PSM is a non-profit organization founded in 1979 and directed by Joane Hétu, Diane Labrosse and Danielle Palardy Roger since that time. The many changes it has gone through over the years have had the effect of constantly broadening its mission, and today it is one of the most important producers and exponents of new music(musique actuelle) in Canada.
Since its creation PSM has been producing many musical groups and presenting them both in Canada and abroad, some of the most important being Wondeur Brass, Les Poules, Justine, Castor et compagnie, Flammèches, Jean Derome et les Dangereux Zhoms, and Nous perçons les oreilles.
Other than Hétu, Labrosse and Roger, PSM has in recent years been producing and presenting the work of musicians such as Pierre Cartier, Michel F Côté, Jean Derome, André Duchesne, Robert Marcel Lepage, Geneviève Letarte, René Lussier, Pierre Tanguay, Martin Tétreault, and Marie Trudeau. PSM’s goal is to provide these creative talents with the means and the forums necessary for the high quality, power and originality of their music to be appreciated and become better known. It is precisely with these objectives in mind that PSM mounts its artistic seasons, produces concerts in Montréal and organizes appearances throughout Canada and beyond.
PSM has also organized major events, such as Each… and Every Inch (2002); Canot-camping (2002); Canevas (2002); the SuperBoom (2001); the SuperMicMac, Musiciennes innovatrices canadiennes — Musique actuelle et contemporaine (2000); the Festival international de musiciennes innovatrices de Montréal (1988); Ambiances Magnétiques, Théorie des ensembles (1992); Les Muses au musée at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (1992); Tohu-Bohu, 7 jours de musique actuelle (1993); Roche, papier, ciseaux, 4 jeudis de musique actuelle (1994).
Contemporary music: unstructured rock, fragmented jazz, splintered songs, reinvented traditions, bruitist environments, improvisation, the blending of acoustic and electroacoustic instruments, new ensemble music. Music that has been renewed by the alliance of different musical trends, by a new balance of power between the composer and the performer, as well as by an additional involvement by the composers, that being as the performers of their own music.
PSM has always attempted to produce and present music without regard for profit, for the trends of the day or for academic conventions, but with a concern for bringing women artists forward in its search for musical innovation.