YAMAHA CONTRIBUTES $150,000 IN INSTRUMENTS
TO HELP VH1 AND TODAY SHOW "SAVE THE MUSIC"

BUENA PARK, CA (June 1, 2000)—To show its ongoing support for VH1 Save the Music, Yamaha Corporation of America has committed to provide $150,000 worth of musical instruments and products during a special appearance on NBC’s Today Show.

Appearing on behalf of Yamaha Corporation of America, Michael Bennett, vice president and general manager, Band & Orchestral Division, brought a single Yamaha flute to Today Show hosts Matt Lauer and Anne Curry on June 13 as a symbol of the company’s contribution. The week of June 12-16 is designated as "Save the Music Today!" week on the popular morning show, and visitors to the outdoor broadcast area in New York’s Rockefeller Plaza are encouraged to bring instruments for donation. Borders stores has teamed up with VH1 to collect donated instruments at its stores across the country.

Yamaha’s Michael Bennett with Today Show hosts Matt Lauer and Anne Curry. Image © 2000 NBC. Used with permission.

The items that Bennett pledged to VH1 Save the Music represent the entire spectrum of Yamaha musical products, including band instruments, pianos, portable keyboards, an array of guitars and several Music In Education computer-linked keyboard labs for classrooms. Yamaha will also provide instruments for use during the 2000 Sydney Olympic games.

"We’ve been involved with VH1 Save the Music since its inception, and it’s a great program," Bennett said on the air. "My hat’s off to (VH1 President) John Sykes for getting it started."

The VH1 Save The Music Foundation, a public affairs initiative of the cable television and satellite industry, is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of education in America's public schools by restoring music programs in cities across the country, and by raising public awareness about the importance of music participation for our nation’s youth.

For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622, telephone (714) 522-9011, e-mail info@yamaha.com or visit www.yamaha.com on the Web.

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