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1/7 - Ready For Change In '09?

January 7, 2009

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION Grammy Category 108


For those of you voting NARAS members wondering how to distribute your precious remaining votes, may we direct your attention down to the bottom of the categories list - waaaay down... keep going, a little further down, past the"Best Mime / Ventriliquist Collaboration"... past "Best Engineer's Madonna Anecdotes", a little further... Category 108 (out of 110) - BEST CLASSICAL CROSSOVER RECORD. There.

So... what IS this Classical Crossover category? That's an excellent question - one that no one has a definitive answer to, including (especially) the people that came up with the term. Skeptics and cynics might define it as a genre invented by labels attempting to reach a broader audience and record buying base for their classical artists (classical records account for, what? 3-4% of record sales). Slap a beat under a few well known orchestral or opera themes, hand pick some camera friendly youngsters, take them shopping to Club Monacco, and voila the Twelve Tasmanian Tenors are born. (note to self - great idea for next project)

While this may be true in some cases (NOT, however, in this year's nominees, thankfully), Classical Crossover is MORE than that. Has anyone ever thought that perhaps ROCK musicians want to "cross over" to a SMALLER audience and record buying base? This is the case for EAST VILLAGE OPERA COMPANY. Tired of huge and dangerous youthful crowds at shows, sick of hearing their music played on the radio, frightened by the fiscal responsibilities that come with good incomes, and highly suspicious of the preferential treatment received at popular restaurants, the group boldly stepped out of the mainstream and into a marginal market with their Grammy nominated record "Olde School." It's a joyous mash-up of Opera and Rock, not unlike that beautiful "Getz/Gilberto" mash-up of Bossa Nova and Jazz, which I would also offer up as an example of the kind of crossover we can ALL believe in.

Are YOU ready for change we can ALL believe in for 2009? Red AND Blue, Old AND Young, Rock AND Opera? Then please take the time to VOTE this year.

Category 108 - East Village Opera Company

Thank you. Please pass along this message of HOPE to other troubled NARAS voters.


EVOC



the video ONE MORE TIME!!! -

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=2aAAEWB4Pmw