Welcome all participants and guests to the 185th edition of the Forum song contest.
We are here in Halifax, after Canada was crowned the winner of FSC #184 in June, with the entry "Black Eye" performed by Allie X.
Let us revisit that victory and enjoy one more performance of the current FSC champion:
Our host city for the 185th FSC edition in July is Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and in all of Atlantic Canada, with a population of 518,711 in the metropolitan area, of which 348,634 people live in the urban area. Halifax is an economic centre of Atlantic Canada, home to a concentration of government offices and private companies. Resource industries found in rural areas of the municipality include agriculture, fishing, mining, forestry, and natural gas extraction.
Halifax is a major cultural centre within the Atlantic provinces. The municipality has maintained many of its maritime and military traditions, while opening itself to a growing multicultural population. Halifax has a number of art galleries, theatres and museums, as well as most of the region's national-quality sports and entertainment facilities. Halifax is also the home to many of the region's major cultural attractions, such as Halifax Pop Explosion, Symphony Nova Scotia, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, The Khyber, the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and the Neptune Theatre. The region is noted for the strength of its music scene and nightlife, especially within the urban communities.
Before European settlement, the area of Halifax was located on the traditional territories of the Mi’kmaq. Mi’kmaq are Indigenous peoples who are among the original inhabitants in the Atlantic Provinces of Canada. Their traditional territory is known as Mi’gma’gi and archaeological evidence places Mi’kmaq in Mi’gma’gi for more than 10,000 years. Mi’kmaq peoples relied on shellfish, sea mammals and land mammals for nutrition, clothing, dwellings (called wigwams), and tools. They also used timber in the region to construct canoes, snowshoes, and shelters, usually in combination with animal skins. As of January 2024, there were 13 different Mi’kmaq nations in Nova Scotia and a total of 20,000 Mi'kmaq peoples living in the province.
It’s not an exaggeration to say Halifax, a city on the sea, owes its existence to the Citadel. It was the large hill overlooking the easily defended harbour below that led the British military to found the town there in 1749. Among the first buildings constructed was a wooden guardhouse on top of what would eventually be called Citadel Hill, with Halifax’s first settlers building their homes at the base of the hill, closer to the water. Over the years, as the fort grew, so too did the town, with much of Halifax dedicated to supplying the soldiers with both essential supplies and off-duty entertainment. The Halifax Citadel still fires a cannon every day at 12pm (noon). This has been a local tradition since 1857. The gun is fired daily by the 3rd Brigade Royal Artillery to announce the noon hour and can be heard across the city.
Today, the Halifax Citadel continues to watch over the city’s downtown core, although now its role is as a reminder of Halifax’s past and not as a military fortification. The present Citadel, completed in 1856, is officially called Fort George, named after Britain’s King George II. Its distinctive star shape is typical of many 19th century forts built by the British military and gave the garrison sweeping arcs of fire. From its deep defensive ditch, soldiers pointed muskets from every angle of its stout walls and large cannons lined its ramparts. It’s easy to see why no enemy force ever dared to attack the Halifax Citadel.
On 6 December 1917, the Mont Blanc, a French vessel loaded with 2.9 kilotons of explosives, collided with the Belgian relief ship, Imo, in Halifax harbour. A fire broke out on the Mont Blanc which local firefighters tried unsuccessfully to extinguish. When the flames reached the Mont Blanc‘s volatile cargo, the resulting explosion devastated a large part of the city. The blast became the largest human-made explosion ever at the time. It was about 3 times as powerful as the 2020 Beirut explosion. The Richmond district in the city’s north end and the Dartmouth region across the harbour were all but wiped out.
The official death toll was 1,963, with another 9,000 injured and 6,000 left with their homes destroyed.
Viola Desmond was a successful Black businesswoman in Halifax. In 1946, she went to a movie theatre, purchased a ticket and sat in a section that was deemed “whites-only”. She refused to move for her seat. For this, she was dragged out of the theatre, arrested, fined, and jailed. She appealed this decision to the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia and lost. Her case and her act of resistance to racism became a rallying point in the struggle for rights in Canada. As of 2018, Viola Desmond and a map of the city of Halifax are now featured on the Canadian $10 bill, making Desmond the first ever female Canadian to be featured prominently on a banknote. This banknote actually won the 2019 International Bank Note Society award. See if you can spot the Halifax Citadel on the map!
The Canadian dime (10 cent coin) features a famous Nova Scotian ship called Bluenose. Bluenose is the most famous ship in Canadian history and is nicknamed “Queen of the North Atlantic”. It was a celebrated racing ship and fishing vessel that won the International Fishermen’s Race trophy 5 times in the 1920s and 1930s.
Halifax is home to one of the world’s longest urban boardwalks spanning the length of the Halifax waterfront. The boardwalk is about 4 kilometres long and ends at Pier 21. It features "drunk lampposts" and a life-size replica of Theodore Tugboat, a famous Canadian kids' television character. You can also find lots of bars with live music along the boardwalk.
Pier 21 is a former ocean liner terminal and immigration shed from 1928 to 1971 in Halifax. Nearly one million immigrants came to Canada through Pier 21, and it is the last surviving seaport immigration facility in Canada. In 1939, Pier 21 was taken over by the National Department of Defence, becoming a departure point for roughly 500 000 Canadian servicemen and women bound for the second World War. The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 is one of Halifax's most popular historic sites. It tells the story of the pier, the people who passed through it, and the lives they went on to live in their new home. It stands as a reminder of how radically Canada's character was shaped by immigrants, and is a testament to the country's multicultural past and present.
Halifax hosts a wide variety of festivals that take place throughout the year, including the largest Canada Day celebration east of Ottawa, the Atlantic Film Festival, the Halifax International Busker Festival, Greekfest, Atlantic Jazz Festival, the Multicultural Festival, Natal Day, Nocturne Festival, the Halifax Pop Explosion, periodic Tall Ship events, the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, and Shakespeare by the Sea—to name a few. Halifax Pride is the largest LGBT event in Atlantic Canada and one of the largest in the country. Many of Halifax's festivals and annual events have become world-renowned over the past several years.
Downtown Halifax, home to many small shops and vendors, is a major shopping area. It is also home to several shopping centres, including Scotia Square, Barrington Place Shops, and Maritime Mall. Numerous malls on Spring Garden Road, including the Park Lane Mall, are also located nearby. The area is home to approximately 200 restaurants and bars, offering a wide array of world cuisines. There are also more than 60 sidewalk cafes that open in the summer months. The nightlife is made up of bars and small music venues as well as Casino Nova Scotia, a large facility built partially over the water.
Halifax's tourism industry showcases Nova Scotia's culture, scenery and coastline. The Halifax area has a variety of public spaces, ranging from urban gardens, public squares, expansive forested parks, and historic sites. The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic is a maritime museum containing extensive galleries including a large ex-hibit on the famous Titanic, over 70 small craft and a 200-foot (61 m) steamship CSS Acadia. In summertime the preserved World War II corvette HMCS Sackville operates as a museum ship and Canada's naval memorial. The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia is housed in a 150-year-old building containing nearly 19,000 works of art. The Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia in Dartmouth reflects the region's rich ethnic heritage.
Just a short drive from Halifax, you can visit Peggy's Cove. Peggy's Cove is a small rural community located on the eastern shore of St. Margarets Bay in the Halifax Regional Municipality, which is the site of Peggys Cove Lighthouse (established 1868). From its inception, the community's economy revolved around fishery. However, tourism began to overtake fishing in economic importance following the Second World War. Today, Peggy's Cove is a major tourist attraction, although its inhabitants still fish for lobster, and the community maintains a rustic undeveloped appearance. Peggy's Cove is one of Canada's most popular tourist destinations and features Canada's most photographed lighthouse.
The Host Venue for this FSC edition is the Scotiabank Centre.
Scotiabank Centre is the largest multipurpose facility in Atlantic Canada, located in downtown Halifax. The arena was opened on February 17, 1978, as the Halifax Metro Centre, and was built into the ground to compensate for the steep elevation of the land it occupies. Spectators can see cars at street level, outside, while watching an event. The arena has a seating capacity of 10 500.
Scotiabank Centre is primarily used as an ice hockey arena, and is home to the Halifax Mooseheads. It is also used as a venue for other events, shows and music concerts. In the past it has hosted concerts by Billy Idol, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Backstreet Boys, Cher, and Avril Lavigne, among many others. Most recently, it has also played host to the Juno awards (the Canadian National Music Awards) in 2024, and is now proud to also host this FSC-edition.
Let me introduce our hosts for this event, who will keep us entertained and informed throughout the evening.
Please welcome Sarah McLachlan and Colleen Jones.
Sarah Ann McLachlan, born 28 January 1968 in Halifax, is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Her music career began at a young age, when she began learning to play the ukulele at age 4. She later studied classical guitar, classical piano and voice at the Maritime Conservatory of Music. She has sold over 40 million albums worldwide, and has been nominated for 26 Juno Awards, of which she has won 12. Her best-selling album to date is "Surfacing", for which she won two Garmmy awards, out of four nominations. She also founded the Lilith Fair Tour, which showcased female musicians. She has also performed on the Oprah Winfrey Show and at the opening ceremony of the 2010 winter Olympic Games.
Colleen Patricia Jones, born 16 December 1959 in Halifax, is a Canadian curler and television personality. She is best known as the skip of two women's world championship teams and six Tournament of Hearts Canadian women's championships, including an unprecedented four titles in a row and held the record for most Tournament of Hearts wins from when she won her 67th game in 1994 until her eventual 152 wins were eclipsed by Jennifer Jones in 2021. Jones also serves as a reporter and weather presenter for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and as a curling commentator for NBC in the United States, most notably during the 2010 Winter Olympics.
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