Debaser

Established in 2013, Debaser is Ottawa’s leading independent music and arts presenter. Debaser is committed to creating inclusive and responsive community spaces that cultivate shared understanding, joy, and social impact. Debaser’s primary activity is producing events, including Pique, a multidisciplinary arts and music festival that takes place once per season, as well as a year-round concert presentation series.

Starting out as a volunteer-run arts collective in 2013, over time Debaser has built an audience of adventurous music and art fans, and networks of independent artists and creative presenters/producers. Launched in 2021, Pique is a quarterly multi-arts event series that takes place at the Arts Court in downtown Ottawa, recognized for its thoughtful curation, diverse programming, financial accessibility, and care-oriented approach. Over the past 16 editions, Pique has become the most vital cultural event in Ottawa, welcoming over 100 artists and 5,000 audience members per year to experience a bold and forward-thinking multi-arts program. Pique has featured an inter/national roster of innovative and forward-thinking artists, including BAMBII, Frost Children, Alice Longyu Gao, Joe Rainey, Cecile Believe, LA Timpa, Evicshen, Raven Chacon, Lido Pimienta, Maylee Todd, Vivek Shraya, Bear Witness (of the Halluci Nation), Cartel Madras, Debby Friday, Backxwash, Sook-Yin Lee, and many more.

Debaser recently launched WARP, a new mentorship and development program geared toward emerging arts programmers in partnership with three other Ottawa grassroots cultural organizations: The Framework, Produced by Youth and the Moving Art Gallery.