NEW PANTHEON MUSIC PRIZE WINNER
SUFJAN STEVENS ALBUM "ILLINOIS" NAMED INAUGURAL
NEW PANTHEON MUSIC PRIZE WINNER
ELTON JOHN, ELIJAH WOOD, JOHN LEGEND, SUZANNE VEGA
AMONG THOSE SELECTING SUFJAN STEVENS
NEW YORK, March 31st, 2006 - Sufjan Stevens' breakthrough album "ILLINOIS" has been named winner of the inaugural New Pantheon Music Prize. Sufjan Stevens' "ILLINOIS" emerged victorious from a field of formidable New Pantheon finalists, including albums by Arcade Fire, Fiona Apple, M.I.A., Antony and the Johnsons, and others. In recognition for winning the first New Pantheon Music Prize, Sufjan Stevens will be awarded a cash prize of $5000 and the New Pantheon Music Prize trophy.
Ninety-one initial nominations for the New Pantheon Music Prize were announced in December, and then ten Finalists were announced in January, as selected by a special Panel that included important recording artists, actors, and music journalists. Among those who served on this year's inaugural nominating Panel were Beck, Keith Urban, Margaret Cho, Dave Matthews, ?uestlove, Ric Ocasek, and Shirley Manson. Most of the Nominators selected Sufjan Stevens as one of their Top 3 favorite records from amongst the ten Finalists.
New Pantheon co-founder Tom Sarig explains that "We set up the New Pantheon simply to spotlight, honor, and grow the audiences for some of the most remarkable music of the last year. Thank you to our incredible nominating panel for generously giving of their time. They nominated an incredible slate of artists' albums, and ultimately the records which became New Pantheon Finalists have proven to be among the most important music to be released in the last several years."
Although the New Pantheon Music Prize is not holding a concert event this year, due to logistical reasons, plans are already underway for next year's proceedings. Sarig added that "It's our first year for the New Pantheon and our intention has always been, and will continue to be, to foster a completely independent, totally organic environment where creative people can recognize the achievements of their peers, while helping further expose the musical leading lights of the past year to a wider audience".
Sufjan is exactly the sort of artist that the New Pantheon Music Prize was meant to honor. "ILLINOIS" is an incredibly ambitious and complex work, sophisticated in terms of melody and arrangement, and consistently surprising. Without a doubt, Sufjan is one of the most significant voices in music today.
New Pantheon's comprehensive website (www.newpantheon.net) features RSS feeds from nominees' sites and from influential music news sites and blogs, as well as interactive samplings of nominees' music and videos. The New Pantheon website also enables users to browse of the nominations made by each Nominator.
NEW PANTHEON MUSIC PRIZE WINNER
ELTON JOHN, ELIJAH WOOD, JOHN LEGEND, SUZANNE VEGA
AMONG THOSE SELECTING SUFJAN STEVENS
NEW YORK, March 31st, 2006 - Sufjan Stevens' breakthrough album "ILLINOIS" has been named winner of the inaugural New Pantheon Music Prize. Sufjan Stevens' "ILLINOIS" emerged victorious from a field of formidable New Pantheon finalists, including albums by Arcade Fire, Fiona Apple, M.I.A., Antony and the Johnsons, and others. In recognition for winning the first New Pantheon Music Prize, Sufjan Stevens will be awarded a cash prize of $5000 and the New Pantheon Music Prize trophy.
Ninety-one initial nominations for the New Pantheon Music Prize were announced in December, and then ten Finalists were announced in January, as selected by a special Panel that included important recording artists, actors, and music journalists. Among those who served on this year's inaugural nominating Panel were Beck, Keith Urban, Margaret Cho, Dave Matthews, ?uestlove, Ric Ocasek, and Shirley Manson. Most of the Nominators selected Sufjan Stevens as one of their Top 3 favorite records from amongst the ten Finalists.
New Pantheon co-founder Tom Sarig explains that "We set up the New Pantheon simply to spotlight, honor, and grow the audiences for some of the most remarkable music of the last year. Thank you to our incredible nominating panel for generously giving of their time. They nominated an incredible slate of artists' albums, and ultimately the records which became New Pantheon Finalists have proven to be among the most important music to be released in the last several years."
Although the New Pantheon Music Prize is not holding a concert event this year, due to logistical reasons, plans are already underway for next year's proceedings. Sarig added that "It's our first year for the New Pantheon and our intention has always been, and will continue to be, to foster a completely independent, totally organic environment where creative people can recognize the achievements of their peers, while helping further expose the musical leading lights of the past year to a wider audience".
Sufjan is exactly the sort of artist that the New Pantheon Music Prize was meant to honor. "ILLINOIS" is an incredibly ambitious and complex work, sophisticated in terms of melody and arrangement, and consistently surprising. Without a doubt, Sufjan is one of the most significant voices in music today.
New Pantheon's comprehensive website (www.newpantheon.net) features RSS feeds from nominees' sites and from influential music news sites and blogs, as well as interactive samplings of nominees' music and videos. The New Pantheon website also enables users to browse of the nominations made by each Nominator.
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