Singer Rob Thomas and his band Matchbox Twenty have donated $200,000 (GBP111,000) to raise money for music education programs in areas affected by last summer's (AUG05) Hurricane Katrina. The money will be used to boost a new program reviving music education in US Gulf Coast high schools that closed or were disrupted by the hurricane. The program aims to replace instruments, develop a music curriculum, hire musicians and make private lessons available for students. Thomas said in a statement that hiring music instructors was the most important step to help "groom generations of musicians who are so vital to rebuilding New Orleans, it's infrastructure and its culture."