ORLANDO, Fla. – A Central Florida educator has been recognized by the Recording Academy and Grammy Museum for his impact in music education for the second year in a row.
Freedom High School band director, Michael Antmann is one of two educators from Florida to make the cut of 25 semifinalists from throughout the U.S. More than 3,300 nominations were received by the Recording Academy for the 2020 Music Educator Award.
Antmann was also a semifinalist for the 2019 Music Educator award, but Central Florida educator Jeffery Redding of West Orange High went on to win the award.
“Dr. Antmann truly inspires his band students and exemplifies the type of master music educator Orange County Public Schools is committed to providing to our students, Scott Evans, Senior Director of OCPS Arts Curriculum Services said.
"We are thrilled that he is, for the second year in a row, receiving well-deserved recognition at the national level.”
Antmann is a National Board-certified teacher and has been awarded a Citation of Excellence by the National Band Association, an award to band directors with a history of distinguished musical accomplishments. Bands under the direction of Antmann have received consistent superior ranks when evaluated in Musical Performances Assessments.
If selected, Antmann will advance to a group of 10 finalists. Out of that group of 10, one educator will be selected as the competition’s winner and flown to Los Angeles to attend the 62nd Grammy Awards and other festivities throughout the week. The other nine finalists will receive a $1,000 prize, and the schools of all finalists will be awarded a matching grant.
The finalists will be announced in December. Results can be viewed here.