Philadelphia, PA: Artistas Y Músicos Latino Americanos (AMLA) a non-profit 501(c)(3) arts and artist’s organization founded in 2006 in North Philadelphia is pleased to announce the receipt of a $5,000 grant from the Mockingbird Foundation. AMLA was one of 12 awardees selected from nearly 1,000 applicants to receive a grant to support its innovative music education programs. A subsidiary corporation of Esperanza, Inc., the mission of AMLA is to promote the development, dissemination and understanding of Latin American music and culture in the Philadelphia/Delaware Valley Region with a strong emphasis on youth. AMLA draws on the history and programming of Asociación de Músicos Latino Americanos (Asociación also formerly known as AMLA).
The agency was founded by 125 Latino musicians in 1982 to counter the misrepresentation of Latino culture and to advocate for better working conditions for Latino musicians in the community. Asociación formed the Latin School for the Performing Arts (LSPA) for the development of artists and musicians, provided presentations and festivals for the community, and became known for its specialized “Roots of Puerto Rican Music” workshops.
The Mockingbird Foundation is an all-volunteer nonprofit founded and run entirely by Phish fans and is the leading provider of historical information about the band Phish and its music, having cultivated intellectual property through phish.net since 1994. A leading grantmaker in music education for children, the Foundation has now made 285 grants in 47 states, totaling $977,743.40. Proceeds are generated by celebrating the music of Phish through comprehensive books, innovative recordings, special art prints, creative donation premiums, and special events for the Phish fan community. The Foundation has been operated entirely by volunteer fans of the band, without any salaries or paid staff, since its inception in 1996.