Roland Carter

2003 Governor's Awards to Honor Roland Carter and Southeast Center

The Tennessee Arts Commission has announced that Roland Carter, UTC Music Professor and The Southeast Center for Education in the Arts at UTC are among the recipients of the 2003 Governor's Awards in the Arts. The awards will be presented during an exciting celebration of the arts to be held Tuesday, March 11, 8 p.m. at Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium. This event, called "A Salute to Excellence," will be open to the public.

"We are extremely proud of the recipients selected. The 2003 recipients represent the best in the state. These individuals have contributed greatly to the creative, artistic, and cultural life of all Tennesseans. The awards ceremony will provide us the opportunity to recognize their many contributions and reward them for excellence in their specific disciplines," said Ann C. Smith, chair of the Tennessee Arts Commission.

The Commission received 64 quality nominations from all areas of the state. A special Commission panel reviewed the nominations. Recipients were selected to receive awards in The Folklife Heritage, Distinguished Artist, and Arts Leadership categories.

Roland Carter, professor of music at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and a nationally recognized composer, conductor, and pianist will receive the Distinguished Artist Award. The Southeast Center for Education in the Arts at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga is being recognized for leading the region in preparing teachers for utilizing the arts in every day lessons. The Center's purpose is to integrate the arts (visual art, music, theatre, and dance) as part of the core curriculum so that children learn and develop a connection to their various cultural heritages.

Two other Tennesseans will also receive the Distinguished Artist Award:
Jim Gray of Knoxville, known for his maritime paintings and helping to create the artists' community in Gatlinburg and sculptor Luther Hampton of Memphis who has served as a major creative influence, and credited with opening the door for many African American artists.

Three individuals and three organizations will receive Arts Leadership Awards. Individuals receiving the award include: Bob Cannon of Memphis - a strong community leader and visionary arts supporter who recently, along with his family, announced a $5 million gift to the Greater Memphis Arts Council; H. Grant Law, of Lookout Mountain is president of Newton Chevrolet in Newton, who has served as a volunteer providing generous financial support to many arts organizations in the Chattanooga area; and George L. Mabry of Clarksville who serves as director of the Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts at Austin Peay State University. Mabry is also director of the Nashville Symphony Chorus.

Singer, songwriter, and actress Dolly Parton was singled out to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Parton, known the world over, is considered a Tennessee treasure. "Although the flamboyant, fun-loving diva holds her own with the likes of David Letterman, she hasn't forgotten her roots. She has contributed much to her hometown located in Sevier County, Tennessee," said former State Senator Carl Moore of Bristol who nominated Parton for the award. In 1995 Parton started the Imagination Library Program as a way of giving something back to her community.

Parton has been recognized countless times for her artistic abilities. She has received seven Grammy's, nine Country Music Association (CMA) Awards, and is a member of the Songwriter's Hall of Fame and the Grand Ole Opry.

Folklife Heritage Awards will be presented to four outstanding recipients. Receiving the award are: Howard Armstrong, a renowned fiddler, mandolinist, painter, and writer who was born in Dayton, Tennessee and spent his formative years in LaFollette; Ralph Blizard, a legendary old-time fiddler and 2003 National Heritage Fellowship recipient from Blountville; Clara Fodor of Linden, who immigrated to the United States in 1938 from her native Hungary. She is an artist known for her intricate and detailed embroidered wall hangings celebrating her patriotism and love of her adopted country; and musician Roy Harper of Manchester, who has spent his musical career preserving the songs and musical traditions of pre-World War II country music.

Organizations receiving Arts Leadership Awards include The Metro Nashville Arts Commission, recognized for outstanding work in bringing financial stability to local arts organizations, fostering quality, proliferation and diversity of the arts, assisting in the development of individual artists, increasing the value placed on the arts in both the public and private sectors of the local economy, and implementing ways of bringing the arts into the mainstream of life in Middle Tennessee.

In addition to the other organizations receiving the award is A! Magazine for the Arts & Antiques, a monthly 16-page publication inserted into The Bristol Herald Courier, which promotes the arts and features personalities in the arts. Story ideas come from a volunteer committee that, much like an arts council, is united in spreading the news and value of the arts in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia.

The Governor's Awards in the Arts were established in 1971 to recognize those individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the cultural life of Tennessee. The awards are Tennessee's highest honor in the arts, recognizing the outstanding and significant contributions of artists, arts organizations, volunteers, schools, educators, local governments, legislators, and corporate citizens in the state or nationally.

The 2003 Governor's Awards in the Arts are being presented by the Tennessee Arts Commission, in partnership with BellSouth, Gaylord Entertainment, and Tennesseans for the Arts.