Les Paul Receives Bennett Recognition Award

The legendary musician and guitar pioneer Les Paul posthumously received a recognition award created by Bennett Awards from Hearing Education and Awareness for Rockers (H.E.A.R.). H.E.A.R., a non-profit organization dedicated to the prevention of hearing loss and tinnitus, honored Paul with its Leadership Award, which recognizes leadership through public service regarding hearing conservation in music. 

Michael Braunstein, Executive Director of the Les Paul Foundation, accepted the recognition award on behalf of Les Paul. The mission of the Les Paul Foundation is to inspire innovative and creative thinking by sharing the legacy of Les Paul through supporting music education, engineering and innovation as well as medical research.

For this award, Bennett Awards worked with H.E.A.R. to create a custom crystal award that featured subsurface engraving of the H.E.A.R. logo floating inside a clear crystal geometric block. The crystal was also engraved with the award and recipient names. The crystal award was mounted on a black base with additional engraving of the presenting organization (H.E.A.R.).

The award was presented as part of H.E.A.R. Day New York, a one-day conference held October 28, 2014, for medical and health advocate experts and music industry leaders. Attendees learned ways to improve hearing conservation for performers, professionals, and music consumers to ensure continued creation, performance and enjoyment in less harmful ways.

H.E.A.R. is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization dedicated to raising awareness of the real dangers of repeated exposure to excessive noise levels from music which can lead to permanent, and sometimes debilitating, hearing loss and tinnitus. Damage from loud sound can occur from playing music, attending concerts, dance clubs, raves, using stereo earphones, playing amplified systems too loudly, or other noisy activities. H.E.A.R. is focused on helping musicians, DJs, sound engineers, music fans (especially teens) and anyone needing help with their hearing. More information on H.E.A.R. can be found on their website at hearnet.com.