Nashville Mayor Karl Dean and Country Music Star Kellie Pickler On Hand to
Deliver Donated Instruments to Thurgood Marshall Middle School
HCA Donates 800 Tickets to High School Students for Saturday, June 7,
Nightly Concert the VAULT Stage at LP Field
NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, BNA
Records star Kellie Pickler and Country Music Association Chief Executive
Officer Tammy Genovese were at Thurgood Marshall Middle School today for a
special delivery. A truckload of musical instruments and equipment were
delivered to the students courtesy of "Keep the Music Playing" and CMA
Music Festival.
"We are thrilled to be making this delivery today," said Genovese. "Due
to the generosity of the artists who donate their time to perform for free
at CMA Music Festival, we are able to supply not only Thurgood Marshall,
but 29 other schools in the Metro Nashville public schools system with the
musical equipment they desperately need."
"The Keep the Music Playing program is an example of the community
involvement needed to improve our schools," said Mayor Dean. "Through this
donation, CMA is bringing music education into our classrooms and making a
difference in the lives of our students and in turn, the future of our
city."
"Music is so dear to my heart," said Pickler. "I think it's great that
these kids are able to get involved in music at a young age. It's an outlet
to get away from your normal class schedules, it's a challenge, and it's a
positive thing for kids to get involved in."
CMA Music Festival contributes half the net proceeds from the annual
four-day event to music education for Metro Nashville's 75,000 public
school students through a partnership with the Nashville Alliance for
Public Education called "Keep the Music Playing." To date, CMA has donated
more than $1.1 million to purchase hundreds of instruments, lighting and
sound equipment, piano labs and more on behalf of the artists who donate
their time and perform for free at the annual Festival.
"Music education is an important contributor to student success, and
this donation has opened up an opportunity for a large group of students to
get into music, who wouldn't have had the opportunity otherwise," said Pam
Garrett, Executive Director of the Nashville Alliance for Public Education.
"We thank CMA for its generosity and commitment to education."
"On behalf of the instrumental students at Thurgood Marshall Middle
School, let me say how appreciative we are for the donation of instruments
provided by the Country Music Association," said Kevin Dye, band director
at Thurgood Marshall Middle School. "We are grateful for the artists who
donate their time at the Festival benefiting the students in the Metro
Nashville Public Schools. The CMA donation will allow students at Thurgood
Marshall Middle School the opportunity to undergo the greatest experience
of all, which is to learn to play and master a musical instrument. Music
allows students the ability to express their emotions, work together as a
team, develop critical thinking skills, and stay engaged in school. Thank
you so much for the opportunity you have provided our students."
The instruments donated today were purchased with a gift of $655,624
from proceeds of the 2007 CMA Music Festival. Other schools receiving
instruments include: Antioch Middle School, Apollo Middle School, Bailey
Middle School, Bass Middle School, Bellevue Middle School, Croft Middle
Design Center, Ewing Park Middle School, Dupont Hadley Middle School, Gra
Mar Middle School, Glenn Enhanced Option, H.G. Hill Middle School,
Hume-Fogg Magnet School, Hunters Lane High School, John Early Middle
School, John F. Kennedy Middle School, Isaac Litton Middle School, Maxwell
Elementary School, McGavock High School, McKissack Middle School, McMurray
Middle School, Martin Luther King Jr. Magnet School, Meigs Middle Magnet
School, Henry Oliver Middle School, Overton High School, Pearl-Cohn High
School, Tulip Grove Elementary School, Stratford High School and Wright
Middle School.
HCA will be making it possible for high school students in Metro
Nashville Public Schools to attend the 2008 CMA Music Festival. With a
donation of 800 tickets for the Saturday, June 9, nightly concert on the
VAULT(TM) Stage at LP Field, these students will be able to see
performances by Trace Adkins, Rodney Atkins, Alan Jackson, Little Big Town,
Craig Morgan and Kenny Rogers.
"HCA supports the CMA Music Festival for a number of reasons," said
Jack Bovender, Chairman and CEO of HCA. Chief among these are our
commitment to Nashville and our support for Metro Schools, but the Festival
brings the added benefit of providing a special, entertaining event for
HCA/TriStar employees to enjoy. We have consistently supported the Festival
in the past, but this year, due to CMA's generous support of the music
program in Metro Schools, we are also making it possible for 800 students
to participate in this great, city-wide event."
"HCA was one of the first members of the Nashville business community
to support CMA Music Festival when we moved downtown," said Genovese.
"Through their generous donation we have been able to achieve our goal of
involving more students in Festival. This year the number of students that
will be able to attend the festival has doubled."
In addition to students being able to attend the Festival, students
from local Metro Nashville Public Schools will help kick off this year's
events. Drum corps from Antioch and Overton High Schools will be
participating in the Fourth Annual CMA Music Festival Kickoff Parade on
Wednesday, June 4, at 2:00 PM/CT. Starting at the corner of Broadway and
Sixth Avenue North, the parade will wind through downtown Nashville ending
at the corner of Demonbreun and Sixth Avenue.
CMA Music Festival is Nashville's signature musical event celebrating
America's music. The event brings together not only people in Middle
Tennessee, but also fans from all over the world. With record setting
attendance in 2007 of 191,000 over four days, CMA anticipates being able to
contribute even more to the Nashville Alliance for Public Education to be
used for school music programs in the future.
Now in its 37th year, the 2008 CMA Music Festival will be held on
Thursday through Sunday, June 5-8 in Downtown Nashville. Dubbed the "crown
jewel of Country Music Festivals" by USA Today and winner of the
International Entertainment Buyers Association's 2006 LIVE! Award for
Festival of the Year, the event features for days packed with music,
autograph signings, family activities, sporting competitions, and much
more.
Tickets to the individual Nightly Concerts on the VAULT (TM) stages at
LP Field are on sale for $40 for reserved seats on the lower and club
levels, and $30 for general admission in the upper deck of LP Field (plus
applicable handling fees). To order tickets call 1-800-CMA-FEST (262-3378);
visit http://www.ticketmaster.com to buy online or charge-by-phone at (615)
255-9600. The Nightly Concerts are also included in the Festival's four-day
ticket packages and can be purchased through the same means.
For more information on the 2008 CMA Music Festival, including a list
of artists appearing and a schedule of activities, please visit
http://www.CMAfest.com.
CMA Music Festival is organized and produced by the Country Music
Association. CMA Board member Tony Conway is the Executive Producer of CMA
Music Festival. Premiere Radio Networks is the official radio broadcaster.
Chevy: The Official Ride of Country Music. Borders(R) Books & Music: The
Exclusive Music & Book retailer of the CMA Music Festival. Wrangler(R): The
Exclusive Jean of the CMA Music Festival. Additional promotional partners
include, CMT(TM), Dr Pepper(R), Greased Lightning(R) Cleaning Products,
Mary Kay(R), McDonald's(R), Music City Rising Star, Tetley(R) Iced Tea,
truTV(TM), and VAULT(TM). Fan Fair(R) is a registered trademark of CMA.
SOURCE Country Music Association
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Related links:
http://www.cmaworld.com
http://www.CMAfest.com
CONTACT:
Maria Eckhardt of Country Music Association,
+1-615-244-2840; or Woody McMillin of MNPS, +1-615-259-8404; or
Andrea Mills of McNeely Pigott & Fox, +1-615-259-4000
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