Intersection Music & Arts

Throughout the day at we’ll feature installations from and plus ! David and Sydney’s installation “A Radio Active Community” will have a special spotlight at 8pm on our main stage, and Stephanie’s Sonic Bikes sculptures will be available for interactions throughout the day!

David Dacks is a Toronto-based advocate of creative music in all its forms. He is currently Executive Director of Labyrinth Music Workshop Ontario and was previously Artistic then Executive Director of renowned experimental venue the Music Gallery from 2011-23. Previously, David was an editor of Exclaim Magazine’s coverage of jazz, R&B, experimental music, reggae, and music from around the world. His has also written for Spinner.com, The Grid, Weird Canada, BlogTO, Paste Magazine, The African Drum and Musicworks. He was a programmer and host at CIUT-FM for 25 years, and produced four documentaries for CBC Radio. As a musician and DJ, he recorded eight albums featuring wild combinations of electronics with dub, cumbia and improvised elements, and ran his own record label. David served on the Toronto Arts Council’s Board of Directors from 2017-23, and was a juror for Polaris Music Prize (Grand Juror, 2011), and Polaris Music Heritage Prize. He currently serves on the board of New Feeling Writers Cooperative.

Sydney Dacks is a Toronto and Montreal-based student and up-and-coming video game developer, completing a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Sociology at McGill University, graduating this fall. Sydney is passionate about investigating the creative potential of the computer and about using technology for storytelling, and helping artists to execute their creative vision. They have built six video games in Unity and have another two under development. They have participated in several hackathons and Game Jams, winning the best VR Game award in the 2024 McGameJam. They have designed and taught curriculum for childhood coding education, centered on fun and engagement while providing IT support. Sydney is also interested in and has conducted responsible AI research with a focus on algorithmic fairness and data privacy.

is almost upon us!! Saturday’s marathon opens with some of Toronto’s best and most underrated talent in the fusion and ambient guitar realms!

The marathon begins at 2pm with some serious shredding from followed by the serene guitar landscapes of at 3pm. Show up early so you don’t miss these two gems!

Arkkose is a Toronto-based instrumental quintet fuelled by the extreme diversity of its individual’s artistic backgrounds. Its classical, jazz, and hardcore musicians make intricate, lyrical, and intensely driving music. They are Erik Ross, Rob MacDonald, Michael ‘Rosie’ Rosenthal, Torrie Seager, and Jesse Dietschi. Their experience includes such contrasting fields as modern orchestral composition, improvisatory experimentation and thrash metal drumming. The resulting sound combines angular intervallic combinations and long melodic lines with slowly evolving harmonies and driving sinuous bass lines. Elaborate musical elements like polyrhythms and precisely layered textures stand out as primary components. Arkkose’s two guitarists epitomize the ensemble’s overall nature with one centered in the realm of contemporary classical repertoire and the other in modern jazz. All of this creates the solid foundation of a distinct sound world – one of burgeoning energy and contrapuntal melodies mixed with aggressive, yet sensual harmonies. Their new album Diversion is available on all streaming platforms.

Brad Deschamps has been recording and releasing music as anthéne since 2015 and has released his music on a number of labels, including Home Normal (UK) and Past Inside the Present (US) as well as his own Polar Seas and floralia labels. He has also collaborated with like-minded artists Ian Hawgood and Avi C. Engel amongst others. Brad’s music is mainly composed using electric guitar and various acoustic instruments and field recordings to create melodic and texturally rich ambient pieces.

Intersection Music & Arts in association with the Canada Black Music Archives presents A Radio Active Community, a historical megamix by David and Sydney Dacks at 918 Bathurst Centre for Culture, Arts, Media and Education on Sunday, August 31, 2025 at 3:00 pm
Get your tickets online https://www.ticketscene.ca/events/55181/sots

Shout out Exclaim! for spreading the word! Y'all rule as always!

Toronto's Intersection Festival Gets Lavender Town, Khôra, Bilal Nasser for 2025 Edition │ Exclaim! The festival will run across four different venues from August 29 to 31