Emmy Award Winner Eric McCormack to Host the Yamaha NAMM Concert for Music Education Honoring Sir Elton John

Emmy Award winner Eric McCormack (NBC’s “Will & Grace”) will host The 2003 NAMM Concert Honoring Sir Elton John: A Benefit for Music Education, presented by Yamaha. The benefit will be held on January 17 at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, Calif.

Emmy Award winner Eric McCormack stars as attorney Will Truman on NBC’s Emmy Award-winning “Will & Grace,” a role for which he received a 2003 Golden Globe nomination in the category Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series -- Musical or Comedy. With the support of his parents (his father was also an aspiring actor), McCormack spent three years at the prestigious Ryerson Theater School in Toronto and the Banff Center for the Arts. After five seasons with Canada’s Stratford Festival, he graduated to "lead" status in such stage classics as “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “Henry V” and “The Three Sisters.” Following a move to Vancouver, British Columbia, he landed roles in television and movies. McCormack, who holds dual citizenship with the United States and Canada, currently resides in Los Angeles.

In addition to host Eric McCormack and honoree Sir Elton John, performers slated to appear include Vanessa Carlton, Ray Charles, Nikka Costa, Amy Grant, Bruce Hornsby, Norah Jones, Diana Krall, Michael McDonald, John Mayer, Take 6, Rufus Wainwright and Brian Wilson. Sir Elton will receive Yamaha’s 2003 Lifetime Achievement in Musical Excellence Award as part of the evening’s festivities.

For information about this concert, go to www.namm.com or call 760.438.8001. Those who purchase tickets will also become honorary members of the American Music Conference (AMC), a national nonprofit educational association dedicated to promoting the importance of music, music making and music education to the general public.

AMC's goal is to build credibility for music and music education, especially at an early age, and to expand that portion of the population that enjoys and makes its own music. Proceeds from the concert will go toward AMC and NAMM’s other music education charities: The International Foundation for Music Research and The Museum of Making Music.

“These organizations will help to establish enormous gains for music education and music research in the U.S.,” says Yamaha senior vice president Terry Lewis. “With their ticket purchase for this concert, NAMM show attendees will have an opportunity to support and encourage a bright future for the music products industry.”

“We fully expect to give NAMM members the show of a lifetime, while increasing support for music education at the same time,” stated NAMM President and CEO Joe Lamond. “The benefits of music making are well-documented, and this exceptional concert will draw attention to the importance of music as an integral part of everyone’s life.”

About Yamaha
Yamaha Corporation of America manufactures a complete line of musical instruments, professional audio products, customer-driven support products and computer-based products targeted to both the amateur and professional markets.

About AMC
The American Music Conference is dedicated to promoting the importance of music, music making, and music education to the general public. For more information about AMC and this new partnership, visit www.amc-music.org.

About The Museum of Making Music
The mission of the Museum of Making Music is to celebrate the rich history and encourage the future of music making. The one-of-a-kind museum invites all NAMM members to tour the Museum FREE of charge. Located in the NAMM Industry Headquarters in beautiful Carlsbad, Calif., the museum is a great way to experience first-hand the impact of the music products industry over the last 100 years. For more information about the museum or its activities, interested parties should call 877-551-9976 or visit www.museumofmakingmusic.org.

About IFMR
The International Foundation for Music Research (IFMR) was founded in 1997 to support scientific research to explore the relationship between music and physical and emotional wellness, with particular attention to the elderly population, the impact of music making on at-risk youth, and music education and the effect of music and music making. IFMR also convenes scientists, educators and others around critical issues in music research and disseminates research through its publication, IFMR News, and various on-line research referral services and archives. For more information about IFMR, interested parties should visit www.music-research.org