Preliminary judging begins this week.

This year, the New Mexico Music Awards program has once again produced a record number of entries; almost 650! We now move onto the preliminary judging phase of the awards which will consume all of March and part of April.

Returning artists from previous NMMA programs include last year's Best of the Year winner Kito Peters with two new CD's. Other NMMA past winners including Bambi Wolf, The Country Blue Revue, C. Daniel Boling, Jazz master Michael Anthony, Steve Rushingwind & Michael Mucklow, Blues and Americana artist Nancy Rudolph, Santa Fe's Dave Tutin and Jamie Michaels.

New to this year's event are rocker's Duke City Riots, Country singer Raymond Johnson, Americana artist Gregg Daigle, Pop singer Barney Lopez, Blues and Americana artist Nancy Rudolph and showman and award winning producer Roger Burns.

Our performances for the banquet and show to be held on Saturday, May 31st at the Sandia Resort & Casino in Albuquerque will be chosen from among the finalists for this year. The judging process includes some of 

The New Mexico Music Awards is the longest running and most prestigious music awards program in New Mexico and features some of New Mexico's best artists, producers, songwriters and engineers, many who have gone on to even greater success worldwide. Judging is done entirely by music industry professionals and is not based on sales, but rather quality of the recording process.

For general questions or to ask about playing at this year's banquet and show, please contact us at contactnewmexicomusicawards@gmail.com. For entry specific questions or banquet questions, please contact us at nmmusicawards@gmail.com.

The Eric Larson Endowment at the University of New Mexico provides scholarship money to currently enrolled juniors or seniors who have declared music or a related field as their major. To find out more or to donate, go to http://ericlarsonendowment.com. To donate directly, Please make your check payable to:

UNM Eric Larson Endowment/UNM Foundation

700 Lomas NE 7 Woodward Center Albuquerque, NM 87131

The NMMA's Songwriter's Initiative program at the El Morro Theater in Gallup, New Mexico this past February 22nd  was a great success. Featured on the program were Kito Peters, Nancy Rudolph, Levi Platero,Theo Bremer Bennett and Jose Antonio Ponce. The event was broadcast live on public radio KGLP. Our thanks to the El Morro staff and manager Steve Heil, Rachael Koub of KGLP, Sammy C & Al from radio station KYVA, Ken Reige of the Comfort Suites and our wonderful audience.

On March 22nd, the NMMA will present a free Basic Copyright Info workshop at the Candyman in Santa Fe from 1-3 PM as part of our ongoing educational outreach programming for New Mexico musicians. These programs  and will also include workshops given by songwriters, the NMMA and other music industry professinals on topics such as Understanding Contracts, Marketing Yourself and Your Music, Recording and Mastering basics.

We will also begin presenting a program for veterans this fall entitled Songwriting as a Therapeutic Process to help those who have served our country honorably communicate their experiences in the theater of war. We will be expanding these programs beyond New Mexico to the southwestern and western US beginning in June of 2014.  We are currently looking for sponsorships to cover artist fees, travel and other expenses. Music is a powerful tool and should be used to educate as well as entertain.

The Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA-NM) is sponsoring a one-day New Mexico conference in Santa Fe to give New Mexico’s performing folk artists, venue operators, talent buyers, communications personalities and other professionals involved in folk music the chance to network. It's taking place on March 28th from 9:30 AM to 9:00 PM at the Hotel Santa Fe, and is free by invitation only. To register, go to http://swfolkallience.org/swfa-nm. Deadline to register is March 10th, 2014.

OTHER NEWS

New Mexico Jazz Workshop will present New Mexi-Gras, a Fat Friday Fun-Raiser on Friday, February 28th at the Albuquerque Museum. The program will benefit educational programs throughout the year. There will be music, food and fun for all. For information about this and all of our adult and youth education programs, visit The New Mexico Jazz Workshop website at nmjazz.org.