PSO Announces Neighborhood Chamber Music Concerts

For Immediate Release
Aug. 14, 2014

PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA’S MUSIC FOR THE SPIRIT EXPANDS TO INCLUDE THREE SEPTEMBER NEIGHBORHOOD CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERTS

PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s Music for the Spirit program is expanding to include three chamber music concerts at local churches in the North Side, East Liberty and Wilkinsburg in September.

The Music for the Spirit program explores the connection between music and spirituality during free Pittsburgh Symphony concerts, at both Heinz Hall as part of the BNY Mellon Grand Classics series and in rotating community venues. In September, the Music for the Spirit program adds three concerts featuring the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Brass and which follow the Music for the Spirit concert format, melding music, poetry, readings and other spoken word pieces.

Monday Night Neighborhood Concerts will take place at Allegheny Center Alliance Church on the North Side on September 8, East Liberty Presbyterian Church on September 15 and Deliverance Baptist Church in Wilkinsburg on September 22. Each Monday Night Neighborhood Concert will present the same program.

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Brass includes Craig Knox, tuba; Murray Crewe, bass trombone; Neal Berntsen, trumpet; William Caballero, horn; Peter Sullivan, trombone; and George Vosburgh, trumpet.

All concerts start at 8 p.m. and are free and open to the public. Reservations are required and can be made at pittsburghsymphony.org/neighborhoodseries or 412-392-8991.

The annual Music for the Spirit concerts will take place on November 20 at Westminster Presbyterian in Upper St. Clair and November 22 at Cardinal Wuerl High School in Cranberry. More details about these concerts will be released in the fall.

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Contact: Louise Sciannameo, Vice President for Communications and External Relations
Phone: 412.392.4866 | email: lsciannameo@pittsburghsymphony.org
Contact: Joyce DeFrancesco, Director of Media Relations
Phone: 412.392.4827 | email: jdefrancesco@pittsburghsymphony.org
Twitter: @pghsymphony |Facebook: facebook.com/PittsburghSymphonyOrchestra

Music for the Spirit Concert Features PSO, Honeck

For Immediate Release
Jan. 8, 2014

MUSIC DIRECTOR MANFRED HONECK, PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA CELEBRATE “MUSIC FOR THE SPIRIT” WITH FREE CONCERT

PITTSBURGH—Music has the power to touch the human spirit, transcending time, place, boundaries and language and spurring understanding and connection. The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Manfred Honeck are deeply committed to music’s ability to promote and spread a spiritual and universal message, and to that end invite the public to a free “Music for the Spirit” concert on Feb. 13, 2014, at 7 p.m. at East Liberty Presbyterian Church.

The annual Music for the Spirit concerts are especially important to Maestro Honeck as he embraces music’s ability to promote dialogue among faiths. The Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh is partnering with the Pittsburgh Symphony on this year’s concert. The program will include works by Schubert, Dvoøák, Schmidt, Ullmann and more.

“Music was such an integral part of the lives of so many of our survivors,” says Hilary Tyson, chair of the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh. “Memories of favorite musical pieces helped get them through the darkest of their days during the Holocaust. Therefore, we are so pleased to be able to partner with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on the Music for the Spirit series community concert on Feb. 13 and on our Yom Hashoa/Holocaust Remembrance Day program in April where we will explore the art, music and literature from the Holocaust.”

Along with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, the Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh, under the direction of Betsy Burleigh, and “Concentio” of Pittsburgh School for the Choral Arts, under the direction of Kathryn Barnard, will be featured during the performance. Associate Principal Viola Tatjana Mead Chamis will be the featured soloist on Boris Pigovat’s Requiem, “The Holocaust,” for Viola and Orchestra.

General admission tickets are free to the public and are available now. Tickets are limited and up to four are available per household. Ticket reservations can be made by calling the Heinz Hall box office at 412-392-4900 or visiting pittsburghsymphony.org.

Each season, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra presents two performances with spiritual roots — one at Heinz Hall as part of the BNY Mellon Grand Classics series and one in rotating venues in the community, such as churches, synagogues, mosques and community centers. These performances feature works with spirituality at their heart and that appeal to music lovers of all faiths. The Music for the Spirit concerts sprang from the Pittsburgh Symphony’s 2004 performance at the Vatican, the first American orchestra to perform for a pope. That powerful, monumental experience sparked a commitment between the Pittsburgh Symphony and faith communities in Pittsburgh to perform concerts that celebrate the spiritual and universal message of music. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Vatican concert on Jan. 17, 2004, and the inspiration for Music for the Spirit.

Generous support for Music for the Spirit is provided by Astorino, Mr. and Mrs. J. Christopher Donahue, Susan and Roy Dorrance, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and Catharine M. Ryan and John T. Ryan III.

Editors Please Note:

Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014, 7 p.m.
East Liberty Presbyterian Church, 116 S. Highland Ave.
MUSIC FOR THE SPIRIT
PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
MANFRED HONECK, conductor
TATJANA MEAD CHAMIS, viola
MENDELSSOHN CHOIR OF PITTSBURGH (Betsy Burleigh, director)
“CONCENTIO” OF PITTSBURGH SCHOOL FOR THE CHORAL ARTS (Kathryn Barnard, director)

Franz Schubert               Mass No. 6 in E-flat major, D. 950
 I. Kyrie

Franz Schubert               Symphony No. 8 in B minor, D. 759, [old No. 7] "Unfinished"
                                                I. Allegro moderato

Antonin Dvoøák              Stabat Mater, Opus 58
III. Eia, mater, fons amoris

Bohuslav Martinu           Memorial to Lidice
Viktor Ullmann              Three Hebrew Boys' Choruses
A'macha jissrael jibane
Haleluja! bezilzele schama
Hedad, hedad, gina ktana!

Franz Schmidt                Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln (The Book with Seven Seals)
                                                Und als das Lamm der Siegel zweites auftrat

Boris Pigovat                  Requiem, “The Holocaust,” for Viola and Orchestra
Lux Eterna

Gabriel-Urbain Fauré      Requiem, Opus 48
                                                VII. In paradisum

Franz Schmidt                Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln (The Book with Seven Seals)
                                                Hallelujah!

Franz Schmidt                Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln (The Book with Seven Seals)
Epilog

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 Photo Credit;  Felix Broede

Contact: Louise Sciannameo, Vice President of Public Affairs
Phone: 412.392.4866 | email: lsciannameo@pittsburghsymphony.org
Contact: Joyce DeFrancesco, Director of Media Relations
Phone: 412.392.4827 | email: jdefrancesco@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

PSO Seeks Choirs for 2013 Singing City Concert

For Immediate Release
April 23, 2012

PSO SEEKS CHOIRS FOR LARGE ‘SINGING CITY’ CONCERT NEXT YEAR

Concert on April 20, 2013, at Petersen Events Center, kicks off PSO’s Music for the Spirit Festival

Music Director Manfred Honeck

PITTSBURGH – Music Director Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) are seeking choirs from the greater Pittsburgh region and beyond to be among an estimated 3,000 singers participating in a concert that kicks off the PSO’s inaugural Music for the Spirit Festival next year.

Choral directors interested in participating in next year’s Singing City concert are invited to a special event at 5:30 p.m., Monday, May 7, at the Mozart Room at Heinz Hall, where Honeck will share his vision for the project, and project coordinators Christine Hestwood and Robert Page will share specific details about participating. To attend the May 7 event, choral directors must RSVP by Tuesday, May 1, to Christine Hestwood at chestwood@pittsburghsymphony.org.

The PSO would like high school, college, church, and community choirs to participate in its Singing City concert, led by Honeck, scheduled for April 20, 2013, at the University of Pittsburgh’s Petersen Events Center. Several choral pieces will be performed, including the final movement of Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony No. 2.

The 2013 Music for the Spirit Festival will be an extraordinary city-wide series of special concerts and events. Through Music for the Spirit, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra demonstrates its deep commitment to the power of music to promote and spread a spiritual and universal message. Additional details about the Music for the Spirit Festival will be announced at a later date.

Currently, the PSO performs the two performances with spiritual roots as part of Music for the Spirit. The first concert is at Heinz Hall; the second is in the community and rotates venues, bringing the PSO and Music for the Spirit to churches, synagogues, mosques and community centers. Last season, a free concert was held at St. Paul Cathedral. This season, a free concert, which is sold-out, will be held May 16 at Rodef Shalom Congregation in the city’s Oakland neighborhood.
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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

Music for the Spirit Concert at Rodef Shalom

For Immediate Release
March 2, 2012

MUSIC DIRECTOR HONECK, PSO CELEBRATE ‘MUSIC FOR THE SPIRIT’ WITH FREE CONCERT AT RODEF SHALOM

Tickets available Monday, March 5

PITTSBURGH – Music Director Manfred Honeck will lead the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) in a free Music for the Spirit concert that is part of an annual program of concerts that celebrate the spiritual and universal message of music.

The special concert will begin at 7:30 p.m., on Wednesday, May 16, at Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave., in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. The program will include works of Mendelssohn, Mozart, Haydn, Ravel and Bloch and more.

The concert will feature the Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh, under the direction of Betsy Burleigh, and PSO Concertmaster Noah Bendix-Balgley, Principal Cello Anne Martindale Williams, Principal Viola Randolph Kelly, and Principal Clarinet Michael Rusinek as soloists.

General admission tickets are free to the public and will be available starting at 9 a.m., Monday, March 5. Tickets are limited to four per household and can be reserved by calling the Heinz Hall box office at 412.392.4900.

Honeck is deeply committed to and excited about Music for the Spirit, which explores the power of music to promote dialogue between religious faiths. Each season, the PSO plans two performances with spiritual roots. One concert is at Heinz Hall as part of the BNY Mellon Grand Classics subscription weekends. The second concert is in the community and rotates venues, bringing the PSO and Music for the Spirit to churches, synagogues, mosques and community centers. Last season, the free concert was at St. Paul Cathedral.

The repertoire for future Music for the Spirit concerts will vary each season, but will feature spiritual works appealing to all music lovers regardless of their faiths. There also are plans to offer programs throughout the year in the community that will deeply impact the spiritual and musical lives of Pittsburgh-area residents.

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra thanks Roy & Susan Dorrance, Catharine M. Ryan & John T. Ryan III, and Mr. and Mrs. J. Christopher Donahue for their support of Music for the Spirit.
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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