MENLO PARK, Calif. (November 14, 2017) – The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation announced today the first 10 recipients of its Hewlett 50 Arts Commissions, an $8 million commissioning initiative that is the largest of its kind in the United States. The complete list of recipients includes Terence Blanchard, Taylor Eigsti, Jake Heggie, Laura Kaminsky, Dohee Lee, Jimmy Lopez, Meredith Monk, Huang Ruo, DJ Spooky and Miguel Zenon. Reflecting the foundation’s longstanding commitment to sustaining artistic expression and encouraging public engagement with the arts in the San Francisco Bay Area, 10 local nonprofit organizations will receive grants of $150,000 each to commission major new musical compositions from world-class artists in genres including chamber, electronic, jazz, opera, and hip hop. “Without a doubt, this was the most competitive set of proposals I’ve seen in almost two decades of working in arts philanthropy,” said John McGuirk, director of the Hewlett Foundation’s Performing Arts Program. “The works we ultimately selected are of the highest artistic quality and enduring value.”