MIAMI (The Recording Academy) - The Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences® (The Latin Recording Academy®) elected new members to its Board of Trustees, it was announced today by Latin Recording Academy President Gabriel Abaroa. The new trustees are Luis Cobos,
Diego Cosio, Giselle Fernandez-Farrand, Terry Lickona, Marcos Witt, and Gustavo Yankelevich . In newly appointed roles, Raul Vazquez, former Treasurer, has been elected Vice Chairman; Tom Gomes , former Secretary, was elected Treasurer; and Nat Chediak was elected Secretary. Kike Santander remains Chairman and Neil Portnow
Director of the Executive Committee.
"It is vital that we continue to bring fresh perspective and guidance to The Latin Recording Academy, and these talented individuals certainly will help make a positive impact," said Abaroa. "Each brings a wealth of experience and knowledge that will help ensure the successful future of our organization. We are delighted to have them on our Board and look forward to their contributions."
New Trustees
One of the most talented Spanish musicians, Luis Cobos is a famous orchestra conductor and has performed on dozens of albums. He has a rich background in classical music and has directed the London Royal Philharmonic, the Symphonic Orchestra of Moscow and the Symphonic Orchestra of Brussels. Cobos has earned more than 50 platinum album awards in various countries and has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide. He is currently the President of the Spanish Performers Association.
Born in Mexico, Diego Cosio is the Senior Vice President for Blockbuster Mexico and Latin America . He has strong experience in the development and implementation of strategic marketing and promotional campaigns for major brands and was directly involved in the relaunch of the Pepsi Music program in Latin America during the mid-'90s. Prior to Blockbuster, Cosio held key marketing positions with Procter & Gamble, American Express and PepsiCo.
Born in Mexico and raised in Southern California, Giselle Fernandez-Farrand is a television journalist, producer, filmmaker and writer. She has developed film projects and TV programs for both Spanish and English language networks. Fernandez-Farrand anchored NBC's weekend edition of the "Today Show" and Sunday edition of "NBC Nightly News." She also was a co-host on NBC's "Access Hollywood" and hosted her own talk show, "Café Olé," for Sí TV. She currently writes children's books and organizes star-studded charity fund-raisers to benefit children.
Terry Lickona, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Recording Academy, has been the producer of "Austin City Limits," the longest-running popular music series on American television today, for almost 30 years. A m ember of The Academy since 1993, he served as President and was a Founding Governor of the Texas Chapter. He's a longtime Trustee, and is a co-chair of the Television Committee overseeing production of the annual GRAMMY® Awards.
Mexican-American Marcos Witt, educated on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border, studied classical music in Mexico and pursued his professional studies in San Antonio, Texas, and Tulsa, Okla. Witt founded the CanZion Group in 1987, where he became a prolific musician, songwriter, performer, and a record executive. He has performed on 29 albums and sold more than 7 million units in the Christian music field. A two-time Latin GRAMMY winner, Witt is very active touring around the United States and Latin America. Since September 2003, he has been the Senior Pastor of the Hispanic Congregation of Lakewood Church, where he airs a weekly TV show that is broadcast in more than 59 countries around the world.
A native of Argentina, Gustavo Yankelevich is a top music producer and entertainment executive. A 20-year TV veteran, he produced one of Argentina 's most successful soap operas, "Los Hijos De Lopez" In 1990 Yankelevich became the Manager of Programming for the leading TV network in Argentina, TeLeFe, and in 1997, was promoted to General Manager. In 2000, he started RGB Entertainment, where he focuses on producing special programs, many of which are music-oriented.
The 6th Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards will be broadcast live on the Univision Network (8 p.m./7c) from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on Nov. 3. For more information, please visit www.latingrammy.univision.com .
The Latin Recording Academy is an international, membership-based organization comprised of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking recording artists, musicians, songwriters, producers and other creative and technical recording professionals. The organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for Latin music and its makers. In addition to producing the Latin GRAMMY Awards to honor excellence in the recorded arts and sciences, The Latin Recording Academy provides educational and outreach programs for the Latin music community. For more information about The Latin Recording Academy, please visit www.grammy.com.
