Afro Latin Jazz Alliance Partners with Musicians for Musicians
Making Music Is A Profession
New York, NY – Monday, September 12, 2016 — Two innovative music nonprofits, Afro Latin Jazz Alliance (ALJA) and Musicians for Musicians (MFM), partner for the advocacy of advancing music as a profession and guiding musicians to rethink their role in the workfroce. ALJA is dedicated to preserving the music and heritage of Afro Latin jazz, supporting its performance for new audiences and educating youth in the understanding of this important cultural treasure. Under the umbrella of MFM, ALJA musicians will have the opportunity to learn all aspects of the music business in an effort to put an end to exploitation. Marietta Ulacia, ALJA’s Executive Director, is available for interviews.
MFM is a place for musicians to have discussions regarding the music business and musicians’ rights while connecting with other successful musicians in the industry. Through the partnership with ALJA, the musicians can join the member portal, which will offer services and gig referrals to help musicians secure paid opportunities. Musicians will be featured in MFM’s online magazine DooBeeDooBeeDoo NY through interviews and music listings. Members will also have the opportunity to get involved with socio-political activities to support and help other organizations. MFM is a place for musicians to call home.
“Musicians for Musicians is exactly on time, advocacy by a group that has no interest in profit for itself but only for its members is long overdue,” say Arturo O’Farrill (Artistic Director, ALJA). “Musicians are highly trained professionals and should be treated as such.”
“I believe the time has come. ALL musicians in NY State, this country, and around this world must organize in a new and radical way,” says Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi (President, Musicians for Musicians). “Musicians must manifest themselves as a comprehensive business league. MFM is the best channel available for musicians to achieve this unity. Why? Because MFM is WE! We believe music is so essential in peoples’ lives that there is no way music – as a profession – will die out. If it does – civilization will, too. MFM is the only light we have at the end of this tunnel. This is a fact!”
About Afro Latin Jazz Alliance
The non-profit Afro Latin Jazz Alliance (ALJA) was established by Arturo O’Farrill in 2007 to promote Afro Latin Jazz through a comprehensive array of performance and educational programs. ALJA self-produces the Orchestra’s annual performance season at Symphony Space (2007 – 2016), and maintains a weekly engagement for the Orchestra at the famed jazz club Birdland. The Alliance also maintains a world-class collection of Latin jazz musical scores and recordings. ALJA’s education initiatives include the Afro Latin Jazz Academy of Music in-school residency program serving public schools citywide with instrumental and ensemble instruction, and the pre-professional youth orchestra, the Fat Afro Latin Jazz Cats, which prepares the next generation of musicians. The Afro Latin Jazz Alliance maintains an administrative office at the Minisink Townhouse of the New York Mission Society. For more information on the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance, please visit afrolatinjazz.org.
About Musicians for Musicians
MFM is a New York based non-profit organization that is tax exempted under 501(c)6 as a professional association. Musicians for Musicians, Inc (MFM) is supported and run by musicians. We stand for the idea that making music is a profession. MFM seeks to promote this idea starting with the musicians themselves, who are largely unrecognized and grossly underpaid for the value they bring to our communities and lives. Musicians are frequently treated as an expendable commodity, while others profit from their work. MFM seeks to empower musicians to realize the true value of their work to raise their standard of living and provide adequate working conditions.
All musicians are a part of the MFM movement, from those frequently recognized as professionals — Western orchestral musicians, Broadway players, radio artists — to studio players and those who make their living from playing clubs. All musicians are advocates through their actions; all musicians are represented through advocacy. As a growing group of organized musicians, we fight for the interests of all musicians, regardless of genre, membership or skill level. MFM believes that musicians deserve the same respect, representation and opportunities that all professionals enjoy.