Wednesday (4/6) on the New York Times blog ArtsBeat, Ben Sisario reports, “The Grammy Awards have gotten a trim. Responding to longstanding criticism in the music industry that too many categories were diluting the Grammys’ impact, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences said on Wednesday it was reducing the number of prizes to 78, from 109, and instituting several procedural reforms. The changes, which will take effect for the 54th-annual awards ceremony next year, were being made to ensure ‘that the Grammy remains a rare and distinct honor and continues to be music’s most prestigious and only peer-recognized award,’ Neil Portnow, the organization’s president, said at a news conference in Los Angeles that was broadcast live on the Internet. … The classical and American roots fields have also lost four categories, and pop, rock, country and Latin each lost three. … Other changes concern the voting process and how music is submitted for consideration. To set a standard group of five nominees, a category must receive at least 40 submissions, which usually come from record companies. If 25 to 39 entries come in, the number of nominees drops to three, and if there are fewer than 25 submissions, that award will be suspended for a year.” For more information on changes to Grammy categories, visit grammy.com.
Posted April 7, 2011
