The Recording Academy to Host Special Merit Awards Ceremony

The Recording Academy will host a special merit awards ceremony. The annual Grammy week event honors recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award, The Trustees Award, Technical GRAMMY Award, and the Inaugural Music Educator Award.

Attendees include member of GRAMMY® -winning group the Beatles, Ringo Starr; producer/songwriter Rick Hall; members of GRAMMY-winning R&B group the Isley Brothers, Ernie Isley, Ronald Isley and Chris Jasper; Kraftwerk member, Ralf Hütter; GRAMMY winner Kris Kristofferson; Lexicon representatives Blake Augsburger, Noel Larson and Dinesh Paliwal; singer/songwriter/pianist Armando Manzanero; and President/CEO of The Recording Academy® Neil Portnow. Family members or representatives of the following will also be in attendance: Beatles members George Harrison and John Lennon; gramophone inventor Emile Berliner; GRAMMY-winning zydeco musician Clifton Chenier; photographer Jim Marshall; composer Ennio Morricone; and violinist Maud Powell. Additionally, members of GRAMMY Camp - Jazz Session will perform.

The Recording Academy will present the Lifetime Achievement Award, honoring lifelong artistic contributions to the recording medium, to the Beatles, Clifton Chenier, the Isley Brothers, Kraftwerk, Kris Kristofferson, Armando Manzanero, and Maud Powell; the Trustees Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to the industry in areas other than performance, to Rick Hall, Jim Marshall and Ennio Morricone; and the Technical GRAMMY Award, honoring an individual's and/or corporation's outstanding contributions of technical significance to the recording field, to Emile Berliner and Lexicon. In its inaugural year, The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation® will present the Music Educator Award. The Music Educator Award was established to recognize current educators (kindergarten through college, public and private schools) who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education and who demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in the schools. A formal acknowledgment of all recipients will be made during the HYPERLINK "http://www.grammy.com/" 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards® telecast, which will be held at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2014 and broadcast live at 8 p.m. ET/PT on the CBS Television Network.

In addition, the recipient of the Music Educator Award will selected from the 10 finalists below:

Lisa Bianconi Kurn Hattin Homes for Children Westminster Vt.

Charles Cushinery Ed W. Clark High School Las Vegas Nev.

Andrew DeNicola John P. Stevens High School Edison N.J.

Vivian Gonzalez South Miami K-8 Center Miami Fla.

Kent Knappenberger Westfield Academy and Central School Westfield N.Y.

Kathrine Kouns Horizon High School Scottsdale Ariz.

Glen McCarthy George Mason University Fairfax Va.

Steve Vutsinas Grassfield High School Chesapeake Va.

Jo Wallace-Abbie Plano West Senior High School Plano Texas

Mary Jo West George Mason High School Falls Church Va.

The event takes place at Wilshire Ebell Theatre 4401 West 8th St. Los Angeles, CA. 90005 on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2014:

1:30 p.m. Media check-in

2 - 3 p.m. Red-carpet interviews

3 - 5 p.m. Award presentations

The Recording Academy

Established in 1957, The Recording Academy is an organization of musicians, songwriters, 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 preeminent peer-recognized award for musical excellence and the most credible brand in music - The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs. The Academy continues to focus on its mission of recognizing musical excellence, advocating for the well-being of music Makers and ensuring music remains an indelible part of our culture. For more information about The Academy, please visit www.grammy.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, follow @TheGRAMMYs on Twitter, like "The GRAMMYs" on Facebook, and join The GRAMMYs' social communities on Foursquare, GetGlue, Google +, Instagram,Pinterest, Tumblr, and YouTube.

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