On July 12, MusiCounts, Canada’s music education charity associated with the JUNO Awards, hosted an intimate Toronto tour to celebrate the 2017 Fred Sherratt Award recipients. The Award recognizes the outstanding achievement, talent and leadership of graduating students selected from post-secondary music programs across the country. The celebration included a tour of media powerhouse Bell Media headquarters, Revolution Recording studio, iconic venue Massey Hall and label and management company eOne & Last Gang Records. Award-winning broadcasting pioneer Fred Sherratt was on hand to congratulate the 12 recipients and present them with their awards.   “It’s a great honour to celebrate and be a part of these awards,” said Fred Sherratt. “It’s inspiring to see so many bright young graduates gaining insight from the industry leaders as they begin their careers in the world of music. I’m certain there is a great future ahead for all 12 recipients.”   First launched in 2008, in partnership with Bell Media, the annual award is named in honour of broadcasting pioneer Fred Sherratt. Each recipient received a $2,500 bursary, a trip to Toronto to tour notable music industry locations and attend a networking mixer at the historic Gladstone Hotel with music mentors that included, Jennifer Hyland, Senior Manager of Music Licensing / TV & Film Sync, Adam Burchill, Director Global Partnerships Music & Live Entertainment, MLSE. Vanessa Smith, Manager Education & Outreach, The Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall and Samantha Pickard, President, Strut Entertainment.   “Supporting music education and musical excellence is at the core of what we do at MusiCounts, and we’re excited to honour this year’s Fred Sherratt Award recipients. For post-secondary students, the transition to their careers in the industry can be daunting,” said Kristy Fletcher, Director, MusiCounts. “We hope that this year’s recipients find inspiration from their time today with industry leaders to continue to follow the career path. I would also like to thank Bell Media for their support of this year’s incredible honourees.”   The 2017 MusiCounts Fred Sheratt Award recipients are:   Anthony Lamb, Trebas Institute – Toronto, ON Austin Parachoniak, Selkirk College – Castlegar, BC Cameron Pockock, Fanshawe College – London, ON Colin Langstraat, Red Deer College – Red Deer, AB Ecko Aleck, The Art Institute of Vancouver – Vancouver, BC Elyse Alavie, Harris Institute – Toronto, ON Emma Vickers, St. Francis Xavier University – Antigonish, NS Leah Harman, MacEwan University – Edmonton, AB Matt Lagan, Humber College – Toronto, ON Melanie Boulanger, Musitechnic – Montreal, QC Michael Fong, The Banff Centre – Banff, AB Natasha D’Agostino, Capilano University – North Vancouver, BC   Thank You to Aeroplan for making it possible to fly our MusiCounts Fred Sherratt Award Recipients to Toronto for networking and education. Also, a big thank you to anyone who donated Aeroplan Miles to help make this happen.