New York State Music Fund Grants Total $245,000

Thanks to substantial support from The New York State Music Fund, WNED’s ThinkBright TV (Time Warner 21/Digital 17.3) will bring its diverse, high-quality music programming and related outreach resources to communities throughout upstate New York.

Grants totaling $245,000 since mid-2006 have supported ThinkBright’s Tuesday Arts & Performance Night schedule. The weekly line-up includes a wide variety of exemplary performance specials, featuring classical, contemporary and multi-cultural music, as well as dance, opera and musical theater.

The latest grant will subsidize programming, program promotion and outreach activities in Western New York as well as six upstate regions that began airing ThinkBright TV this fall: Rochester (WXXI); Syracuse (WCNY); Albany (WMHT); Binghamton (WSKG); Watertown (WPBS) and Plattsburgh (Mountain Lake PBS).

In addition, grant funds will support educational activities, such as workshops for teachers; printed program guides for schools and libraries in all ThinkBright communities; and the development of new music-related online teaching resources, including lesson plans.

“Bringing the joy and experience of music to people who might not have the opportunity to attend a live performance is one of the most important roles of public broadcasting,” said WNED President and CEO Donald K. Boswell. “Music is universal in its ability to inspire and unite, and The New York State Music Fund truly enriches the citizens of New York.”

The Fund was created when the New York State Attorney General’s Office resolved investigations against major record companies that had violated laws prohibiting “pay for play” or “payola.” Under the settlement agreement, funds paid by music businesses must support music education and appreciation for the benefit of New Yorkers. To date, the grant program, administered by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, has distributed nearly 400 awards totaling more than $35 million.