U.S. Artists International (USAI) recently awarded 19 grants, totaling $110,600, to ten dance and nine music ensembles from throughout the United States to perform at international festivals in Europe. The groups represent the broad diversity in dance and music today, and include a mix of emerging and established artists. Supported dance companies include a wide variety of chorographic expression in contemporary and folkloric dance. The music ensembles range from early music and choral groups to jazz and experimental forms. Collectively, the ensembles will travel to 20 different festivals in 11 European countries, including the Internationale Tanzemese NRW (Germany), the Man.in.fest Festival (Romania), the North Sea Jazz Festival (Netherlands), the Paris Quartier d'Ete (France), and the Romaeuropa Festival (Italy). Click here for a complete list of grantees.

USAI is committed to ensuring that the impressive range of expression of American dance and music is represented internationally. The program is made possible through support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the Trust for Mutual Understanding.

ODC/Dance of California will perform at the International Tanzmesse NRW in Germany through the 2008 USAI program. Photo: RJ Muna

Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation administers individual artist fellowship programs for the Delaware Division of the Arts, Maryland State Arts Council, and Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. The deadlines for submission of the online individual artist award and fellowship applications are:

Maryland: July 31, 2008
Delaware: August 1, 2008
Pennsylvania: August 4, 2008

The online application and guidelines for each of the states are available by clicking here.

For more information, please contact Joanna Raczynska at (410) 539 6656 ext 101 or by writing to Joanna@midatlanticarts.org.

Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation will support 11 engagements through its Jazz Touring Network program in 2008-2009. Six network participants located throughout the mid-Atlantic region will receive performance fee subsidies to support tours by bassist/vocalist Esperanza Spalding and vocalists Catherine Russell and Simone. Spalding is a young performer who has already met success on the major summer jazz festival circuit. A vocalist that for years supported popular artists from Paul Simon to Steely Dan, Russell is now thrilling audiences as a lead artist. A compelling stylist in her own right, Simone is the daughter of the incomparable vocal legend, Nina Simone. All three artists have recently released popular new recordings.

For a complete list of the 2008-2009 JTN tours, click here. Performance dates are subject to change; please contact organization directly for more information on each engagement.

Jazz Touring Network artist Simone.

Festival Brings National and International Presenters to Philadelphia

For the second year in a row, the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe, with support from MAAF's PennPAT program, is hosting a convening of influential presenters from around the globe in order to help propel Pennsylvania artists onto the national and international touring scene and to showcase the region as a thriving hub of creative talent. The convening will include presenters from Canada, Germany and across the U.S., and takes place September 4-7, 2008 in Philadelphia. Presenters will have the opportunity to meet with and see work by PennPAT roster artists Lucidity Suitcase Intercontinental, Pig Iron Theatre Company, Leah Stein Dance Company, Tania Isaac Dance, and White Box Theatre/Sebastienne Mundheim, among others. For more information on the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival see www.pafringe.com.

Ira B. Tucker Sr., 83, one of gospel's most celebrated voices and lead singer of the Dixie Hummingbirds, died of heart failure on Tuesday, June 24, 2008. Mr. Tucker joined the 'Birds in 1938 when he was 13. In 1998 Stevie Wonder said, "No other group has been more important in the history of African American music." The 'Birds were credited with inspiring singers as disparate as B.B. King, James Brown, the Temptations, Jackie Wilson, Aretha Franklin and Bobby Bland. In 1973, Paul Simon picked the Hummingbirds to sing "Loves Me Like a Rock" with him on his second solo album. The 'Birds then cut their own version of the song and won a Grammy for Best Soul Gospel Performance. Mr. Tucker and the Hummingbirds were deemed a national treasure by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2000, the same year they were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.

Now based in Philadelphia, the Dixie Hummingbirds recently returned from a PennPAT-funded engagement at the Vancouver International Jazz Festival. They are included in the PennPAT Artist Roster and featured this year in a 14-city, 5-state tour supported by Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation's PennPAT and American Masterpieces programs.

Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation is pleased to announce the appointment of Sally A. Van de Water as Program Associate, Folk and Traditional Arts/ADA Coordinator. Ms. Van de Water will be responsible for the Foundation's folk and traditional arts programs, including the Folk Arts Outreach Project, and act as liaison between the Foundation and its traditional arts constituents. She brings more than a dozen years experience working in traditional arts programming along the East Coast, and holds a M.A. in Folk Studies from Western Kentucky University. As ADA Coordinator, Ms. Van de Water will ensure access issues are integrated into the operations of the Foundation, and work with partnering state arts agency access coordinators throughout the mid- Atlantic region to address issues of mutual concern. Ms. Van de Water can be reached at 410.539-6656 x 107 or via email at sally@midatlanticarts.org.

Thanks to all of you who supported Mid Atlantic's programs and artists through the 2008 Annual Fund! We are in the process of kicking off our 2009 individual giving campaign - 30 for 30 - in honor of our 30th Anniversary. That's right - Mid Atlantic has been actively supporting the arts and artists in the region since 1979! We hope to raise $30,000 in support of our programs during our annual fund campaign and need your help! Any gift would be most appreciated. You can give online by visiting our website homepage at www.midatlanticarts.org and clicking on the donate button on the left side of the page. Or you can contact Megan at megan@midatlanticarts.org for an annual fund form or to discuss other giving options. Thanks again for your support - we look forward to turning 30 with you by our side!