Grammys Create New Awards

05/27/1998 3:00 AM, Yahoo! Music
Bruce Haring

(5/27/98) - And the winners are...Aretha Franklin, Wynton Marsalis and Selena!

At least, those are three logical contenders for newly-created Grammy categories announced yesterday by the National Academy Of Recording Arts And Sciences, the folks who bring us the annual Grammy Awards.

The 1999 Grammys will add awards for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance, Best Classical Crossover Album, and Best Tejano Music Performance. NARAS also decided to give engineers and mixers their own Grammy trophies for Album and Record Of The Year, all in the effort to recognize their growing role and contribution.

"The new categories reflect the Grammy Awards' keen awareness of changing trends in music and the desire to encourage, honor and nurture all forms of artistic expression and technical excellence," said NARAS president Mike Greene.

The new categories will bring the Grammys' total awards to 95.