Le Toronto Audiofest 2023 avait tout ce que l'on peut souhaiter d'un salon audio : du bon matériel à tous les prix, une atmosphère communautaire et joviale, un son globalement bon à excellent, des échanges amicaux avec des pairs ou des amis rencontrés sur place, un trafic de visiteurs important mais pas surchargé, et beaucoup de café pour les gars comme moi qui étaient...

This year’s edition also had its share of touching moments, most notably at the annual Lifetime Achievement Awards ceremony. Recipients of this year’s two awards included Adrian Low of Toronto high-end audio retailer Audio Excellence, a very well-deserved recognition, and Don Rhule of Kimber Kable Canada. Don was the butt of a practical joke set up by the show’s organizers, in which Don’s young son, Max, was announced as a winner, only for Max to reveal at the end of his “acceptance speech” that the true winner of the award was his dad (watch the 2½-minute clip ici). If there was a prize for Best Reaction by a Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient, Don would surely win. Shock and awe, and tears, with a funny twist. After several of us had commented on how thrilled Don had seemed to see his son “win”— “It was like he’d won it himself”, we said — when I later brought up the moment to Don, he grimaced, shook his head and, betraying a pang of disappointment, said: “Actually, I thought, why lui? He’s so jeune.” Don is a consummate sport, and a heck of a good guy. Congrats again on your win, my friend.

There’s always live music at a Canadian Audiofest, and this time the Toronto show was the launching pad for Montreal band G!ve’s (Give’s) excellent new soul-folk album, Of the Bird, Flying. The album’s songs were based on poems written by the late Canadian poet (among other roles), Sol Mandlsohn, who also happened to have founded (in 1946!) Toronto’s iconic store Bay Bloor Radio. Today, the storied establishment is operated by Sol’s son, Mark, and Mark’s sons, Sam and Danu. Mark was at the album launch and visibly pleased as Give’s Caroline St-Louis and Stephan Ritch, along with female choir Vibz, sang his dad’s poems to a rapt crowd. It was a heartfelt moment.

Au nom des organisateurs du salon, Sarah et Michel, un grand merci à tous ceux qui sont venus au salon pour exposer, visiter, écouter, critiquer, socialiser, jouer de la musique, sponsoriser - merci, Qobuz ! - et qui ont fait du Toronto Audiofest 2023 un événement exceptionnel.

Jusqu'à la prochaine fois !