Baltimore, MD - April 15, 2009 - Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation announces the availability of guidelines for Jazz.NEXT, a new national jazz initiative designed to encourage the application of technology in innovative approaches to developing audiences; communicating with the public; marketing, distributing and selling the work of jazz artists; and building a more robust jazz infrastructure better positioned to meet the challenges of a fast-changing marketplace.

Jazz.NEXT is designed to foster creative thinking that may result in the development of new models to help shape future operating practice for jazz artists, organizations, and presenters across the United States. Funding support will be available for planning grants of up to $25,000 and implementation grants ranging from $10,000 to $75,000. Annual meetings will bring together Jazz.NEXT grantees to promote dialogue, disseminate information, and audit program progress.

Guidelines for Jazz.NEXT are available online at www.midatlanticarts.org. Questions concerning the program should be addressed to Sara Donnelly, Program Officer, Jazz at sara@midatlanticarts.org or 410-539-6656 x116. Application deadlines for the program are July 1, 2009 for both planning and implementation grants and July 1, 2010 for implementation grants only.

Jazz.NEXT is made possible through the generous support of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.

About Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation
Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation supports the richness and diversity of the region's arts resources and promotes wider access to the art and artists of the region, nation and world. The region includes nine states and jurisdictions that are closely related by geography or culture: District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Website: http://www.midatlanticarts.org

About the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
The mission of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation is to improve the quality of people's lives through grants supporting the performing arts, environmental conservation, medical research and the prevention of child maltreatment, and through preservation of the cultural and environmental legacy of Doris Duke's properties.

Website: http://www.ddcf.org