Jonathan Bunce (better known as Jonny Dovercourt) has been participating in the independent music community in Toronto — as a musician, writer, editor, presenter, organizer and advocate — since he was a teenager. In 2000, Jonny combined his experience in both the music scene and journalism to help co-found Wavelength Music; over the years, he led the organization from grassroots collective to professional non-profit arts organization and has been Wavelength’s full-time Artistic / Executive Director since 2014.
Jonny is the author of the book Any Night of Week: A DIY History of Toronto 1957-2001, published in 2020 by Coach House Books, with a spinoff podcast, walking tours and maps. He co-edited two volumes of Coach House’s acclaimed uTOpia anthology, and currently writes regularly for MusicWorks Magazine. As a presenter and arts administrator, he previously held senior roles at the Music Gallery and Images Festival. He was a 2017/18 Toronto Arts Council/Banff Centre Cultural Leaders Lab Fellow, and in 2013, was recognized with a “Vital People” Award from the Toronto Community Foundation. As guitarist, bassist or vocalist, Jonny has been a member of more than a dozen bands, including Several Futures, Republic of Safety, Secret Agent, and A Tuesday Weld. When not absorbed with music, Jonny rides his bike and thinks about writing sci-fi.
In 2023, he co-authored the Reimagining Music Venues study with Dan Silver, Professor of Sociology at University of Toronto Scarborough.
Photo: Tim McCready.