Photo: Ozomatli, one of the headlining acts to play the Zune Concert Series Stage at the TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival

Beginning today, March 11th, Zune Canada will conduct a month-long search to find Canada’s hottest undiscovered band or artist to perform at the Zune Concert Series, Canada’s biggest free outdoor music festival taking place April 17-26 during the 2009 TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival.

As part of its commitment to emerging Canadian artists, Zune is supporting musicians working to break out and gain industry exposure with the Zune Concert Series Competition. Bands and artists are invited to upload an original music track at www.zune.ca to enter the competition. Music fans will be able to listen and rate selected tracks from participating bands, and have the chance to win a trip for two to see the selected band play live at the 2009 TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival. The winner will be chosen by a panel of esteemed music industry experts on April 13th, 2009.

The winning band or artist will receive a coveted spot to perform on the Zune Concert Series Stage at the TELUS World Ski & Snowboard festival, sharing the bill with industry talents Ozomatli, The Stills, Metric, Ten Second Epic and DJ Z-Trip, among others.

The winner will also be awarded the opportunity to connect with Canadian music industry agents, A&R reps, and managers who will advise the band on what it takes to succeed in the highly competitive music industry.

The Zune Concert Series is a highly-anticipated highlight of the TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival, a huge celebration in Whistler, B.C. featuring 10 days and 10 nights of live concerts, art exhibits and big air comps in Canada’s infamous outdoor playground.

For more information on the Zune Concert Series, please visit www.zune.ca or www.whistler2009.com.

WHAT: Zune Concert Series Competition
WHEN: Zune Concert Series Competition: March 11 – April 7, 2009, winner will be selected on April 13, 2009; Zune Concert Series: April 17 – 26, 2009
WHERE: Submit Band Search entries online at Zune.ca; Listen and rate music tracks competing for top prize (more details on the official Zune.ca website)

Zune Concert Series will take place at the TELUS World Ski and Snowboard Festival, Whistler, B.C.

About Zune

Zune is Microsoft’s music and entertainment brand that provides an integrated digital entertainment experience. The Zune platform includes a line of portable digital media players, the Zune Software and Zune Social, created to help people discover music. Zune is part of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division and supports the company’s software-based services vision to help drive innovation in the digital entertainment space. More information can be found online at http://www.zunenews.ca.

About Microsoft Canada

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Co. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq “MSFT”) the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Visit Microsoft Canada’s web site at www.microsoft.ca.

Zune Canada

TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival 2009