Page 10 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • November 27, 2013 Mahwah Cooperation results in $150K grant for college A unique collaboration among the Mahwah Museum, the Les Paul Foundation, and Ramapo College has resulted in a $150,000 grant to the college. This month, the Les Paul Foundation announced the grant to fund a “state-of-the-art music studio that will educate the musical luminaries of the future in a hybrid facility that bridges the worlds of analog and digital sound.” The idea for the grant began with the 2011 Mahwah Museum’s tribute to Les Paul, the legendary musician, engineer, and inventor who lived in Mahwah for the last 50 years of his life. Paul died in 2009. This celebration of Paul’s life began with a tribute con- cert at the Ramapo College Berrie Center in September 2011 featuring Lou Pallo and his Les Paul Trio, and Bucky Pizzarelli, the prominent Upper Saddle River guitarist, who was one of many friends of Paul. The sold-out concert, marking the beginning of the museum exhibit, “Les Paul in Mahwah: A Tribute” was a collaboration between the Ramapo music faculty and the Mahwah Museum. This exhibit, which featured a replica of a recording studio in Paul’s home, loaned to the museum by the Les Paul Foundation, became wildly popular with Paul’s fans across the nation. As the exhibit’s popularity grew, Dr. Charles Carreras, the museum’s team leader for the tribute, and a professor emeritus of Latin American History at Ramapo, met with the music faculty and introduced them to Michael Braunstein, executive director of the Les Paul Foundation. Through the efforts of the faculty and the Ramapo College Foundation, a new relationship was born. In accepting the gift, Dr. Peter Mercer, the president of Ramapo College, said, “This generous gift from the Les Paul Foundation will provide our students with a broad his- torical foundation of industry standard analog technologies while taking advantage of tremendous developments in digital technology. It presents the best of both worlds.” The recording studio and other memorabilia from Paul’s life remain a part of a permanent exhibit at the Mahwah Museum, which also is currently featuring an exhibit on “The Neighborhoods of Mahwah: 1913-2013.” The Museum, at 201 Franklin Turnpike, is open from 1 to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays and weekends. For more information, visit www.mahwahmuseum.org or call (201) 512-0099. The Mahwah Museum receives operating support from the New Jersey Historical Commission in the Department of State.