In celebration of Phish’s 23-show summer tour, the all-volunteer and fan-run Mockingbird Foundation has announced that it is sending an unsolicited $1,000 Tour Grant to a music education program near each of the 23 shows Phish will perform this summer. These grants are part of a long-standing effort to help support music education in the local communities that Phish touches.

The recipients announced thus far include:

• • Columbia High School Band of Huntsville, AL (near Orion Amphitheater, July 11th and 12th) for repair of existing band instruments and purchase of new ones.
  • Chapman Middle School of Huntsville, Al (near Orion Amphitheater, July 11th and 12th) for repair of existing band instruments and purchase of new ones.
  • Tapestry Public Charter School of Doraville, GA (near Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, July 14th, 15th, and 16th) for MIDI controllers, keyboards, and audio interfaces.
  • Alpharetta High School (via Fulton County Schools) of Alpharetta, GA (near Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, July 14th, 15th, and 16th) to offset the cost of two French horns.
  • Webb Bridge Middle School (via Fulton County Schools) of Alpharetta, GA (near Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, July 14th, 15th, and 16th) to offset the cost of a tuba.
  • Rose Hill-Magnolia Elementary School Band of Rose Hill, NC (near Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park, July 18th and 19th) for purchase of a Prelude Student Flute and a Capital Edition Student Trumpet.
  • Rocky Point Elementary School of Rocky Point, NC (near Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park, July 18th and 19th) to purchase instruments for the Rocky Point Elementary Orchestra.
  • Penn Hills Big Red Marching Band (via Penn Hills Band Parent Association) of Pittsburgh, PA (near The Pavilion at Star Lake, July 21st and 22nd) for purchase of a mellophone.
  • Burgettstown Area Middle/High School (via Burgettstown Area School District) of Burgettstown, PA (near The Pavilion at Star Lake, July 21st and 22nd) for robes and stoles for the Middle School choir.
  • Lincoln Middle School (via Syracuse City School District) of Syracuse, NY (near St. Joseph’s Health Amphitheater at Lakeview, July 23rd) for MIDI piano controllers.
  • Jubilee School of Philadelphia, PA (near TD Pavilion at the Mann, July 25th and 26th) for funding of African drumming classes.
  • School District of Philadelphia of Philadelphia, PA (near TD Pavilion at the Mann, July 25th and 26th) for purchase of instrumental supplies, ie: reeds, straps, mouthpieces, music, etc., across 6 schools.
  • Global Community Charter School of New York, NY (near Madison Square Garden, July 28th through August 5th) for purchase of conga & bongo combination sets.
  • Equality Charter School of Bronx, NY (near Madison Square Garden, July 28th through August 5th) for purchase of piano stands, instrument cables, and other equipment.
  • The Brooklyn New School (via Friends of The Brooklyn New School) of Brooklyn, NY (near Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Aug 31th – Sept 3) for purchase of five trumpets.
  • PS 15 K – The Patrick F Daly School of Brooklyn, NY (near Madison Square Garden, July 28th through August 5th) for audio system upgrades for music/drama program.
  • KIPP NYC – Infinity Middle School of New york, Harlem, NY (near Madison Square Garden, July 28th through August 5th) for costs of taking band students to tour historic NYC music venues.
  • PS/IS 295 of Queens Village, NY (near Madison Square Garden, July 28th through August 5th) for purchase of new instruments and repair costs for existing band instruments.
  • PS 59 – The Harbor View School of Staten Island, NY (near Madison Square Garden, July 28th through August 5th) for funds to help pay residency costs for musicians at the school.
  • Red Hawk Ridge Elementary of Aurora, CO (near Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Aug 31th – Sept 3) for instruments for K-5 music ed.
  • Denver Young Artists Orchestra of Denver, CO (near Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Aug 31th – Sept 3) for music instruction/support for an at-risk student.
  • Walnut Hills of Centennial, CO (near Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Aug 31th – Sept 3) for instruments and supplies for the music program.

This is the 24th round of unsolicited Tour Grants, an effort that now totals over $246,000, which is 11% of all disbursements made by the foundation. It will ultimately include 23 tour grants for Phish’s summer tour. Mockingbird also recently announced 18 grants for it’s 28th round of competitive grants, plus 25 more from inquiries in that round that requested $2K or less, for a total of 66 grants this summer alone!

The Mockingbird Foundation is an all-volunteer, fan-founded and -managed 501(c)3 nonprofit organization supporting music education for children. A leading grantmaker in music education for children, the Foundation has now made 639 grants in all 50 states, totaling more than $2.3M. Funds for grants are generated through donations from a loyal base of fans, as well as through books, recordings, artwork, merchandise, and special events. Mockingbird is the leading provider of historical information about Phish and its music, having cultivated intellectual property through phish.net (and three associated books, so far) since 1994. The Foundation has been operated entirely by volunteer fans of the band, without any salaries or paid staff, since its inception in 1996.