Program awards $250,000 to archive and preserve Gulf Coast recorded sound collections

GRAMMY.com

The GRAMMY Foundation today announced the recipients of its grant program, which awarded $250,000 in grants to 10 recipients to archive and preserve recorded sound collections of the Gulf Coast. The recipients are Abita Music Company; All For One Foundation; Backstreet Cultural Museum; Friends of WWOZ; David Kunian; New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and Foundation; Ben Sandmel; Tulane University, Hogan Jazz Archive; University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Edith Garland Dupre Library; and the University of New Orleans/American Routes.

Funds will help facilitate an extraordinary range of ventures, including: the rescue of an at-risk collection of culturally significant radio transcriptions and their source production recordings by such artists as Fats Domino, Al Hirt, and the Nevilles; the cataloging and digital transfer of a collection of southern Louisiana roots music to make it more publicly accessible; and the enactment of preservation measures developed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to protect collections at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and Foundation.

In addition to this year's special round of Gulf Coast grants, the GRAMMY Foundation's ongoing annual grant program will dedicate $650,000 in grant funds for its 2007 awards cycle. The program supports archiving and preservation projects that safeguard the history of recorded sound, as well as scientific research projects related to music of the Americas. The application is currently available online at www.grammyfoundation.com, and the deadline to submit applications is Oct. 2.

"The Grants Program is central to the GRAMMY Foundation's mission," said Recording Academy, GRAMMY Foundation and MusiCares President Neil Portnow. "This year, it was important and fitting for us to dedicate a portion of our grants budget to support efforts that advance the archiving and preservation of the music and recorded sound heritage of the Gulf Coast area. It's an appropriate complement to the hurricane relief work that our sister foundation, MusiCares, has accomplished over the past 11 months."

The GRAMMY Foundation's grant program is generously funded by The Recording Academy. Now in its 18th year, the GRAMMY Foundation Grant Program has awarded more than $2 million to approximately 200 noteworthy projects. The grant program administers grants annually to organizations and individuals to support efforts that advance the archiving and preservation of the music and recorded sound heritage of the Americas for future generations, as well as research projects related to the impact of music on the human condition. Recipients are determined based on criteria such as merit, uniqueness of project and the ability to accomplish intended goals.

For more information about the grant recipients, please click here.