SOCAN celebrated our #ComposersWhoScore nominees in the 2023 Canadian Screen Awards, with a cocktail reception at Gladstone House in downtown Toronto, on April 11, 2023.

Attending SOCAN member nominees included Rachel Johnstone, Neil Parfitt, Antonio Naranjo, Annelise Noronha, Brian Pickett, John Rowley, Jason Turriff, Rob Carli, Kevin Kossowan,  Melanie Doane, Creighton Doane, Adrian Ellis, and Amin Bhatia. Check out the nominations.

“We’re so proud of you,” said SOCAN CEO Jennifer Brown, addressing the nominees. “We’re so honoured to be your collective. We’ll be rooting you on all this week, and wishing you all the best.”

“Our composers mean the world to us,” added Gagan Singh, SOCAN Creative Executive, Film/TV and Visual Media. “The screen composer community in Canada always does an amazing job. Thanks for coming, and keep on rockin’.”

In addition to Brown and Singh, SOCAN attendees included Membership Department representatives Cameron Kennedy, Gary Laranja, Paul Stillo, Alex Golden, Nicole Fezza, and Claire Boué; and Communications & Marketing Department representatives Tiana Feng and Howard Druckman.



As we prepare for the Gala SOCAN in Montréal on May 7, 2023, “The SOCAN” – the world’s only major music industry trophy that’s an actual musical instrument – has been chosen for a special exhibit at the Mint Museum of Charlotte in North Carolina, the foremost craft museum in the U.S.

Along with other major company and industry trophies, “The SOCAN” will be on display from December of  2023 until February of 2024, with an information placard highlighting its background, purpose, and the intricate materials and process used to create it.

The brainchild of SOCAN Chief Communications & Marketing Officer Andrew Berthoff and then-Chief Membership Officer Michael McCarty, “The SOCAN” started as a somewhat radical “What if?” idea at a brainstorming meeting, on a dark night in November.

“I remember it well,” says Berthoff. “When the idea of a trophy that was also a musical instrument was first raised, a few in the meeting looked at us like we had two heads. There was a lot of resistance. Looking back, it’s amazing that ‘The SOCAN’ actually came to fruition, through sheer persistence, and believing that it was the right idea.”

The SOCAN is presented to Achievement Award winners at both the SOCAN Awards in Toronto, and the SOCAN Gala in Montréal. The biggest award winner at each event is allowed to choose the notes for the crotales, made by SABIAN Percussion of New Brunswick, that adorn the trophy – chosen from a song or  composition that they wrote. SOCAN teamed up with the Society Awards of New Jersey to bring the trophy to life.

The Mint Museum is a prestigious fine art museum in North Carolina that hosts more than 150,000 visitors each year. We’re thrilled to be a part of the exhibition!



SOCAN is thrilled to announce the appointment of Alexandre Alonso as Executive Director of Québec Affairs. Alexandre started in his new role on April 3, 2023, and is based in Montréal.

Maintaining excellent relationships with our songwriter, composer and music publisher members in Québec is crucial for the organization. The same holds true for SOCAN’s involvement in the Québec music ecosystem, and with the various political and governmental authorities.

Alexandre will be a key element of the Membership team, as he’ll be responsible for building relationships that foster effective and positive communication and exchange with Québec’s entire music ecosystem. He’ll communicate on a daily basis with SOCAN members living in Québec, with the associations that represent them, and with government authorities. It will help SOCAN to better understand the specific issues in Québec, and promote its commitment to the needs of its members.

Alexandre is a passionate and committed manager, with more than 15 years of experience in the cultural sector. His expertise has been deployed in service of publishing and record companies, festivals, theatres, management companies, unions, and professional associations.

Prior to joining SOCAN, Alexandre was the Executive Director of the Société professionnelle des auteurs et compositeurs du Québec (SPACQ), a position he held since October 2020, which allowed him to collaborate frequently with SOCAN and the SOCAN Foundation. Prior to that, he was a labour relations agent and then consultant for Union des artistes (2019-2020). He also served as Communications and Community Relations Manager for Artisti (2016-2018), the collective society whose mission is to protect, preserve, and promote performers’ rights. He acted as a consultant during the founding of the Regroupement des artisans de la musique (RAM), and the drafting of the political platform. He’s been in charge of the file of entrepreneurial artists, and the coordination of the production of content, and the budgetary management of public financial assistance (ministère de la Culture et des Communications) since 2016.

“It’s with great honour and a deep sense of responsibility that I join SOCAN as Executive Director of Québec Affairs,” said Alonso. “From the perspective of SOCAN’s new member-centric vision, Québec has many rich assets to offer. The dense fabric of its industry, its teeming creative community, and its passionate public are all features that make Québec a vibrant, resilient, and innovative ecosystem. Of course, we all know that the challenges are great, but it’s with enthusiasm and a dynamic approach, in emulation with my SOCAN colleagues, that I proudly wish to represent Québec, to respond to its specific issues, and to pro-actively contribute to its success – by implementing collaborative and innovative strategies, focused on results. I know from experience that the Québec music market is demanding, but it’s clear that it’s also full of visionary and persevering entrepreneurs, as well as prolific and talented artists. I’m convinced that, together, we’ll succeed in taking advantage of the structural asymmetry to make Québec a proud, productive, and diversified market. I invite SOCAN’s publisher and creator members to join me and start working together for our collective success.”

Alonso’s arrival in his new role as Executive Director of Québec Affairs will strengthen SOCAN’s work in this important territory, a mandate that he’ll undoubtedly fulfill with tact, diplomacy, and discernment, three qualities that have helped him make his mark throughout his career – and which he now brings to the SOCAN family.