School of Music students receive high praise from Latin Recording Academy


School of Music students Lina Borda and Jorge Canovas recently visited the Miami office of the Latin Recording Academy to meet with Luis Dousdebes, the academy’s CFO. Dousdebes had invited the Panthers to present them with certificates of appreciation for their  contribution and dedication during their FIU Internship Program.

Orlando Garcia (far left,) director of the School of Music, and Latin Recording Academy CFO Luis Dousdebes (far right) congratulate Jorge Canovas and Lina Borda on a job well done following their five-week fall internship at the Academy.

Borda, a senior music technology major, and Canovas, a senior jazz performance major, were both selected last fall to intern at the Latin Grammys. For five weeks, they worked with the event’s production team and had the opportunity to meet top Latin artists. The two were chosen by the Recording Academy because of their strong résumés and optimal performance in the interview process leading up to the internship.

As part of their duties, Borda and Canovas worked with members of the Academy, assisted in the production of several events leading up to the Latin Grammy Awards ceremony held last November, and even traveled to Las Vegas for the big event.

“Both of them did wonderful,” said Livys Cerna ’11, their internship supervisor. “I was impressed by their professionalism, especially during the show. They dealt with a lot of confidential information and handled it very well. They never complained when we had long days and always asked if there was anything extra to do. As an FIU grad myself, I was especially proud. They represented the university well.”

For the Panthers, the internship proved to be an invaluable learning experience.

“I am very proud of having collaborated in the production of such an important event for music, and am extremely grateful to the Academy for this opportunity,” Borda said.

“The internship for me was both a blessing and a privilege. It was very hard work and very demanding, but the experience and the people you meet are one of a kind. I miss going to work each and every day,” said Canovas, who is hopeful that the successful completion of this internship will lead to future jobs with the Academy for him and Borda.

Cerna expects to duplicate the success of this pilot internship program this fall. She says the  Academy has heard from other universities who want to establish internships with them as well, and  expects to welcome FIU students once again as they gear toward the 2012 awards show.