JCC Thurnauer School of Music Designated Major Arts Institution

The JCC Thurnauer School of Music has been designated a Major Arts Institution by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. The award was given for the demonstration of a solid history of artistic excellence, substantial programming, leadership, and broad public service, receiving superior review through the Council's peer panel grant review process. Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno, along with State Arts Council leadership, held an awards reception on January 25 in Trenton to recognize the importance of the work of the JCC Thurnauer School of Music.

"We are honored to be recognized by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts," said music school director (and founder) Dorothy Kaplan Roffman. "This award is a testament to the diligent work and commitment of our fine faculty, staff, students, parents, volunteers and board members. This wonderful accolade further inspires us to continue to bring the great joy of music into young people's lives."

This award, the State Arts Council's most prestigious mark of distinction, is designated based on grant application review and conferred upon the JCC Thurnauer School of Music for the duration of the grant period for which funding is received.
The New Jersey State Council on the Arts is a division of the New Jersey Department of State. It receives funding in direct appropriations from the State of New Jersey through a dedicated Hotel/Motel Occupancy fee and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. Since 1966, its volunteer members and professional staff have worked to improve the quality of life in New Jersey by helping the arts to flourish. For more information about the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, visit www.njartscouncil.org.

About the JCC Thurnauer School of Music

Open to everyone with a desire to learn about music, the JCC Thurnauer School of Music offers a comprehensive program of private lessons for students of all ages on every instrument and voice, plus musicianship classes and orchestral, choral, jazz, and chamber ensembles. Concert and master class artists have included Pinchas Zukerman, Wynton Marsalis, Joshua Bell, Yefim Bronfman, Paquito D'Rivera and Mark O'Connor. Recipient of a special award for "excellence and high standards" from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Thurnauer School is a member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education. It is an integral part of the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades, a non-profit organization serving more than 20,000 people annually from Bergen County and beyond. These concerts are supported, in part, by Eva Holzer and the Dr. Zalman "Tiny" Konikow Chamber Music Endowment Fund as well as the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.

For more information contact the Thurnauer School of Music, call 201-408-1465; e-mail thurnauer@jccotp.org; or visit the School's Web site at www.jccotp.org/thurnauer.