
Music Moves Mountains Foundation
The power of music can change lives. Let’s use it to help those in need by giving hope, health, and happiness through the healing art of music. Join together with us in our mission to make music therapy, music education, and community outreach more accessible to those in need!
MMMF is a registered 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. Charity EIN# 45-5216562
Special thank you to Pete Townshend and The Who for their gift of the song “Join Together” for usage in our campaign video! Here is the face and inspiration behind the Foundation and now one of our Movers and Shakers!
NEWS & EVENTS:
2.11.21 This week 50 years ago, Carole King stepped out on her own to record and release the beautiful album “Tapestry” with Lou Adler producing. One of those songs was “You’ve Got a Friend” which was in response to a line in James Taylor’s earlier song “Fire and Rain” singing “….I’ve seen lonely times when I could not find a friend.” James Taylor and Joni Mitchell both appeared on her recording, and James later recorded the song on his own album. There are many incredible versions of this timeless tune, and we are incredibly humbled that in celebrating, she shared our sponsored artist Devin Gutierrez’s take from his latest show at the East Austin Piano Shop. This has always been my go-to song when I’m down and it’s just as powerful today as ever before! #caroleking #tapestry #tapestry50 #louadler #youvegotafriend #jtyouvegotafriendchallenge #devingutierrez #allabilitiesrock #eastaustinpianoshop #musicmovesmountainsfoundation
__________________________________________________________________________
12.31.20 We need music more than ever! MMMF 2020 Re-cap Newsletter
___________________________________________________________________________
12.5.20 Thanks to everyone who joined us online to hear Devin Gutierrez and his band last night! We will be releasing some live cuts for download soon, so stay tuned. Until then, you can re-watch the whole show here:
Devin Gutierrez & Friends livestream from the East Austin Piano Shop
Devin Gutierrez is a 21-year-old powerhouse singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, and teacher based in Austin, Texas. He is on the Autism Spectrum and was born with Optic Nerve Hypoplasia which left him blind. Music has always been his passion and lifeline, and he cites Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Donny Hathaway, and Ray Charles among some of his influences. Devin teamed up with the Music Moves Mountains Foundation to join in their mission of making music more accessible to those in need. The Foundation aims to help Devin and others get the musical support they need to be happy, healthy, hopeful and thrive in society.
Follow Devin at https://www.facebook.com/devingutierrezmusic/
Hear Devin here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRF9d_KE1qjqNVMx17vHCPHO3CaHogD5q
Event band:
Chris Maresh (bass) https://www.facebook.com/Chris-Maresh-212501188778969/
Nico Leophonte (drums) http://www.alnicostudio.com/
Red Young (piano) https://redyoung.com/
Paul Deemer (trumpet/trombone) https://pauldeemer.com/
Event venue:
The East Austin Piano Shop is a specialty piano shop/service by day and a live sound stage by night, run by local musician and piano virtuoso Collin Shook. The Shop has become a highly in-demand resource and hot spot for musicians seeking to adapt to the challenging times. The Shop’s set up continues to evolve to accommodate the best live experience for artists to shine and connect with their audience. Follow the EAPS at https://www.facebook.com/EastAustinPianoShop/
Event sponsor:
Loro Management founders, Cris Flores & Paul Deemer. Latinx/womxn owned and operated. Austin based. Provides music business and creative consultation, as well as artist management and development. Supports local musicians and music industry professionals, and advocates for marginalized groups. Loro artist roster: Gina Chavez, Aubrey Hayes, Sheridan Reed, Elijah Zane, The Kraken Quartet, Todd Rogers, Paul Deemer. https://www.loromanagement.com/
__________________________________________________________________________
12.1.20 #GivingTuesday is the Tuesday directly after Thanksgiving and is “a global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world.” Of course we believe helping those in need should be something that we do everyday – but bigger mountains can be moved if we all lift together at the same time, right? All donations made on #GivingTuesday will be matched by companies like PayPal, Facebook, GoFundMe Charity, and Fidelity Charitable to double our impact. And remember, there are many ways to get involved and invest in your community. Check out our Give page and see how you can become a mover and a shaker! https://musicmovesmountains.org/give/
AND visit our new AmazonSmile charity wish list:
We urge you to always shop local, but for those who can’t, this is an easy way to donate items we need for our programs and get it shipped directly to us! Or, use this list to buy local, or donate used items!
___________________________________________________________________________
8.15.20
Thank you to the East Austin Piano Shop for hosting the ever inspiring Devin Gutierrez with his first solo livestream! Big shout out to those of you who tuned in, donated, and gave such supportive love. Special thanks to Collin Shook for being the master behind the scenes and for sitting in on a couple of tunes! It was a beautiful thing!
______________________________________________________________
7.5.20
Right now is a very trying time. Fundraising in this current crisis and recession is extremely challenging, so unfortunately we are limited in our current services. Many of our music mercenaries have been hit hard financially, so we launched the MMMF Special COVID-19 Emergency GoFund Me Charity campaign to “play it forward” and support them in this time of uncertainty. We added the new SHOP page on our website to offer audio downloads of our past benefit concerts to purchase and offer as perks for donating to this special fund. All proceeds will go directly to MMMF’s musicians, music educators, MTs, and partners in need.
____________________________________________________________________________
5.5.20
Newsletter 5.5.20_MMMF Turns 8 and Special Emergency Fund
#GivingTuesdayNow – Join us in the global movement of giving and donate to our special *COVID-19 emergency fund for our music community and get free downloads!
In response to the current challenges we are all facing with the COVID-19 crisis, we at the MMMF are trying to adapt and modify our mission to still meet the needs of the community while supporting our musicians, music educators, MTs, and partners who have been hit hard financially. We need to ensure that our music community stays strong and can continue to help others. Music is one of the most crucial resources to keep us connected as a society, as well as a powerful tool to keep us all healthy, happy and hopeful in times like this. As a perk for donating, we have made available digital downloads of past MMMF benefit concert performances on our website. Donate as little as $10 and you will receive a coupon code to use at https://musicmovesmountains.org/shop/ These are some very one-of-a-kind collaborations from legendary Austin artists (including some Grammy Award Winners and Texas Music Hall of Famers!) and MMMF recipients covering everyone from Jimi Hendrix to The Beatles! These special compilations include tracks from the likes of Larry Seaman, Kevin McKinney, Dan Dyer, Tameca Jones, Adrian Quesada, David Garza, Jesse Sublett, Mike Flanigin, Colin Gilmore, Matt Hubbard, Henri Herbert, English Teeth, The Beatle Boys and many more!
https://charity.gofundme.com/o/en/campaign/musicmovesmountainsfoundation
Thank you to Devin Gutierrez for this uplifting cover of “You’ve Got a Friend” by Carole King (from her Grammy-award winning album “Tapestry” produced by Lou Adler) to help kick off our campaign and raise awareness for our special emergency fund!
___________________________________________________________________
3.10.20 Lou Adler is not only one of my heroes, he is also a big supporter of the Music Moves Mountains Foundation. Aside from his countless contributions to the music and film industry, his charitable work is just as impressive. We just received another generous donation from Lou and the Monterey International Pop Music Festival Foundation to help make music more accessible to those in need. This couldn’t have come at a more critical time with the current state of affairs and will help us continue to support our community! If you are unfamiliar with Lou or the MIPFF, check this out. Monterey Pop was the first of its kind, and what many people don’t know is that all the artists played for free to support the Foundation which still generates funds to charities like ours after 50 years!
https://montereyinternationalpopfestival.com/pages/foundation
___________________________________________________________________
3.8.20 Thank you to all of our movers and shakers that made this year’s benefit concert so much fun! We rocked it ’70s style while raising funds for music therapy, education and community outreach. Huge thank you to film/music producer Lou Adler for donating some signed ’70s memorabilia for our silent auction, to all the incredible musicians, volunteers and supporters who made it all come together.
Check out the MMMF 3.8.20 benefit concert photo album here: MMMF benefit 3.8.20 Photo Album
Newsletter 3.8.20 MMMF Newsletter 3.8.20
________________________________________________________________________
3.2.20 Thank you to International renowned pianist Henri Herbert for a stellar performance for the students at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired tonight! And shoutout to the equally talented Devin Gutierrez for playing a new original for us!
________________________________________________________________________
12.13.19 Thank you to our volunteers Gregg Standridge and John Barbour for bringing some musical joy to Among Friends Activity Center, and to Kenneth Heffron for donating a brand new acoustic guitar to the center, and to Jimmy and Terrence for all the support! It was such a blast singing along to some Gospel, classic Christmas tunes and requests for Van Morrison, Neil Diamond and Elvis with some new friends!
—————————————————————————————————
11.26.19
Check out our latest newsletter! It’s time to gear up for the season of giving! MMMF Newsletter 11.26.19 #GivingTuesday
_____________________________________________________________________
11.15.19
What a beautiful experience it was to host International piano phenom Henri Herbert (click on pic to listen) this month at Austin’s Rosedale School (AISD’s only school exclusively for students with multiple disabilities and profound needs). Access to quality live music is essential in our programs, whether it’s for children, adults or elders. Music is the greatest equalizer that unifies and bonds us all.
_____________________________________________________________________
10.1.19
We were so honored to have been invited to participate in #ACLCARES at Austin City Limits Festival this year! So awesome to be included with this group of amazing non-profit organizations who are all making a big difference in their communities. https://www.aclfestival.com/cares/
Thank you to everyone who came by to play, engage, share stories and learn about our mission! Click here to watch a recap video and listen to lyrics contributed by ACL Music Fest attendees to our interactive songs arranged, played and sang by Board-Certified Music Therapist Abraham Ludwig of Austin! Music is our home and we are family!
_____________________________________________________________________
6.30.19
Thank you to Akin Francis and The Beatle Boys for their performances at the Austin History Center as part of our free All Abilities Rock sensory-friendly concert series! And shout-out to KOOP’s DJ Rush Evans for supporting!
____________________________________________________________________
6.19.19
MMMF & The Beatle Boys in Studio1A on KUTX 98.9 Listen to our taping on Eklektikos KUTX 98.9 in Studio1A from Thursday, June 20th to hear The Beatle Boys play and us talk about their upcoming performance at our next sensory-friendly concert! Thank you to John Aielli and all the KUTX staff for having us on! It was such an honor for the boys to play in Studio1A!
_____________________________________________________________________________