GRAMMY Foundation Grant Program Awards $250,000 in Special Gulf Region Cycle

Santa Mónica (California), USA – The GRAMMY Foundation Grant
Program announced today that $250,000 in grants will be awarded to 10 recipients
to archive and preserve recorded sound collections of the Gulf Coast. Funds will
be given to 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. A complete list of grant awards and projects is listed below.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,
2006.

“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.

Abita Music Company — Orlando, Florida.

To rescue an at-risk collection of culturally significant radio
transcriptions and their source production recordings. The collection includes
interviews with Danny Barker, Fats Domino, Rockin’ Dopsie, Pete Fountain, Al
Hirt, the Nevilles, and dozens of other significant Louisiana artists of many
different musical genres. ($20,000)

All For One (AFO) Foundation — New Orleans, Louisiana.

To arrange, file and store a collection of firsthand historical documents,
photos and other memorabilia related to the development of modern jazz in New
Orleans in acid-free, water-resistant containers that will be stored in a
climate-controlled environment. ($10,000)

Backstreet Cultural Museum — New Orleans, Louisiana.

To transfer 12 reels of Super 8mm into 16mm and Beta SP formats from a
historically rare collection of films that contain the jazz funerals of
musicians and others pivotal in the musical history of New Orleans. ($28,380)

Friends of WWOZ — New Orleans, Louisiana.

To catalog and transfer a collection of southern Louisiana roots music
from a variety of sound formats to Broadcast Wave files, and log their metadata
into NetMix software, with a goal of making its collection and catalog
accessible from a server to the station’s show hosts and to scholars performing
research. ($40,000)

David Kunian — New Orleans, Louisiana.

To transfer from DAT and cassette to DVD-R the estimated 450 interview
recordings that David Kunian recorded during his career as a radio documentarian
and freelance writer focusing on New Orleans music and musicians. ($15,000)

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and Foundation — New Orleans,
Louisiana.

To enact preservation measures developed in the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina and the subsequent flooding that call for moving a part of a collection
of photographs and video and audio recordings to an offsite facility, expanding
shelving capacity to raise the collection two feet above floor level, and
installing a system to protect the collection from overhead leaks. ($32,943)

Ben Sandmel — Metairie, Louisiana.

To digitize and archive 100 interviews with R&B, traditional jazz, soul,
funk, rock, rockabilly, country, and gospel musicians that offer insightful
perspectives on the significance of Louisiana music to the national/global music
scene. ($5,000)

Tulane University, Hogan Jazz Archive — New Orleans,Louisiana.

To preserve 1,376 open reels of oral history interviews with New Orleans
jazz musicians through transfer to digital formats. These life stories range
from the late 1860s to well into the 20th century. ($40,000)

University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Edith Garland Dupre Library —
Lafayette, Louisiana.

To organize and provide access to pre-existing audio visual media
currently housed in the Cajun and Creole Music Collection by creating catalog
records and adding them to the library’s online system. ($29,456)

University of New Orleans/American Routes — New Orleans, Louisiana.

To expand efforts at preserving and cataloging significant recordings
housed in UNO’s American Routes archives by moving materials from
post-catastrophe storage into new facilities and determining if additional
salvage work is needed; transferring materials from original reel-to-reel tapes,
cassettes, and digital audio tapes to CDs; creating a metadata search mechanism
that allows for retrieval of the information in audio and print summary formats.
($30,000)

The GRAMMY Foundation was established in 1989 to cultivate the
understanding, appreciation and advancement of the contribution of recorded
music to American culture — from the artistic and technical legends of the past
to the still unimagined musical breakthroughs of future generations of music
professionals. The Foundation accomplishes this mission through programs and
activities that engage the music industry and cultural community as well as the
general public. The Foundation works in partnership year-round with The
Recording Academy to bring national attention to important issues such as the
value and impact of music and arts education and the urgency of preserving our
rich cultural heritage. For more information, visit
www.grammyfoundation.com.

Established in 1957, the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences,
Inc., also known as The Recording Academy, is an organization of musicians,
producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving
the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers.
Internationally known for the GRAMMY® Awards, The Recording Academy is
responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment,
advocacy, education and human services programs — including the creation of the
national public education campaign
What’s The Download. For more information about The Academy, visit
www.grammy.com.