GRAMMY in the Schools Career Day Program Sponsored by Ford "Focus"

BOSTON, March 14, 2000 - For the fifth consecutive year, the GRAMMY Foundation has invited Berklee College of Music to co-host their GRAMMY in the Schools Career Day program, which educates students on careers in the music industry.

The event, to be held at the Berklee Performance Center, takes place on Wednesday, March 22, 2000, from 9:00 a.m. until 1:15 p.m. Over 500 New England area high school students have signed up for the event. The day offers a unique opportunity for students to gain understanding of the dynamics and challenges of a variety of music careers.

The GRAMMY in the Schools program, sponsored by Ford "Focus," features forums on university campuses throughout the country. Each GRAMMY in the Schools Career Day begins with an informative Super Panel comprised of top recording and music industry professionals interacting with high school students. Following the Super Panel, students attend workshops on topics ranging from multimedia in music to music therapy in the workplace. Each participant receives the GRAMMY in the Schools Career Handbook containing a directory of schools offering music industry curriculum. It also contains a comprehensive listing of record companies. The panelists, seminar leaders and topics include:

• Peter Cokkinias, Berklee faculty, "Teaching Music for a Living"
• Kenwood Dennard, Berklee faculty, "The Recording and Touring Performer"
• Chris Florio, IDC Media, "Multimedia in Music"
• George Howard, Rykodisc, "Inside the Record Company"
• Kimberly Khare, Community Music Center of Boston, "Music Therapy in the Workplace"
• Rose LeBlanc, Soundworks Studio, "Production and Recording Techniques"
• Greg McKenna, Letters to Cleo, "The Recording and Touring Performer"
• Henning Pauly, composer, "Scoring for Film"
• Michael A. Smith, Boston Arts Academy, "Teaching Music for a Living"
• Karen Wacks, Berklee faculty, "Music Therapy in the Workplace"

Founded in 1945, Berklee College of Music has been advancing careers in contemporary music for more than 50 years. The world's largest independent college of music, Berklee has a multicultural enrollment of over 3,000 students, 40 percent of whom are international. The college's alumni include some of the most respected figures in contemporary music, including many multi-GRAMMY award winners.

The GRAMMY Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing music and arts education across the country and ensuring access to a rich cultural legacy of recorded sound. In partnership with the Recording Academy® and its Chapters and Branches throughout the country, the Foundation implements an arc of education and preservation programs and services designed to cultivate understanding, appreciation and advancement of music and the arts for all ages.

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For media information, contact:

Jennifer Gribbon
The GRAMMY Foundation
(310) 392-3777 x219

Jane Covner
For the GRAMMY Foundation
(323) 656-4499
Toni Ballard
Berklee College of Music
(617) 747-2247