Alain Simard (businessman)

Alain Simard (born 1950 in Montreal, Quebec) produces concerts, shows, and manages urban festivals. He conceived and founded the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, the FrancoFolies de Montréal and MONTRÉAL EN LUMIÈRE, and is also the President-CEO of L'Équipe Spectra.

Alain Simard began his career in concert production in 1969 with La Clef, a café-showroom he opened in Old Montréal, which also presented pop festivals in various arenas and venues in Montréal. In the early 1970s, he joined the ranks of Productions Kosmos, working with them to bring in major acts including Pink Floyd, Genesis, Gentle Giant, Weather Report, B.B. King and many others. In that era, he also worked as a columnist and music critic for Pop-Cycle and Pop-Rock magazines.

In 1977, Simard joined forces with André Ménard and Denyse McCann to found Spectra Scène (which would become L'Équipe Spectra), going on to present concerts by Harmonium, Beau Dommage, Dave Brubeck, Charlie Mingus, John Lee Hooker, Jean-Luc Ponty and Pat Metheny. In 1979, he created the Spectra record label, as well as Spectel Vidéo, one of the first private television production companies in Québec, which would go on to produce hundreds of programs, including the Rock et Belles Oreilles series. He also managed a number of artists including Paul Piché, Claude Dubois, Offenbach and Michel Rivard.

In 1980, he organized the very first edition of the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, which Guinness World Records now ranks as the « World's largest jazz Festival »).

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