Berklee Alumni Nominated For 34 Grammy Awards

(National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences) - Twenty-four Berklee alumni were nominated for a total of 34 Grammy Awards by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. The nominees were recognized for their outstanding contributions in a variety of categories, including pop, rock, r&b, jazz, Latin jazz, blues, country, polka, gospel music, and arranging. To date, Berklee alumni have won a total of 147 Grammy Awards. The 49th Annual Grammy Awards will be held on Sunday, February 11, 2007, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, and broadcast on CBS at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT).

Natalie Maines '95 of the Dixie Chicks and John Mayer '98 were nominated for a whopping five awards each. Maines was nominated in categories including Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best Country Album. Mayer was also nominated for Album of the Year, and in categories including Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, and Best Rock Album. Gil Goldstein '70 was nominated for Best Instrumental Arrangement, and garnered two additional nominations in the category Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s).

Berklee alumni were heavily represented in the jazz categories, with nominations for Best Contemporary Jazz Album going to recent grad Christian Scott '04 for his solo debut album Rewind That, and Mike Stern '75 for Who Let the Cats Out? Nominations for Best Latin Jazz Album went to Diego Urcola '90, Antonio Sanchez '98, Pernell Saturnino '95, and Edsel Gomez '85. Diana Krall '83, Branford Marsalis '80, John Scofield '73, and Joe Lovano '72 were also nominated in a variety of jazz categories.

Other nominees include Bruce Hornsby '74; Susan Tedeschi '91; Melissa Etheridge '80; Bob James '59 and Harvey Mason '68 of the group Fourplay; Makeba '99, who co-wrote Beyonce's song Déjà Vu and composer Stephen Bray '78, for his work on the Broadway show The Color Purple.