Santa Monica, Calif. — Earlier this year marked the fifth consecutive win at the TEC Awards for the technical and audio team behind the annual GRAMMY® Awards broadcast. The 58th GRAMMY Awards (which took place in February of 2016) won in the category "Remote Production / Recording or Broadcast" at the 32nd Annual TEC Awards, which were presented by the NAMM Foundation at the 2017 NAMM Show in Anaheim. Following the win, the audio pros involved in the team (a good share of whom are prominent members of The Recording Academy® Producers & Engineers Wing®) made the decision, per their tradition, to honor a particular individual with the trophy's custodianship for the year – in this case, Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy, who will display the award in his office throughout 2017.
Acknowledged at the 32nd TEC Awards were the following members of the 58th GRAMMY Awards audio team:
- Remote Engineers: Hugh Healy, Joel Singer, Mark Linett, Michael Abbott
- Production Mixer: Tom Holmes
- Music Mixers: John Harris, Eric Schilling, Jay Vicari
- Remote Facilities: NEP Denali, Music Mix Mobile (M3)
P&E Wing member Eric Schilling, who served as Co-Broadcast Music Mixer at the 58th Awards, shared the trophy with Portnow alongside Maureen Droney, Recording Academy Managing Director, P&E Wing and Recording Technology, at a recent Recording Academy committee meeting. Upon accepting the honor, Portnow delivered a passionate speech emphasizing his lifelong advocacy for quality audio and his appreciation for the ongoing efforts and accomplishments of the P&E Wing and its membership.
Portnow remarked, "As much time as has been spent in recording studios during my career as a musician, music producer, A&R executive, and film/TV music supervisor, I've had a long-standing and personal appreciation of the work and artistry of producers and engineers. So, it was clear to me from my first days leading The Recording Academy how important it was for us to support the sound team responsible for our annual GRAMMY Awards. Few other shows present the challenges involved in the multiple stages, production requirements, and as many as 20 or more performances. That's why we have assembled the best audio crew in the business who care deeply about their work, provide the highest level of professionalism, and create the best possible environment for our performers, all of which consistently make us very proud."
"For several years now, those of us who work closely together for the GRAMMY telecast have selected an individual to house the award, and this year we unanimously decided on Neil Portnow," noted Schilling. "The GRAMMYs are known as 'Music's Biggest Night®,' with a long tradition of pushing the boundaries of live audio broadcast technology – including the very first 5.1 broadcast – and frankly I cannot imagine some of these accomplishments without Neil's advocacy and support. He is very much in our corner, and we cannot thank him enough. This TEC Award trophy is just a small token of our appreciation."
Photo caption: Pictured L-R: Neil Portnow, The Recording Academy President/CEO, and Eric Schilling, a prominent member of the P&E Wing and one of the audio professionals involved in the audio team for the 58th GRAMMY® Awards telecast, which won the 2017 TEC Award for Remote Production / Recording or Broadcast. Schilling honored Portnow with the trophy's custodianship for the year.
