, any time from June 13 to 16: Mural Fest welcomes 35 local and international artists, such as Jason Botkin, Omen, Labrona and other, to create 20 murals in any and all colours along Saint-Laurent. Meanwhile, as artists work on their murals, other activities go on around the city: get dancing at a free outdoor concert on Saturday night on Saint-Laurent, make art with collective En Masse, known for their black-and-white live painting installations; attend an opening night of art at Station 16 gallery, see film projections on St-Laurent, turn cast-away furniture and other objects into art; paint with your feet; build a kite; go on an art-centric bike tour.

(free folk music) Montreal’s 6th annual Folk Fest on the Canal welcomes one and all this weekend to hear music in a beautiful outdoor setting next to the tree-lined Lachine Canal waterway. The music starts on Saturday, June 15 at 1pm with Maxime Lefebvre, Lakes of Canada, Black Twig Pickers, Claytones, Will Driving West, Old Man Luedecke, and, leaving the night on a high note, The Sadies. On Sunday, hear the Americana of Dylan Perron et Élixir de Gumbo followed by The Franklin Electric, The Once, Ladies of the Canyon, and Quebec’s Catherine Durand. And stop by the Lhasa de Sela stage too to hear music from young and up-and-coming talent.

(french and fabulous) Walk along Sainte-Catherine Street in the Quartier des Spectacles June 13-22 and hear French-language music of all kinds, from Quebec and around the world: Les FrancoFolies fills several outdoor stages with entertainment throughout the day and evening and takes over many downtown venues. The festival kicks off with a free evening show on June 13 by popular Quebecoise singer-songwriter Ariane Moffatt. On Friday, June 14, popular Quebec pop-rock star Marc Dupré is at Metropolis, Dumas, Les Trois Accords and Fanny Bloom play outdoors for free, or see rap group Loco Locass play Club Soda, followed on Saturday night by the charismatic genre-spanning, pop-inspired Karim Ouellet, while on June 20 see electronic-pop musician Peter Peter, whose North American audience keeps growing since he visited SXSW in Texas. Hip hop fans won’t want to miss one of the ‘90s best, regardless of language, French rapper IAM.

(indie theatre, music & more) Comedy, drama, dance and music all comes to the 23rd edition of Montreal’s St-Ambroise Montreal Fringe Festival at venues in the Plateau neighbourhood, June 4-24. Not only do all shows cost under $12, but most of the entertainment at the Fringe Park (and beer tent) on the corner of Rachel and St-Laurent is free, including an afternoon of electronic music courtesy of Piknic Electronik, on June 15.

(community spirit) Join Montrealers in a good time for a good cause: user-review website Yelp gathers musical guests Mia Verko, Ronley Tepper, Ben Hermann and Saxsyndrum to play benefit concert and party, Yelp Helps on June 18 at 6 p.m. Head over to Parc des Ameriques, also home to the Fringe Park (corner of Rachel and St-Laurent), to connect with local non-profit organizations such as Pop Montreal, Bouge d’Ici, AfrikaWaly, the Canadian Liver Foundation and 14 others while enjoying free drinks from McAuslan brewery, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Barefoot Wines and Café Vito and free food from Café Boris, Tourtière Australienne, Mr Puffs, Le Pourvoyeur and Patisserie Almond Butterfly. RSVP on the Yelp Helps website.

(live music) Friday night starts a little differently with The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of The Goddesses, a four-movement symphonic work inspired directly by the video game of the same name, at Place des Arts. The Suoni per il Popolo music festival continues with the latest in experimental rock and jazz: see Saltland, Eric Chenaux and Radwan Ghazi Moumneh on Friday night at Sala Rossa and Nü Sensae and Panopticon Eyelids Saturday night at the same venue, while San Francisco-based post-punk-noise band The Soft Moon play the SAT, and on Monday night hear the strange, spectacular sounds of Rhys Chatham and Oneida at Sala Rossa. But back to the weekend, on Saturday night, Belgian pop singer Selah Sue is at Theatre Corona  and Scottish electropop-rock band Chvrches and Still Corners play Le National. And on a different note, catch a free outdoor chamber music concert by the Orchestre Métropolitain, who play in the Old Port at Place Jacques-Cartier, 11 a.m. on June 15–16. Later in the week, on June 20, make a name for yourself or just watch others perfect the art form at Hip Hop Karaoke – exactly what it sounds like – at Le Belmont.

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Famed American composer and pianist Dave Brubeck, whose 1959 album Time Out was the first jazz record to sell over a million copies, did what was the unthinkable for a good many jazz musicians of his era: he lived a long, very long, life. Brubeck, who played the Montreal International Jazz Festival no less than 14 times, went to the great jazz club in the sky last December just shy of his 92^nd birthday, and only six months after his final Jazz Fest appearance. This 34^th edition of the Jazz Fest is dedicated to his memory…

An homage to Brubeck by The Brubeck Brothers Quartet (anchored by sons Chris and Dan, manning trombone and bass respectively) on July 7 is among the tributes planned, and one of the many top-tier performances slated for this year’s instalment of the Jazz Fest. In fact, this year’s roster is a veritable who’s who of jazz greats, a kind of all-you-can-hear buffet for ravenous jazz-heads, including Wayne Shorter, Joshua Redman, George Benson, Bill Frisell, Wynton Marsalis, John Abercrombie, Ravi Coltrane, Chucho Valdés, Montreal’s own Oliver Jones and many, many more. (One notable name who will not perform as planned is Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin, who had to cancel due to health reasons.)

Because Montreal, like just about everywhere else it seems, can never get enough of multicultural pop/jazz/swing/classical cocktail orchestra Pink Martini, the sprawling conglomerate have been tapped to open the Jazz Fest’s indoor programming on June 28 starting at 7:30 pm. And on the topic of opening concerts, the annual, highly anticipated free opening concert – which in the past has featured the likes of Stevie Wonder and Pat Metheny, and routinely draws more than 100,000 concertgoers – will this year feature Canadian indie-pop hit maker, and 11-time Juno Award winner, Feist, at 9:30 pm. Word to the wise: get there early. Like really early.

If the free outdoor shows are your thing (and for many folks, it’s the thing), then this year is looking particularly pleasurable with more than 300 hundred of them featuring more than 3,000 musicians scattered around 10 stages across the sprawling downtown Montreal Jazz Festival site (which encompasses the entire Quartier des Spectacles). Other must-see free concerts include Montreal indie-folk-rock phenomenon The Barr Brothers (June 29), legendary bluesman Bryan Lee (July 6), the always entertaining (and intriguing) “surprise concert” (also July 6), and the invariably epic festival closing concert, which this year will be hosted by Malian world music stars Amadou and Mariam featuring special guest Fatoumata Diawara (July 7).

Diversity is once again the word when it comes to the bill. There aren’t too many places where one can take in rock legend Boz Scaggs on the same day as funky New York “neo-new wave” outfit The Virgins (June 30), or “the Hendrix of the Sahara,” Vieux Farka Touré, on the same day as soul-funk sensations Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings (July 3), or country-soaked stars Lyle Lovett and Chris Isaak, who are not only playing on the same day, they’re playing the same double-headliner show (July 4).

And that’s just the obvious stuff. For this writer, the real fun is to be had at still other performances, namely rapidly ascending, homegrown hypnotic rockers Suuns (pronounced “soons,” July 7) and their cinematically styled, similarly up-and-coming Montreal-based compatriots Thus:Owls (July 2-4). Classic British ska band The Specials promise a party (July 7), and Scottish indie-pop superstars Belle and Sebastien will bring a different kind of intensity to what promises to be an epic appearance on July 5. Also at the top of the list are the Soweto Gospel Choir (July 6), internationally acclaimed Montreal songwriter (and sister to Rufus) Martha Wainwright (July 4) and, for reasons I can’t (and don’t want to) fully explain, ’80s acting heartthrobette Molly Ringwald, who will be, apparently, singing jazz standards (July 6). Which is fine. She will be there, and that’s all that matters.

THE DETAILS

Montreal International Jazz Festival, June 28-July 7, 2013

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July is a loose, silly time in Montreal, not only because it’s the height of summer holidays, but because long-running comedy festival Just for Laughs, July 10-28, lets some of the biggest names in comedy reign the city’s downtown core…

The comedy festival’s biggest events, and often the most varied in comedic stylings, are the Just For Laughs Galas – this year hosted by Dane Cook, Sarah Silverman, Seth Meyers, Joan Rivers, Eddie Izzard and Montreal’s own Jay Baruchel. The fast-paced showcases, held in the opulent Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier at Place des Arts, give comedians, famous and up-and-coming alike, about 10 minutes to share the best material in their arsenal – plus the galas are recorded for TV, so there’s the added bonus of possibly seeing your laughing face on the small screen soon.

Laughs gain further focus at the fest’s solo shows, where comedians let their newest material loose and reprise classic stuff. This year, spend quality time with: Amy Schumer and her dirty thoughts; former Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Anchor Colin Quinn and his political humour; Hannibal Buress in a new show and as host of Hip Hop Karaoke; Bo Burnham and his musical, MTV-friendly ways; Scottish comedian Danny Bhoy in new show Dear Epson; sitcom and podcast self-made star Marc Maron, and many more. Also get to know cutting-edge comedians better at the intimate Theatre Ste-Catherine, where Maria Bamford shares her surreal world, Tig Notaro gets amazingly real, You Made It Weird host Pete Holmes stays weird, and South African star Trevor Noah makes a North American name for himself. Over at the equally intimate Mainline Theatre, see what 30 Rock’s Judah Friedlander has printed on his hat, and watch his co-stars Scott Adsit and John Lutz do a show of their own.

Just For Laughs is also famed for its themed shows, ongoing for years now, with return guests and new blood. For a taste of the real Montreal, check out the Bilingual Show, with Anglophone comedians trying their hand at French jokes and Francophones telling it like it in English, hosted by Mike Ward. A variety of languages make their way into the ever-popular Ethnic Show, this year hosted by This Hour Has 22 Minutes’ Shaun Majumder, while Hebrew, Jewish tradition and self-perpetuated stereotyping is all comedy fodder at The Bar Mitzvah Show. Or stick with boring old English at the Britcom showcase, hosted by Rich Hall. Not to be missed for shock value alone: The Nasty Show, hosted this year by Bobby Slayton and Jimmy Carr, oddly, or perhaps fittingly, preceded by Date Night: The Relationship Show. And drop in on Talk Of The Fest at Club Soda, where every night a different host, from 30 Rock’s Kristen Schaal to SNL’s Taran Killam and Bobby Moynihan, gets breakout stars up on stage to win over new fans.

Along with Just For Laughs headliners, galas and themed shows comes an unscripted improv show from Whose Line Is It Anyway’s Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood, comedy competition The New Faces of Comedy, the world premier of Brad Copeland’s feature film Coffee Town, and SPANK! The Fifty Shades Parody, a witty, steamy send-up of the best-selling book, created by a crack team of Toronto writers and improvisers invading the Centaur Theatre. And see even more comedy, mostly of an 18+ nature and with ticket prices that won’t dig into the beer budget, at JFL sister festival Zoofest, where French and English stand-up, comedic theatrical performances, indie circus acts, and more collide.

THE DETAILS

Just For Laughs, July 10-28, 2013

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Worlds of different, intriguing entertainment are ready to be stepped into this week in Montreal: the high-speed ways of the Canadian Grand Prix; pairings of fashion and music; incredible circus acts; avant-garde and independent theatre and dance; and nights packed with live music…

(revved up) Fast cars, race fans and parties populate Grand Prix weekend, June 7-9, though the main event, the Canadian Grand Prix Formula 1 races on the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit at Parc Jean-Drapeau are the focal point. Right downtown, however, it’s all about the party: the Crescent Street Grand Prix Festival sees the street closed to traffic all day until 11 pm, featuring driver autograph sessions, a Pit Stop Challenge, live music, DJs and more; the nearby Peel Paddock is open and rocking (check out the #F1MTL hashtag for all the info) while a little further east, main drag Saint-Laurent Boulevard is closed to traffic as well, with restaurants setting up patios on the pavement, stores having street sales and a stage set up for live music. The party’s also on at New City Gas in Griffintown on June 7, with DJs Bob Sinclar, Sebastian Ingrosso and more. Or replace fossil fuel with raw, human energy and you get a rowsing championship match between light heavyweights Chad Dawson and Adonis Stevenson, boxing for the title on June 8 at the Bell Centre.

(fashionable art) Fashion, art and music combine in The 8-Day Week by Renata Morales, June 5-12, at the Phi Centre in Old Montreal. See arty fashion every day as a pop-up shop displays new sets of clothing and accessories for sale by different Montreal designers such as Complex Geometries, Denis Gagnon, Andrew Floyd Jewelry and more. At the same time, see an exhibition of work by faux-Flemish-historical painter Joe Becker, catch a film screening, and stay late for a series of music shows from Young Paris, The Salivation Army, Tenderness, Prison Garde, Tonstartssbandht and more made-in-Montreal greatness. Over at the MMFA, the biggest name in glass art, American artist Dale Chihuly, shows new glass sculptures designed for the Museum’s own architecture.

(circus know-how) Two fantastic, fun, family-friendly shows featuring new graduates of Montreal’s acclaimed National Circus School continue their runs with great enthusiasm: “La vie en swing (Swing Life)” – about youth, freedom and dancing in the 1940s – and “Pour le meilleur et pour le pire (For Better or For Worse)” – about all the highs and lows of a wedding ceremony and reception – on until June 9 at La Tohu. Young and talented circus performers show the fruit of their years of training in trapeze, tight-wire, clowning, juggling, cyr and many other circus arts, before they’re off to join Canadian and international circus troupes.

(performance space) The final days of Festival Transamériques continue with cutting-edge theatre and dance performances from Canada and around the world. Until June 8, see: Ainsi Parlait…, a rock n’ roll theatrical dance show from choreographer Frédérick Gravel and writer Étienne Lepage; So Blue, dancer-choreographer Louise Lecavalier’s fast-paced collaboration with Fou Glorieux; and Joël Pommerat’s French-language play La Grande et Fabuleuse Histoire du Commerce, weaving the tales of five travelling salesmen from the 1960s with the 2000s. The festival concludes with the closing night Animal Ball, a free event that encourages attendees to unleash their inner beasts.

(indie theatre) The 23rd edition of Montreal’s St-Ambroise Montreal Fringe Festival brings small-scale, affordable theatre, dance, stand-up comedy and music shows to myriad venues in the Plateau neighbourhood, June 4-24. This week: Glam Gam Burlesque stays sexy, strange and hilarious in The Little Beau Peep Show at famed strip-cabaret club Cafe Cléopâtre, June 8-10; fairytale-esque dance and punk rock show The Elephant in the Room reveals itself on June 7 at Fuchsia; burlesque performer Cherry Typhoon pairs up with clown-comedian Shoshinz in physical comedy Annoying Visitor starting June 13;  Dan Bingham cuts to the romantic chase in Now That I Have Your Attention, and stand-up comedienne DeAnne Smith and musician Leighland Beckman get together to tell us about Horrible Things, June 13 at Montreal Improv. And foodie Fringe fan will absolutely want to check out the Beatport and Lunch Beat collaboration.

(live music) Friday night is packed with music options this week, beginning with a huge outdoor show by The xx and Grizzly Bear at Esplanade Du Centenaire Du Canal Lachine, part of Osheaga’s pre-festival outdoor concert series. Prolific and charming singer-songwriter Jonathan Richman performs with Tommy Larkins on drums at Sala Rossa, country star Travis Tritt croons at Metropolis and young British pop star Conor Maynard sings at Théâtre Corona. Meanwhile, the Nocturnes series at the MACM hosts an audiovisual electronic experience with Montreal’s Le Révélateur and San Fran’s Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and Paul Clipson, in collaboration with the jazz and experimental music festival Suoni Per il Popolo. Sunday marks the long-awaited return of The Rolling Stones, still going strong on their 50 & Counting Tour, at the Bell Centre, while Supersuckers rock out with opener Lydia Loveless at Sala Rossa. On June 11, genre-bending indie-country-rock band Calexico at Théâtre Corona returns with a new album, Algiers. June 12 brings Belgian singer-songwriter Milow to Montreal on his North American tour, at Lion D’or, while Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros have a rollicking good time at Metropolis, and Roger McGuinn of The Byrds kicks off the Montreal Folk Fest  And Thursday, June 13 sees two big outdoor concerts: The National and The Barr Brothers both play at the pre-Osheaga show series and Ariane Moffatt opens the FrancoFolies festival.

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Eastern downtown is lighting up this week with the Festival International Montréal en Arts, where galleries have no walls and the tarmac turns into a canvas…

You know the festive frenzy that takes over the streets when one of Montreal’s famous musical festivals takes place? Well Festival International Montréal en Arts is the visual arts’ answer to that. It’s a sale, a performance art happening, a movie theatre under the stars, a live painting show and Eastern Canada’s largest open-air art gallery all wrapped in one, and it lasts four days, from June 12 to 16. This edition, its 14^th, unites over 140 artists spread along the kilometre of Sainte-Catherine East that separates St-Hubert and Papineau.

Among the live painting events there’s a grandiose project bringing together five artist collectives, who will decorate Place Émilie-Gamelin with an urban totem between June 13 and 15. The muralists Gaia, from New York, will join forces with Montreal’s En Masse and Cease and Toronto’s Trio Magnus, as well as the international crew Bruxas to create a colourful collection of totems. At Parc de l’Espoir, meanwhile, on the corner of Panet, the Décover space will present a 28-foot mural created by a bunch of young artists including Étienne Chartrand and Zoltan Veevaete. Watch them create it live.

Aside from the partying and performative aspect, FIMA is also a great opportunity to collect art by local artists like Sandra Chevrier and Marie-Claude Vezeau, which you can get directly from the artists, without the intermediary of a gallery of dealer. Lower costs, more direct contact with the magic-makers – it’s a no brainer!

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THE DETAILS

Festival International Montréal en Arts, June 12-16, 2013

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Beautiful weather combined with Montreal’s many festivals means June is a month packed with free events, especially when it comes to live jazz, folk, classical and rock music, along with theatrical performances and outdoor activities in all corners of the city…

(blue-sky jazz) One of the most anticipated festivals of the year, the Montreal International Jazz Festival begins at the end of the month with all manner of indoor shows from Pink Martini, Holly Cole, Xavier Rudd, Belle & Sebastian and many, many more, alongside hundreds of free shows on several outdoor stages, starting with an opening concert by Feist on June 28. Free afternoon, evening and late-night shows – everything from traditional jazz to hip hop – continue until July 7.

 (music on the water) Pack a picnic and bring a blanket to Montreal’s 6th annual Folk Fest on the Canal, where free outdoor shows, on a stage next to the tree-lined canal waterway, fill the afternoons and evenings of June 15-16. On Saturday, the music starts at 1pm with Maxime Lefebvre, Lakes of Canada, Black Twig Pickers, Claytones, Will Driving West, Old Man Luedecke, and, leaving the night on a high note, The Sadies. On Sunday, hear the Americana of Dylan Perron et Élixir de Gumbo followed by The Franklin Electric, The Once, Ladies of the Canyon, and Quebec’s Catherine Durand.

(theatrical enthusiasm) Affordable, small-scale theatre and dance shows are at the heart of the Montreal St-Ambroise Fringe Fest, but there’s plenty of absolutely free entertainment to go along with that. Most of the free events take place at Fringe Park, which doubles as the unofficial Fringe Fest headquarters (and official beer tent), at the corner of St-Laurent and Rachel. Every Thursday to Sunday during the festival, catch live music, community-focused workshops, comedy shows like Confabulation (an unrehearsed storytelling competition), the Drag Races (drag queens in lively competition!), and June 23 is a day of entertainment and activities just for kids. Electronic music mainstay Piknic Electronik sets up on June 15 during the day and Cult#MTL takes over at night with live music from Bad Weather, Émily Rajotte and Laurel Jackson, following that up again on June 20 with The Damn Truth and other locals, while music fest Pop Montreal brings in Sea Oleena, Carpet, and Maica Mia on June 22, and more music on June 23.

(open-air classical & french) A morning walk along the promenade in the Old Port might lead you to a free outdoor concert by the Orchestre Métropolitain – the orchestra begins its summer season with Musical Brunches, free chamber music concerts at Place Jacques-Cartier in Old Montreal, 11 a.m. on June 15–16, 22–24, 29–30. A walk along car-free Ste-Catherine in the Quartier des Spectacles any time from June 13 to 22 yields a bounty of music care of Les FrancoFolies, where French-language music – rock, country, hip hop, folk and more – from Quebec, Canada and around the world plays on several outdoor stages, including a free evening show on June 13 by popular Quebecoise singer-songwriter Ariane Moffatt.

(art and the city) Montreal’s urban ways get a bit of a makeover as public art project Mural Fest makes its mark on the city June 13-16 in various locations. The festival welcomes 35 local and international artists to create 20 murals in any and all colours along St-Laurent Boulevard, which will be closed to car traffic. While artists complete their murals on walls around the city, several other events will go on: make art with collective En Masse, known for their black-and-white live painting installations; turn cast-away furniture and other objects into art; paint with your feet; build a kite; go on an art-centric bike tour. Visit the McCord Museum’s Urban Forest, a tree-filled natural retreat in the heart of downtown, and also one of nine locations for Montreal’s new food truck project. The Phi Centre shows intriguing recent works by painter Joe Becker, as part of The 8 Day Week of Renata Morales project. And on June 21, DHC/Art opens the first major Canadian exhibition of Brooklyn based artist Cory Arcangel, whose art directly engages with and is inspired by open-source computer culture and social internet technologies.

(birthday time) Details have yet to be unveiled, but every year Quebec throws a party on June 24 to celebrate Fête Nationale du Québec. This year marks the province’s 179th birthday, and as usual, everyone will be celebrating with BBQs, neighbourhood parties, events at bars and clubs, and Le Grand Spectacle, a great big party with top Quebec bands, comedians, circus acts and more starting in the evening out at Parc Maisonneuve next to Olympic Stadium, which hosts free, family-friendly events all day outdoors on the Esplanade on June 23, and the Montreal Botanical Garden, where the Mosaïcultures Internationales Montréal horticultural sculpture competition opens on June 22.

(outdoor sights) Beginning closer to the end of the month, see some of the best fireworks displays the world has to offer at International des Feux Loto-Québec, taking place at La Ronde amusement park at Parc Jean-Drapeau, but visible over central Montreal – the competition begins on June 22 with a 30-minute spectacle from Australia, followed by England’s showing on June 28, and more throughout July. Also over at Parc Jean-Drapeau, watch the colourful, fast-paced action of the 11th annual Summer Splash Dragon Boat race at the Olympic Basin on June 29. And Théâtre de Verdure in Parc Lafontaine, close to downtown in Montreal’s Plateau neighbourhood, hosts the opening day of its summer events series, with a cultural picnic starting at 7 p.m. on June 26 with the premier of kid-focused Hansel & Gretel, produced by Théâtre La Roulotte. And when in doubt, throw your own picnic in any one of Montreal’s many parks, from Parc Lafontaine to Parc Jeanne-Mance and Parc Mont Royal.

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Clear summer skies and free outdoor festival entertainment every night already seem like a perfect Montreal vacation combination, but add to that seemingly spontaneous fireworks shows, viewable from Old Montreal to the Plateau, and there might seem to be some magic afoot.

The fireworks have surprised many a Jazz Fest and Just For Laughs visitor strolling through the Quartier des Spectacles, but Montrealers know that the International des Feux Loto-Québec puts on a spectacular show in the sky no fewer than nine times over the course of the summer. It’s all part of a months-long competition between expert fireworks designers from around the world – and we reap the benefits of their ingenuity, either simply by looking up from a good vantage point or by going to the source at theme park La Ronde, where the fireworks launch.

Going directly to the source also adds a musical component to the experience, as the fireworks designers in this competition use music not only as inspiration for their shows but as a component, synchronized with each fireworks display. This year, in the competition’s 29th year, eight competing pyrotechnic firms create unique performances based on different themes, crafting 30-minute shows designed by pyrotechnical and pyromusical experts and aided by a 17-member team.

The International des Feux Loto-Québec begins on Saturday, June 22 with Australia thematically focusing on the “Magic of the Movies”. On June 28, England makes explosive work of its tribute to love, while on July 5, Hong Kong is “Born to Be Wild”, and on July 12, Spain comes right back to the heart of things with its theme, “Languages of Love”. On July 20, the United States sets us alight with the music of “Swan Lake”, followed by first-time competitor Croatia’s exploration of artificial intelligence on July 24, Canada’s light-filled display of the four seasons on July 27, and Italy’s classic-rock “Jukebox Memories” on July 31. The August 3 finale combines pyrotechnical talents in a non-competition “Tribute to U2″, sure to be a literal highlight of the summer.

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THE DETAILS

L’International des Feux Loto-Québec, June 22 to August 3, 2013

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Walking through the Montreal Botanical Garden on a sunny summer day is often a glorious experience, but walking through this summer will be out of this world. This June, Mosaïcultures Internationales Montréal horticultural sculpture competition takes root in Montreal, and with it some of the biggest and best displays of art made entirely of plant life…

Considered the world’s most prestigious competition of horticultural art, Mosaïcultures Internationales Montréal, at last returns after 10 years (having stopped to wow crowds in Shanghai and Hamamatsu) to where it was born in 2000. From June 22 to September 29, the competition will see experts create two- and three-dimensional living artworks made of a variety of plants, blending sculpture, colour theory, horticulture and knowledge of the environment.

For this year’s edition, Mosaïcultures Internationales Montréal teamed up with the Montreal Botanical Garden, the third largest of its kind in the world, finding plenty of fertile ground for creativity at the Garden – two whole kilometres of it, filled with over three million plants. The Botanical Garden will act as outdoor art studio to two hundred experts in the art of mosaiculture, from Canada, Belgium, China, South Korea, Spain, the United States, France, Japan, Mexico, Turkey and across Africa.

Teams will create over 40 plant-life sculptures, some big enough to walk through. Each work will tie into this year’s biodiversity-focused theme – Land of Hope – while reflecting the maker’s nationality and culture. It’s a theme that suits both the art form and today’s social context, touching on “the interdependence of man and nature, positive actions for the environment, endangered or at-risk species or ecosystems, nature in the city, the beauty and fragility of life on earth and peace as the key to planetary survival.”

One of the spectacular horticultural arrangements already previewed in maquette form is a masterwork called The Tree of Birds, depicting 60 different bird species and endangered amphibians. Other planned sculptures can be imagined from their thematically inspired titles: Mother Earth (Patchamama for the indigenous peoples of the Andes), The Man Who Planted Trees, The Forest Spirits. Also in the spirit of this year’s theme and the general inclination of the Space for Life, which includes the Botanical Gardens along with the close-by Biodome, Insectarium and Planetarium, the Mosaïcultures Internationales Montréal program offers eco-friendly educational activities for all ages,  turning a stroll through the gardens into a learning experience for life.

THE DETAILS

Mosaïcultures Internationales Montréal 2013, June 22 to September 29, 2013

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