Junos more than just one night of trophies

From March 24 to 30, all the 'Peg will be a party.

Juno Week — the celebration leading up to the big show, the 2014 Juno Awards telecast at MTS Centre on March 30 — will feature a host of events, concerts and parties that will allow Winnipeggers to discover new bands, interact with nominees and take part in the festivities, organizers announced Tuesday.

The Juno Awards kickoff party goes down Thursday, March 27, at The Metropolitan Event Centre, dubbed Manitoba House for Juno Week, featuring the Trews, the New Meanies and Attica Riots. Tickets are $20 at Ticketmaster and are on sale now.

The perennially popular Juno Cup — which sees hockey-loving rockers face off against former NHLers — will raise funds for MusicCounts, Canada's music-education charity. Repping the rockers are locals JP Hoe, Del Barber, Vince Fontaine and Stephen Carroll, along with Juno nominee Amanda Rheaume, Blue Rodeo's Jim Cuddy, the Sadies' Mike Belitsky and more. The NHL greats include former Winnipeg Jets like Thomas Steen and Ab McDonald, and NHL greats like Mark Napier. The puck drops at the MTS Iceplex at 7:30 p.m.; tickets are $20 at Ticketmaster.

One of Juno Week's marquee events, JunoFest, will feature 100 local and national acts in 15 venues over two nights, March 28 and 29. Festival-goers will be able to catch performances by a genre-spanning lineup of acts, including Born Ruffians, July Talk, the Strumbellas, Royal Canoe, Imaginary Cities, Mounties and more. Wristbands are $30 at Ticketmaster; individual tickets are $20-$30. This is an 18-plus event.

Juno Fan Fare, which takes place on March 29 from noon to 3 p.m. at St. Vital Centre, allows fans to meet-and-greet with nominees, including Tegan and Sara, D-sisive, Walk Off the Earth and more. The event is free, but wristbands will be required for autographs. More information is available at junofanfare.ca.

The so-called jewel of Juno Week, the Juno Songwriter's Circle, will take place on March 30 and will be hosted by Randy Bachman, founder of the 2014 Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductees Bachman-Turner Overdrive. He will be joined for an intimate afternoon of story and song by July Talk, Matt Epp, Shad and Dallas and Travis Good of the Sadies at the Burton Cummings Theatre. Tickets are $25.95-$39.95 and are available at Ticketmaster.

This is just a sampling of the events on offer during Juno Week. Melanie Berry, president and CEO of the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) encourages people to celebrate the Junos all week long.

"The Sunday night broadcast is what everybody sees, and there's only seven awards that are handed out," Berry told the Free Press Tuesday. "We have 42 Juno awards. The other activities are so important because it shows you the diversity of our talent. You just can't put everyone on stage you want to in two hours. Juno Cup is a fun, family event; Songwriting Circle really is the jewel of the weekend. JunoFest is important because it gives people the chance to discover someone new. I think it's the whole package. There really is something for everyone."

No host was officially announced at Tuesday's press conference, but a few presenters were revealed, including Sarah McLachlan, and Jennifer Jones and the rest of her Olympic gold medal-winning curling team.

"It's an incredible honour for us," Jones told reporters. "We're just excited to be included at all and I think we get to walk the red carpet, so we're really excited about that and to meet other people there and just be part of this huge event in Canada. It's amazing what music does for our country and it's amazing what sport does for our country, and to combine both is incredible."

A trio of country performers — Gord Bamford, Dean Brody and Brett Kissel — have been added to the slate of performers at the Sunday night telecast, joining Matt Mays, Serena Ryder, the Sheepdogs, Tegan and Sara, Walk Off the Earth and Robin Thicke. More acts will be announced in the weeks to come.

jen.zoratti@freepress.mb.ca

Juno what's going on?

Dancin' Tones and Buzzin' Bones: Celebrating the 2014 Junos

• March 1-June 15
• Manitoba Museum

The Juno Tour of Canadian Art

• March 24-June 1, 2014
• Winnipeg Art Gallery

Juno Photography Exhibition

• March 24-30, 2014
• Gurevich Fine Art

Sirius XM Juno Awards Kick-Off

• Thursday, March 27, 8 p.m.
• Manitoba House (The Metropolitan Entertainment Centre)
• Tickets $20 at Ticketmaster

Juno Cup

• Friday, March 28, 7:30 p.m.
• MTS Iceplex
• Tickets $20 at Ticketmaster

JunoFest 2014

• Friday, March 28 and Saturday, March 29, 9 p.m.-2 a.m.
• Various venues
• Wristbands are $30 at Ticketmaster. Individual tickets will be available at the door of each venue ($10-20).

Junior Junos — Featuring the 2014 Children's Album of the Year Nominees

• Saturday, March 29, 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m.
• Manitoba Children's Museum
• Tickets $15 in advance or $18 the door.

JUNO Fan Fare

• Saturday, March 29, noon-3 p.m.
• St. Vital Centre, 1225 St. Mary's Rd., Winnipeg

JUNO Songwriters' Circle

• Sunday, March 30, noon- 2 p.m.
• Burton Cummings Theatre
• Tickets are $25.95, $34.95 and $39.95 plus fees at Ticketmaster.

PUBLIC EVENTS, presented by the Juno Host Committee

We Speak Music Concert Series at The Forks

• Saturday, March 22, 1-3 p.m.
• The Forks

All Strings Considered (feat. Marie-Claude, Patti Lamoureux)

• Sunday, March 23, 2:30-4 p.m.
• West End Cultural Centre
• Free

We Speak Music Performance Series at The Leg

• Tuesday, March 25, noon-1 p.m.
• Manitoba Legislative Building
• Free

Scene Manitobaine (feat. The Justin Lacroix Band, Marijosée and more)

• Wednesday, March 26, 8-11:30 p.m.
• Manitoba House
• Tickets $5 at the door

Heart of Gold: Lecture by John Einarson

• Thursday, March 27 and Friday, March 28, 11 a.m.-noon
• Manitoba House
• Free

We Speak Music Performance Series at the Airport

• Thursday, March 27, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.; Friday, March 28, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
• James Armstrong Richardson International Airport
• Free

Winnipeg Host Committee After-Party

• Sunday, March 30, after the broadcast
• Manitoba House
• Tickets are $20 at Ticketmaster