APPOINTS DAVID KUSEK AS DIRECTOR

BOSTON, October 14, 1998 -- Berklee College of Music, the premier institution for the study of contemporary music, announced today the launch of the new Berklee Press, the only college press in the world dedicated to the study of music. Berklee Press will function as the official publishing arm of the College, specializing in creating practical, high-quality, books, video, software and other products that help advance the careers of musicians around the world.

Joining the college in its effort is David Kusek, Director of the new Berklee Press. Kusek is a 25-year music industry veteran with a successful track record in starting and managing publishing and technology oriented companies. As founder and chief engineer of Star Instruments in the 1970s, Kusek introduced the first drum SynareÅ machines to the market. As CEO and co-founder of Passport Designs in the '80s, Kusek was responsible for developing the markets for MIDI sequencers, music notation and digital audio editing software, and was a co-developer of MIDI and General MIDI (GM).

Most recently, as CEO of Digital Cowboys, Kusek provided marketing and business development services to clients including Roland, Opcode, Liquid Audio, Hal Leonard, Kaman Music, MusicWriter, Yamaha, and Boston Acoustics. Kusek is also a Professor in the Music Business and Management Department at Berklee where he teaches a course on Marketing.

"We are very pleased that Dave Kusek has agreed to spearhead our efforts with the new Berklee Press," said Gary Burton, Executive Vice President for Berklee College of Music. "His expertise in building successful music businesses will help us focus our publishing efforts and transform Berklee Press into a vibrant enterprise that provides rewarding opportunities for our faculty to publish their works."

About the new Berklee Press

Berklee Press is developing a series of print and electronic products focused on the areas of music and music education. Its product line will include music instructional material and titles on music business, music technology and other areas of contemporary music. The new Berklee Press is actively seeking manuscripts and project suggestions from Berklee faculty, staff and alumni, and plans to publish material pioneered and developed at the College during the past 50 years.

Berklee Press has developed an extensive publishing plan for a wide range of products including, books, folios, video tapes, audio CDs, DVD discs, interactive materials and on-line properties. The product plan is supported by an aggressive business model that leverages the College's brand name and numerous marketing efforts.

About Berklee College of Music

Founded in 1945, Berklee College of Music is the world's largest
independent music college and the premier institution for the study of contemporary music. The College's 3,000 students and 300 faculty members interact in an environment designed to provide the most complete learning experience possible. Young musicians are drawn to Berklee to study music from 70 different countries with over 40% coming from outside the U.S. At Berklee's extensive facilities, located in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood, students develop musical competencies in such areas as composition, performance, music business, music technology and recording/production. Berklee's alumni include Quincy Jones, Melissa Etheridge, Gary Burton, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Alan Silvestri, Donald Fagen, Branford Marsalis and Paula Cole.