by Aryo Adhianto
[Jakarta, LTTW] The 2013 GRAMMY week may have ended. No more flashy outfit being exhibited on the red carpet, no more sound and visual madness being performed on stage. With 28 million viewers on its telecasted show and drew more than 18 million social media comments (according to preliminary results from Nielsen), it is not surprising that only the winners in the mainstream fields—pop, rock, R&B, country, and rap—who got the most exposure and making headlines in almost every media around the world. In fact, this habit has been going on for years, to the point that most of us are not even aware of GRAMMY’s full potentials.
First thing first; what’s so special about GRAMMY, and why people from around the world put such great interest to it? Obviously, it is the recording industry’s most prestigious award, which is presented annually by The Recording Academy. A GRAMMY is awarded by The Recording Academy’s voting membership to honor excellence in the recording arts and sciences. It is in fact a peer honor, awarded by and to artists and technical professionals for artistic or technical achievement, not sales or chart positions. The annual GRAMMY Awards presentation brings together thousands of creative and technical professionals in the recording industry from all over the world.
As we all probably wonder why the televised ceremony seemed only belong to the big names in the music industry, well, it is simply because of the large number of award categories (81 this year) and the desire to feature several performances by various artists, then only the ones with the most popular interest are presented directly at the televised award ceremony. Strictly speaking, it’s just that some are considered ideal for a prime time TV show, and some aren’t.
Every GRAMMY has its own segment
Clearly, there’s always a question about which kind of music is supposed to get a better appreciation and exposure within the society, and which ones that should not be too exaggerated; such question that’ll lead to the most extreme view in which fame and fortune have become the only measuring tools for artists’ success. Well, for some music genres, it might work, but evidently, not all genres can be treated the same way. As a matter of fact, every genre has its own segment; and GRAMMY is one of the examples of that matter.
Other “unknown” awards’ winners with more specific genres such as classical, latin jazz, bluegrass, new age, blues, world, etc., are presented in a pre-telecast ceremony earlier in the afternoon of the GRAMMY Awards ceremony. Although these minor genres are obviously less popular, less flashy, and received less media attention compared to the major, mainstream ones, it doesn’t mean that they are less significant to the industry.
As mentioned earlier, the freshly aired 55th GRAMMY has served 81 awards categories, vary from pop to classical, traditional to contemporary; including the addition of Best Classical Compendium, Best Latin Jazz Album, and Best Urban Contemporary Album as categories (See The (Un-televised) 55th GRAMMY Awards Winners below). Additionally, a new Music Educator Of The Year award will be presented as part of the Special Merit Awards Ceremony in the next GRAMMY Awards. In other words, every genre deserves a GRAMMY, regardless the size of its audiences.
The 55th GRAMMY Award winners, as not seen on TV: It’s not getting any younger?
There’s an interesting fact behind the (un-televised) GRAMMY winners. As you’ll probably notice by now, most of them were the old players in most of the categories. We have Gary Burton (73) & Chick Corea (71) for Best Improvised Jazz Solo, Pat Metheny (58) for Best Instrumental Jazz Album, Arturo Sandoval (63) for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Jazz Album, the late Clare Fischer (aged 83) for Best Latin Jazz Album, Bonnie Raitt (63) for Best Americana Album, Dr. John (72) for Best Blues Album, Jimmy Cliff (64) for Best Reggae Album, the late Ravi Shankar (aged 92) for Best World Music Album, and still counting.
The above individuals are the big names within each of those specific genres. They are some among the most respected artists known for their devotion and contribution toward the development of their own music as well as music in general. These are the artists who really know their audiences, and not bothered with how much fame and fortune they could gain in the other, more popular genres. Without a doubt, they deserve to be awarded in such huge event like the GRAMMY.
However, these “ruling” seniors have left us with some big questions: Where are the young? Isn’t there any room left for them? Or, different from their elders, are they simply not being too comfortable with these less-audiences genres? The answers to these questions may vary; but one thing is for sure, those elders are not getting any younger.
Discover GRAMMY’s full potentials by exploring the ‘un-televised’ Award Winners. From Jazz to New Age, Classical to Bluegrass, and more.
The (Un-televised) 55th GRAMMY Award Winners
1. Best New Age Album
Echoes Of Love
Omar Akram
Label: Real Music
2. Best Improvised Jazz Solo
Hot House
Gary Burton & Chick Corea, soloists
Track from: Hot House
Label: Concord Jazz
3. Best Jazz Vocal Album
Radio Music Society
Esperanza Spalding
Label: Heads Up International
4. Best Jazz Instrumental Album
Unity Band
Pat Metheny Unity Band
Label: Nonesuch
5. Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
Dear Diz (Every Day I Think Of You)
Arturo Sandoval
Label: Concord Jazz
6. Best Latin Jazz Album
¡Ritmo!
The Clare Fischer Latin Jazz Big Band
Label: Clare Fischer Productions/Clavo Records
7. Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance
10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord)
Matt Redman
Track from: 10,000 Reasons
Label: sixstepsrecords/Sparrow Records
8. Best Gospel Song
Go Get It
Erica Campbell, Tina Campbell & Warryn Campbell, songwriters (Mary Mary)
Label: Columbia; Publishers: EMI April Music, It’s Tea Tyme, That’s Plum Song, Wet Ink Red Music
9. Best Gospel Album
Gravity
Lecrae
Label: Reach Records
10. Best Latin Pop Album
MTV Unplugged Deluxe Edition
Juanes
Label: Universal Music Latino
11. Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album
Imaginaries
Quetzal
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
12. Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)
Pecados Y Milagros
Lila Downs
Label: Sony Music
13. Best Tropical Latin Album
Retro
Marlow Rosado Y La Riqueña
Label: Pink Chaos Productions
14. Best Americana Album
Slipstream
Bonnie Raitt
Label: Redwing Records
15. Best Bluegrass Album
Nobody Knows You
Steep Canyon Rangers
Label: Rounder
16. Best Blues Album
Locked Down
Dr. John
Label: Nonesuch
17. Best Folk Album
The Goat Rodeo Sessions
Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile
Label: Sony Classical
18. Best Regional Roots Music Album
The Band Courtbouillon
Wayne Toups, Steve Riley & Wilson Savoy
Label: Valcour Records
19. Best Reggae Album
Rebirth
Jimmy Cliff
Label: UMe/Sunpower
20. Best World Music Album
The Living Room Sessions Part 1
Ravi Shankar
Label: East Meets West Music
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RskUNOQmPq8
21. Best Children’s Album
Can You Canoe?
The Okee Dokee Brothers
Label: Okee Dokee Music LLC
22. Best Spoken Word Album
Society’s Child: My Autobiography
Janis Ian
Label: Audible, Inc.
23. Best Comedy Album
Blow Your Pants Off
Jimmy Fallon
Label: Warner Bros. Records/LoudMouth Entertainment
24. Best Musical Theater Album
Once: A New Musical
Steve Kazee & Cristin Milioti, principal soloists; Steven Epstein & Martin Lowe, producers (Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova, composers/lyricists) (Original Broadway Cast With Steve Kazee, Cristin Milioti & Others)
Label: Masterworks
25. Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media
Midnight In Paris
(Various Artists)
Label: Madison Gate Records, Inc.
26. Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, composers
Label: Null/Madison Gate
27. Best Song Written For Visual Media
Safe & Sound (From The Hunger Games)
T Bone Burnett, Taylor Swift, John Paul White & Joy Williams, songwriters
(Taylor Swift Featuring The Civil Wars)
Label: Big Machine Records/Universal Republic; Publishers: Sony ATV Tree Publishing, Taylor Swift Music, Sensibility Songs, Absurd Music, Shiny Happy Music, Baffle Music, Henry Burnett Music
28. Best Instrumental Composition
Mozart Goes Dancing
Chick Corea, composer (Chick Corea & Gary Burton)
Track from: Hot House
Label: Concord Jazz
29. Best Instrumental Arrangement
How About You
Gil Evans, arranger (Gil Evans Project)
Track from: Centennial – Newly Discovered Works Of Gil Evans
Label: ArtistShare
30. Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s)
City Of Roses
Thara Memory & Esperanza Spalding, arrangers (Esperanza Spalding)
Track from: Radio Music Society
Label: Heads Up International
31. Best Recording Package
Biophilia
Michael Amzalag & Mathias Augustyniak, art directors (Björk)
Label: One Little Indian / Nonesuch
32. Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package
Woody At 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection
Fritz Klaetke, art director (Woody Guthrie)
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
33. Best Album Notes
Singular Genius: The Complete ABC Singles
Billy Vera, album notes writer (Ray Charles)
Label: Concord
34. Best Historical Album
The Smile Sessions (Deluxe Box Set)
Alan Boyd, Mark Linett, Brian Wilson & Dennis Wolfe, compilation producers; Mark Linett, mastering engineer (The Beach Boys)
Label: Capitol Records
35. Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
The Goat Rodeo Sessions
Richard King, engineer; Richard King, mastering engineer (Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile)
Label: Sony Classical
36. Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical
Dan Auerbach
- El Camino (The Black Keys) (A)
- Locked Down (Dr. John) (A)
- Savage (Hacienda) (S)
- Shakedown (Hacienda) (A)
37. Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical
Promises (Skrillex & Nero Remix)
Skrillex, remixer (Nero)
Joseph Ray, Skrillex & Daniel Stephens, remixers
Label: Cherry Tree/Interscope
38. Best Surround Sound Album
Modern Cool
Jim Anderson, surround mix engineer; Darcy Proper, surround mastering engineer; Michael Friedman, surround producer (Patricia Barber)
Label: Premonition Records
39. Best Engineered Album, Classical
Life & Breath – Choral Works By René Clausen
Tom Caulfield & John Newton, engineers; Mark Donahue, mastering engineer (Charles Bruffy & Kansas City Chorale)
Label: Chandos
40. Producer Of The Year, Classical
Blanton Alspaugh
- Chamber Symphonies (Gregory Wolynec & Gateway Chamber Orchestra)
- Davis: Río De Sangre (Joseph Rescigno, Vale Rideout, Ava Pine, John Duykers, Kerry Walsh, Guido LeBron, The Florentine Opera Company & Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra)
- Gjeilo: Northern Lights (Charles Bruffy & Phoenix Chorale)
- In Paradisum (Brian A. Schmidt & South Dakota Chorale)
- Life & Breath – Choral Works By René Clausen (Charles Bruffy & Kansas City Chorale)
- Music For A Time Of War (Carlos Kalmar & The Oregon Symphony)
- Musto: The Inspector (Glen Cortese & Wolf Trap Opera Company)
41. Best Orchestral Performance
Adams: Harmonielehre & Short Ride In A Fast Machine
Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor (San Francisco Symphony)
Label: SFS Media
42. Best Opera Recording
Wagner: Der Ring Des Nibelungen
James Levine & Fabio Luisi, conductors; Hans-Peter König, Jay Hunter Morris, Bryn Terfel & Deborah Voigt; Jay David Saks, producer (The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus)
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
43. Best Choral Performance
Life & Breath – Choral Works By René Clausen
Charles Bruffy, conductor (Matthew Gladden, Lindsey Lang, Rebecca Lloyd, Sarah Tannehill & Pamela Williamson; Kansas City Chorale)
Label: Chandos
44. Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance
Meanwhile
Eighth Blackbird
Label: Cedille Records
45. Best Classical Instrumental Solo
Kurtág & Ligeti: Music For Viola
Kim Kashkashian
Label: ECM New Series
46. Best Classical Vocal Solo
Poèmes
Renée Fleming (Alan Gilbert & Seiji Ozawa; Orchestre National De France & Orchestre Philharmonique De Radio France)
Label: Decca Records
47. Best Classical Compendium
Penderecki: Fonogrammi; Horn Concerto; Partita; The Awakening Of Jacob; Anaklasis
Antoni Wit, conductor; Aleksandra Nagórko & Andrzej Sasin, producers
Label: Naxos
48. Best Contemporary Classical Composition
Hartke, Stephen: Meanwhile – Incidental Music To Imaginary Puppet Plays
Stephen Hartke, composer (Eighth Blackbird)
Track from: Meanwhile
Label: Cedille Records
(AA)

Author: Aryo Adhianto
A Former Chief Editor of Listen to the World