Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses

For Immediate Release
July 12, 2012

PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PERFORMS ‘LEGEND OF ZELDA’ AT HEINZ HALL

Concerts Friday, July 27, and Saturday, July 28

PITTSBURGH – Irish conductor Eímear Noone and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) bring one of the most popular video game series to life in a special concert, The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses.

The concerts will be at 8 p.m., July 27 & 28 at Heinz Hall. Tickets, ranging from $30 to $90, can be purchased by calling 412.392.4900, or visiting the PSO online at www.pittsburghsymphony.org. PSO subscribers receive a 15 percent discount on tickets.

Featuring dynamic and compelling video, The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses is the first ever video game themed concert to feature a complete four-movement symphony showcasing the work of Nintendo composer and sound director Koji Kondo. Audiences get to witness 25 years of video game history unfolding, complete with gorgeous and cinematic video presentation, synced to picture with the game’s sensational, thematic and action-packed music played live by a full symphony orchestra.

More than 62 million copies of the game have been sold since its introduction in 1986, grossing more than Avatar and Titanic combined. Beyond the 15 Zelda video games, Zelda’s popularity has spawned a book series, comic book, Saturday morning cartoon, and a breakfast cereal. The most recent game, Skyward Sword, set a new record for the franchise, selling more than 550,000 copies in a week and becoming Zelda's fastest-selling title.

The PSO will also be performing The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses on Wednesday, July 25, at the Mann Center in Philadelphia.

A graduate of Trinity College, Dublin, and Dublin Conservatory of Music, Eímear Noone founded the successful Dublin City Concert Orchestra, which named film director John Boorman and composer Elmer Bernstein amongst its patrons. She relocated to Los Angeles in 2005 and has since composed for a number of feature films, including The Donner Party, starring Crispin Glover, as well as orchestrating for Oscar-nominee Javier Navarrete. Noone has worked on all three of Blizzard Entertainment’s record-breaking video game franchises, World of Warcraft, Starcraft and Diablo, with the score she conducted for Diablo III currently nominated for several Golden Reel Awards. She also has conducted world-class orchestras, such as The Royal Philharmonic, Dallas Symphony, and Pacific Symphony. As a studio conductor, she has recorded at the Skywalker Ranch, Abbey Road, Capitol Records and The Newman Scoring Stage at 20th Century Fox. She is currently touring as presenter and conductor of “The Zelda Symphony” in celebration of the 25th anniversary of Nintendo’s Zelda franchise. She has been music director for the Los Angeles Irish Film Festival since its inception and, in 2011, created a stage gala for Royce Hall entitled This Is Ireland to help celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Los Angeles.

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Contact: James Barthen, Vice President of Public Affairs
Phone: 412.392.4835 | email: jbarthen@pittsburghsymphony.org

Contact: Ramesh Santanam, Director of Media Relations
Phone: 412.392.4827 | email: rsantanam@pittsburghsymphony.org

Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh

Honeck to Lead PSO On Summer Tour

For Immediate Release
March 15, 2012

HONECK TO LEAD PSO IN CONCERTS IN CANADA, PHILADELPHIA

Cellist Johannes Moser joins PSO for concerts at Lanaudière Festival in Québec, Mann Center

PSO brings popular video game ‘Legend of Zelda’ to life at Mann Center



PITTSBURGH – Music Director Manfred Honeck will lead the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) in July on a summer tour of Québec, Canada, and Philadelphia.

The orchestra will perform at the Lanaudière Festival in Québec on July 21 & 22, and at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia on July 24 & 25. Honeck will conduct both concerts at the Lanaudière Amphitheatre, and the first concert at the Mann Center.

German-Canadian cellist Johannes Moser, often praised for his rich, gorgeous tone and playing that can range from lovely and elegant, to vigorous with head-banging, rock star energy, will be the guest soloist on July 21 in Québec, and July 24 in Philadelphia.

The second concert at the Mann Center will be a Pops concert, as the PSO performs the sensational, thematic and action-packed music of The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses, based on one of the most popular video games in the world.

The tour opens at 8 p.m., Saturday, July 21, at the Lanaudière Amphitheatre, where the PSO will perform the overture to Mikhail Glinka’s Russlan and Ludmilla, Dvořák’s Concerto in B minor for Cello and Orchestra, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5. The next day, at 2 p.m., Sunday, July 22, the PSO’s concert will feature a suite from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, as well as several works by the Strauss Family.

In Philadelphia, Honeck will lead the PSO at 8 p.m., on Tuesday, July 24 in a concert featuring the works of Glinka, Dvořák and Tchaikovsky, performed three days earlier in Québec. The following evening, at 8:30 p.m., Wednesday, July 25, the PSO takes a different direction under Irish conductor/composer Eímear Noone in The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses. Large game screens and video accompany the musicians during the performance. The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses is the first-ever video game themed concert to feature a four-movement symphony, showcasing the work of Nintendo composer and sound director Koji Kondo.

Tickets for the Mann Center concerts range from $12.50 to $49.50 for the July 24 performance, and $19.50 to $95 for the July 25 performance. They can be purchased by calling the Mann Center box office at 215.893.1999, or by visiting the Mann Center at www.themanncenter.org.

The PSO last performed at the Lanaudière Festival in July 2010, and at the Mann Center in July 2011. International touring is made possible by the Hillman Endowment for International Performances.

A native of Austria, Manfred Honeck was appointed its ninth music director and began his tenure at the start of the 2008/2009 season. He recently extended his contract through the 2019-2020 season. After performances at Carnegie Hall and a much-celebrated tour of European musical capitals in 2010, Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra returned to Europe again in August and September 2011 for appearances at major music festivals, such as the Rheingau Music Festival, Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Grafenegg Festival, Musikfest Berlin, Beethovenfest Bonn, Lucerne Festival, BBC Proms, and concerts in Paris and Vilnius, Lithuania. In October-November 2012, he will lead the PSO in another tour of Europe, including a four-concert residency at the prestigious Musikverein in Vienna. Honeck's successful work in Pittsburgh is captured on CD by the audiophile Japanese label Exton. So far, Mahler's Symphonies Nos. 1, 3, 4 and 5, Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5, and Richard Strauss's Ein Heldenleben have been released to critical acclaim.

Hailed by Gramophone magazine as “one of the finest among the astonishing gallery of young virtuoso cellists,” Johannes Moser has performed with the world’s leading orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, London Symphony, Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bayerische Rundfunk Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, Tokyo Symphony and Israel Philharmonic. He works regularly with conductors of the highest level, including Riccardo Muti, Lorin Maazel, Mariss Jansons, Valery Gergiev, Zubin Mehta, Vladimir Jurowski, Franz Welser-Möst, Manfred Honeck, Christian Thielemann, Pierre Boulez and Paavo Jarvi. Moser has gained a reputation for his exquisite performances of lesser-known repertoire, much of it recorded on his extensive award-winning discography on Hänssler Classics. His affinity for new music has brought him much attention from leading conductors, such as Pierre Boulez, who invited him to make his U.S. debut with the Chicago Symphony on the Rands Concerto. Moser is an enthusiastic advocate for the electric cello, which he uses to explore new possibilities in sound as well as for improvisation.



Tour details:

Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
LANAUDIÈRE AMPHITHEATRE, QUÉBEC, CANADA

8 p.m., Saturday, July 21
MANFRED HONECK, conductor
JOHANNES MOSER, cello

2 p.m., Sunday, July 22
MANFRED HONECK, conductor


MANN CENTER, PHILADELPHIA

8 p.m., Tuesday, July 24
MANFRED HONECK, conductor
JOHANNES MOSER, cello

8:30 p.m., Wednesday, July 25
EÍMEAR NOONE, conductor

Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh