I don't know when the dates have appeared on La Ronde website, but we are going to enjoy a schedule similar to the past few years, with another 8-edition line-up and, presumably, an opening off-competition show on Canada Day:

Saturday, July 1st
Saturday, July 8
Saturday, July 15
Wednesday, July 19
Saturday, July 22
Wednesday, July 26
Saturday, July 29
Saturday, August 5

https://www.laronde.com/fr/larondefr/linternational-des-feux/accueil

My hope that additional funding opportunities would allow for more than 8 shows has apparently not materialized!

Fred

Salut tout le monde

Quelqu'un saurait-il la date approximative à laquelle on doit être informé des firmes en compétition pour 2017 ?

Merci de la part de Roger

The full details will be released sometime near the end of March.

Paul.

Just a quick update - the last news I have is that the full schedule will be released around 5th or 6th of April!

Stay tuned!

Paul.

I'm very much looking forward to it!

Trav.

Merci Paul pour l'information.
J'ai vraiment hâte de connaître les pays et firmes qui seront en compétition.
Je n'attends que cela pour acheter certains feux en direct de la Ronde.
J'espère que Royal fera partie de ce groupe select.

Roger

I have received the press release from La Ronde - it will be made public at 7am on Thursday 6th April. There are going to be some happy people here

Paul.

Bonsoir

J'ai pris connaissance de la liste des pays participants et les firmes pour l'édition 2017.
Il y a certes de bons choix mais c'est vraiment curieux et à la fois décevant de constater le fait de l'absence d'une firme du Canada en compétition, une première selon moi.

Bonne fin de soirée

Roger

So here it is!

http://montreal-fireworks.com/ReportBlog/?p=1247

As Roger noted, no Canada (or USA). This is because the public got to vote for the countries they wanted - probably assuming the US and Canada would be competing anyway.

It will be an interesting season!

Paul.

I like to make this bold prediction: for a second year in a row, the competition will end with an all-European podium!

@Rozzi's, Panzera's and La Ronde opening. It may be the most promising opening show since the Weco's one in 2014. I haven't been a big fan of the previous opening displays on the musics from the Royal 22nd Regiment which, I suspect, didn't have the expertise to craft the most appropriate soundtracks for pyromusical events. It is pretty clear that Paul Csukassy is a better choice! However, with Rozzi's Famous Fireworks and Panzera involved, with a soundtrack which is not the pyro designers' choice, I am a bit concerned about the division of labour here. A lot of people are involved. Furthermore, depending of the specific songs selected and linguistics competence of the pyro designers, I am afraid that they may not understand some references and reflect them into the show. That being said, I guess that contracting foreign companies is a more effective way to deal with a July 1st display since most local companies are already busy with the Canada Day shows.

@Vaccalluzzo. While many people loved Vaccalluzzo's debut performance in 2012 (it won the Bronze Jupiter), I found it a "good" show. My main criticism, at the time, was the lack of complexity of the pyromusical design. In 2012, this Italian team was the penultimate entrant and its schedule might help to reach the podium. Improvement may be required to get a Jupiter as Vaccalluzzo is now the first competitor.

@Surex. I have the souvenir of a lovely, very classic, display in 2010. I still love to watch some segments and to listen the beautiful soundtrack. The main issue was a lack of diversity which became obvious during the last 10 minutes of their debut display. Hopefully, we will see some improvements on this side, as Surex show will be the 200th display of the Montreal International Fireworks Competition I attend on-site! It is also going to be the 250th "on-competition" show in the Montreal competition history.

@Innovative Pyrotechnik (IP). This German company comes back 10 years after its introduction in Montreal and the Silver Jupiter won at the time. A big question mark, for me, is whether Joachim Berner is still involved in the design. The guy had previous Montreal experience through Ipon, and he did some fantastic parts, including his signature note-synchronized "piano-style" segment. With the one made by Caballer last year, the threshold is high! It may be a serious contender for the podium.

@Féérie. This is another contestant who was introduced in Montreal in 2007, and which won the best soundtrack award for its 2nd appearance in 2012. Both had a good storyline with effective narratives. The pyromusical design in 2012 was especially complex, but both shows suffered of a lack of diversity regarding the range of pyrotechnic effects displayed during these extravaganzas. Once again, it seems to be a promising soundtrack with a storyline related to the musical history. I don't know whether Féérie may reach the podium this year, but it may be a show to not miss.

@Macedo's Pirotecnia. Will this Portuguese entrant reach the podium? In my opinion, both shows of Macedo's (in 2006 and 2010) were very good. The opening of the 2010 performance was unforgettable, filling the sky very quickly and featuring a huge barrage of nautical shells! However, I thought at the time that both lacked of diversity. Macedo's has the penultimate spot this year, just three nights before the judges made their final decision. For the Portuguese team, it is an opportunity to not miss!

@Jubilee Fireworks. Only two years after its award-winning debut show, the British team comes back to Montreal early than I expected. Jubilee succeeded in 2015 as it won the Gold Jupiter despite being the very first contestant of that year line-up, something which had never happened in the Montreal competition history. Since Jubilee is the only Gold Jupiter winner among the 2017 contestants, and given its record, this is going to be the most anticipated show of this 33rd edition. I imagine that many fireworks fans, especially in Canada and the USA, will travel to attend this particular display. The pressure on these pyros' shoulders will be very high.

@Groupe Fiatlux Ampleman (GFA) & La Ronde. This is the first appearance of GFA, which was created in December 2009 by the merge of Concept Fiatlux and Ampleman, since their 2010 off-competition tribute to Céline Dion, also made in collaboration with La Ronde. In contrast with other forum participants, I wrote a pretty good review of that show. Once again, the question mark for me is who is in charge of the design for this one. I was not a big fan of Concept Fiatlux's artistic orientation, which emphasized low-level effects, and I did preferred Éric Cardinal's performances which better fit with La Ronde environment, IMO. He also had designed multiple shows on popular songs. That being said, I thought for various reasons that Beau Dommage would be selected for the annual tribute of the "Feu des étoiles," but La Ronde had a different option in mind.

La Ronde has apparently new partners for its catering events held on fireworks nights. Is Intercontinental Hotel a new partner, too?

Furthermore, I am looking forward to know more about the connection between the fireworks event and the new lighting system on the Jacques-Cartier bridge. Nothing has been disclosed at this moment.

Fred

As always, I'm very much looking forward to the competition! As was felt in 2004, it will certainly feel strange that no Canadian or American teams will compete this year. It would have also been nice to have an Australian team in the mix, but, nevertheless, this should be an interesting year.

I also hope for ideal weather conditions for all displays (and setup periods) and little to no technical problems.

Trav.