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.