FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katie Boone
Phone: (818) 433-7600
Email: press@etmla.org
Website: www.etmla.org
On Thursday, January 28, 2021, Education Through Music-Los Angeles (ETM-LA) will host a virtual 15th Year Celebration Benefit at 5:00PM PST. All are invited to join supporters from the music, film, business, and education communities in honoring Academy Award-Winning Composer/Songwriter Alan Menken (Aladdin, Beauty & the Beast,The Little Mermaid), Booker White/BTW Productions (Supervisor of Music Prep., Dir. of Music Library – Walt Disney Pictures & Television; Board Chairman, ETM-LA), and Manuel Castañeda (Music Educator & Director – Centennial High School, Compton Unified School District).
The one-hour virtual celebration will feature exclusive performances and appearances by Alan Menken, Broadway Tony-Nominated Actress Jodi Benson (Disney Legend – Voice of Ariel, The Little Mermaid; Toy Story 2 & 3), Actress Karen David (Galavant, Once Upon a Time, Legacies, Fear the Walking Dead, Mira Royal Detective), Celebrated Artist Anthony Evans (Beauty and The Beast, Two-Time Billboard #1 Gospel Artist), Academy Award-Winning Composer Michael Giacchino (Disney-Pixar’s UP, The Incredibles; Advisory Board Member, ETM-LA), and ETM-LA students. Menken, a champion of music education, shared how fortunate he was to receive music growing up; “it was a natural outgrowth of the things we were studying when we were youngsters in school.”
Christopher & Shannon Madden Lennertz serve as this year’s event Co-Chairs. Honorary hosts include champions and celebrities Christophe Beck, Karen David, John Debney, Michael Giacchino, Julianne Jordan, Kraft-Engel Management, Julia Michels, Rickey Minor, Blake Neely, and Randy Spendlove.
Education Through Music-Los Angeles’ mission is to provide music to under-resourced schools in order to enhance students’ academic achievement, creativity, and overall development. Throughout the pandemic, ETM-LA continues bringing weekly music class to tens of thousands of students across Los Angeles County using innovative, fun, and engaging distance learning.
Now in its 15th year, ETM-LA has expanded from 2 schools and 800 children to 46 schools and approximately 19,000 schoolchildren with weekly music as part of the core curriculum in such diverse communities as Bellflower, Boyle Heights, Burbank, Compton, Chinatown, Downtown LA, East Los Angeles, Inglewood, Pacoima, San Fernando Valley, and South Central.
Major event sponsors include BTW Productions, Michael Giacchino, Booker & Sarita White, Sonic Fuel Studios, Steve & Katia Jablonsky, Christopher & Shannon Lennertz, Lisa Norton & Harvey Motulsky, ASCAP, BMI, The Boomer Family Fund, Tim Davies, David Giuli & Melissa Orquiza, John Hoberg & Kathryn Likkel, and Joseph Trapanese.
FREE to Attend; Donations Welcome. Register for the event at www.etmla.givesmart.com.
Education Through Music-Los Angeles is an independent 501(c)3 non-profit organization. For more information: www.etmla.org