Port Townsend—Centrum Foundation has been approved for a $25,000 Grants for Arts Projects award from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to support its Fiddle Tunes and Acoustic Blues Workshops. Now in it’s 50th year, Centrum will bring world-class faculty musicians from across the country to this year’s Fiddle Tunes and Acoustic Blues festivals to share their incredible talents with students and audiences. Centrum’s project is among 1,130 projects across the country, totaling more than $31 million, that were selected during this second round of Grants for Arts Projects fiscal year 2023 funding.
“The National Endowment for the Arts is pleased to support a wide range of projects, including Centrum’s, demonstrating the many ways the arts enrich our lives and contribute to healthy and thriving communities,” said NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD. “These organizations play an important role in advancing the creative vitality of our nation and helping to ensure that all people can benefit from arts, culture, and design.”
“NEA funding is a badge of honor for any organization. We are thrilled that the NEA’s Folk & Traditional Arts has recognized Centrum’s programs again this year,” says Robert Birman, Centrum’s executive director. “The NEA’s support allows us to pass important artistry, heritage, and culture from one generation to the next, bringing life-changing creative experiences to our community.”
For 50 years, Centrum has created intergenerational connections between artists and learners in the art forms that have defined American music. In 2023, it will bring 57 virtuosos of traditional folk music to teach and perform at its festivals of Fiddle Tunes and Acoustic Blues. For a full week, 450 aspiring musicians, including 50+ youth, will study “knee to knee” with musical standard-bearers from across the globe. As the nation loses a generation of luminaries in these genres, this exchange is even more vital. People from across the country and beyond gather at Fort Worden State Park for Centrum’s transformative learning experiences. Through music, they share and learn about the values, history, and roots of different regions and cultures while building an enduring legacy.
