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Composer Joan Tower's Made in America Honored at Grammy Awards

Newton, MA February 14, 2008 - Joan Tower's Made in America was the catalyst for three Grammy® Awards, announced on Sunday, February 10 by the Recording Academy. The New Philharmonia Orchestra performed Made in America on November 19th and 20th, 2005, in Newton and Wellesley as part of Ford Made in America, a partnership program of the League of American Orchestras and Meet The Composer.

Tower's Made in America was recognized as Best Classical Contemporary Composition. The Nashville Symphony was awarded two Grammys for its recording of Made in America, led by Music Advisor Leonard Slatkin. The Naxos recording won in the categories of Best Classical Album and Best Orchestral Performance. Released on May 29, 2007 and distributed in the United States and Canada by Naxos of America, the Nashville Symphony CD includes the first commercial recording of Tower's Made in America and also features her Tambor and Concerto for Orchestra.

The groundbreaking Ford Made in America program, the second cycle of which will launch in the fall of 2008, is the largest orchestral commissioning consortium in the country's history. The program enables orchestras with smaller budgets to commission a work by an established American composer of national repute. Made in America was performed by 65 American orchestras in every state of the Union.

Ford Made in America is made possible by Ford Motor Company Fund, the philanthropic arm of Ford Motor Company.

The first round of Ford Made in America was also generously supported by the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional funding was provided by The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, JPMorgan Chase, Argosy Foundation Contemporary Music Fund, and The Amphion Foundation. Additional local funding for the New Philharmonia's performance of Made in America was generously provided by Quirk Auto Dealers - the regional car agency with dealerships in Quincy, Braintree and Manchester, NH.

New Phil's Executive Director Adrienne Hartzell was quoted this week as saying - "The Ford Motor Company Fund Made in America project is a fabulous example of what collaboration amongst small organizations can produce and these awards are tremendously exciting! In addition, the local support we received from Quirk Auto for this wonderful project is a shining example of how corporate support of the arts can bring great creativity to life. We are hugely grateful to The League of American Orchestras, the Ford Motor Company Fund, Quirk Auto Dealers and the other funders for their vision and support."

League President and CEO Henry Fogel said, "I am delighted that Joan Tower's Made in America has enabled 65 of our smaller orchestras to explore a new work by a living composer demonstrating what a vibrant and forward looking field this is. Joan's work is an important addition to the repertoire of symphony orchestras at home and even abroad. It is also gratifying to know that the recording, which was made possible by the Ford Made in America program, has met with success for the Nashville Symphony. We greatly value our partnerships with Meet The Composer, the National Endowment for the Arts and all of the funders-and especially Ford Motor Company Fund, without which this groundbreaking program would have remained a dream."

"We are so proud that the composition has received such wonderful attention and critical acclaim," said Jim Vella, President, Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services. "Joan Tower's patriotic composition and the grassroots collaboration of so many orchestras showcase Ford Motor Company Fund's commitment to crossing cultural and geographic boundaries to bring diverse audiences together."

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