Comella Advances in International Violin Competition

WQED MUSICAL KID WINNER ADVANCES TO LIVE ROUNDS FOR THE 5TH ANNUAL MOSCOW INTERNATIONAL DAVID OISTRAKH VIOLIN COMPETITION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 2, 2013

CONTACT:
George Hazimanolis
412-622-1366
ghazimanolis@wqed.org

WQED MUSICAL KID WINNER ADVANCES TO LIVE ROUNDS FOR THE
5TH ANNUAL MOSCOW INTERNATIONAL DAVID OISTRAKH VIOLIN COMPETITION

PITTSBURGH—WQED Musical Kid winner and violinist Joey Comella, 13 of Export, PA has just advanced to the LIVE rounds of The 5th Annual Moscow International David Oistrakh Violin Competition taking place September 21 – 30, 2013 in Moscow.

The 5th Moscow International David Oistrakh Violin Competition is organized by the David Oistrakh Charity Foundation and is held in collaboration with Moscow Tchaikovsky conservatory with the support of the Moscow Government’s Department of culture and the Russian federation Ministry of Culture. The competition is dedicated to the memory of the Great Russian violinist David Oistrakh. The Moscow International David Oistrakh violin competition is the member of the European Union of Music Competitions for Youth (EMCY).

WQED Musical Kids winners including Joey were recognized publicly at “Classical WQED-FM 89.3 Night” on May 10 at Heinz Hall; during the broadcast of Performance in Pittsburgh on WQED-FM 89.3 on May 17; during a presentation of his award at the final Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra concert on May 19; and on the Dollar Bank Stage at the Three Rivers Arts Festival as part of “Classical Music Day” on June 10. Over 60 entries were received for the 2013 WQED Musical Kid competition from young musicians around the region who played the French horn, piano, violin, cello, and clarinet or sang.

Funding for Musical Kids was made possible by a grant from the Snee-Reinhardt Charitable Foundation.
WQED Pittsburgh has a proud history of honors, including 134 National and Mid-Atlantic Emmy® Awards, an Academy Award, and many, many others, including two Emmy® Awards for Station Excellence. WQED was founded in 1954 as the nation’s first community-supported broadcaster. The people of WQED create, produce and distribute quality programs, products and services to engage, inform, educate and entertain the public within their community and around the world. It is the parent company of WQED-TV (PBS); WQED: The Neighborhood Channel; WQED: The Create Channel; WQED Showcase; Classical WQED-FM 89.3/Pittsburgh; Classical WQEJ-FM 89.7/Johnstown; the Pittsburgh Concert Channel at WQED-HD2 (89.3-2FM) and online at www.wqed.org/fm; local and national television and radio productions; WQED Interactive (www.wqed.org) and iQ: smartmedia, WQED’s Educational initiative (www.wqed.org/edu).

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

15 Musical Kids Finalists Named

15 FINALISTS CHOSEN BY WQED-FM 89.3 FOR MUSICAL KIDS CLASSICAL MUSIC COMPETITION
Public invited to vote online at wqed.org/musicalkids.org April 5 -- 26, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT:George Hazimanolis
 April 2, 2013 412-622-1366
 ghazimanolis@wqed.org


Maria Pisano
 412-622-1459
 mpisano@wqed.org



15 FINALISTS CHOSEN BY WQED-FM 89.3 FOR
 MUSICAL KIDS CLASSICAL MUSIC COMPETITION
 Public invited to vote online at wqed.org/musicalkids.org April 5 – 26, 2013

PITTSBURGH—Classical WQED-FM 89.3 has chosen finalists for its Musical Kids classical music competition for middle school students in grades six to eight. Over 60 entries were received from young musicians around the region who play the French horn, piano, violin, cello, and clarinet or sing. Finalists include:

·Joey Comella, violin

·Fiona Stauffer, piano

·Alex Guo, piano

·Adrian Romoff, piano

·Suvir Merchandani, piano

·Lily Wang, piano

·Devin Lai, violin

·Nathan Pallotta, piano

·William Wang, violin

·Jonah Berger, piano

·Elizabeth Guo, piano

·Amanda Lu, piano

·Thomas Kim, cello

·Rebecca Chen, piano

·Ariana Finkelstein, vocalist

The public is invited to cast their online vote for their favorite finalist from April 5 through 26 at www.wqed.org/musicalkids.

Finalists will be featured on WQED-TV’s Pittsburgh 360º Thursday, April 18 at 7:30 p.m.to give viewers a chance to see and hear more from these talented young musicians. One of six winners will be chosen by the public through the online voting portal. The remaining five winners will be selected by the Musical Kids judges comprised of local classical music experts including:

 •Patricia Neeper
 President Steinway Piano Gallery, Pittsburgh
•Chad Twedt
 Pianist & Teacher
•Dr. Mary Lynne Bennett
 Adjunct Professor of Piano, Duquesne University Mary Pappert School of Music
•Mikhail Istomin
 Cellist, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
•Christopher Wu
 Nancy & Jeffrey Leininger First Violin Chair, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra & Artist Lecturer in Violin, Carnegie Mellon University
•Andrew Fouts
 Baroque Violinist, Chatham Baroque

Winners will be announced Monday, April 29 on Classical WQED-FM 89.3 by Anna Singer at noon and recognized publicly at “Classical WQED-FM 89.3 Night” following the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s performance at Heinz Hall on Friday, May 10. A special program hosted by Jim Cunningham with winner interviews and recorded performances will air on Performance in Pittsburgh Friday, May 17 at 7:00 p.m. on Classical WQED-FM 89.3. In addition, presentations will be held at each winner’s school where prizes including a plaque will be awarded.

Funding for Musical Kids is made possible by a grant from the Snee-Reinhardt Charitable Foundation.

WQED Pittsburgh has a proud history of honors, including 134 National and Mid-Atlantic Emmy® Awards, an Academy Award, and many, many others, including two Emmy® Awards for Station Excellence. WQED was founded in 1954 as the nation’s first community-supported broadcaster. The people of WQED create, produce and distribute quality programs, products and services to engage, inform, educate and entertain the public within their community and around the world. It is the parent company of WQED-TV (PBS); WQED: The Neighborhood Channel; WQED: The Create Channel; WQED Showcase; Classical WQED-FM 89.3/Pittsburgh; Classical WQEJ-FM 89.7/Johnstown; the Pittsburgh Concert Channel at WQED-HD2 (89.3-2FM) and online at www.wqed.org/fm; local and national television and radio productions; WQED Interactive (www.wqed.org) and iQ: smartmedia, WQED’s Educational initiative (www.wqed.org/edu).

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

Musical Kids Competition Finalists

MEDIA ADVISORY

WHO:             15 finalists for Classical WQED-FM 89.3’s Musical Kids Competition.

WHAT:          Finalists will be recorded performing with his/her instrument or singing in the WQED Fred Rogers Studio and will be available for photos and interviews.

WHERE:       WQED Multimedia
                     Fred Rogers Studio
                    4802 Fifth Avenue
                    Pittsburgh, PA 15213

WHEN:          Friday, March 22, 2013 3 – 7:30 p.m.

WHY:             Recordings of finalists will be put online at www.wqed.org/musicalkids April 4 - 26 for the public to vote for their favorite Musical Kid. Public votes will decide one of six winners. The remaining five winners will be chosen by a judging panel.

NOTE TO WORKING PRESS
For questions regarding the Musical Kids competition or to schedule interviews please contact Maria Pisano. If you are interested in coming to the taping to interview or photograph the students please RSVP to Joanna Marie at 412-622-1431. A full press release regarding the contest will be made available atwww.wqed.org/pressroom soon.

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

Musical Kids Classical Music Competition

MUSICAL KIDS CLASSICAL MUSIC COMPETITION
FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS

ANNOUNCED BY CLASSICAL WQED-FM 89.3

PITTSBURGH—Classical WQED-FM 89.3 is pleased to announce Musical Kids, a classical music competition for middle school students in grades six to eight.

“As the voice of the arts in western Pennsylvania, Classical WQED-FM 89.3 wants to showcase our region’s talented youth“, said Deborah L. Acklin, President and Chief Executive Officer of WQED Multimedia. “We believe that classical music education is essential to appreciating the arts and hope that Musical Kids provides encouragement and recognition for developing musicians, vocalists and artists locally.”

Between January 7 and February 22, 2013 WQED is accepting audio entries for consideration in the following categories:
• Instrumental Soloist
• Vocal Soloist

Entries may be mailed on CD to:
ATTN: Musical Kids
WQED Multimedia
4802 Fifth Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2942

Official Contest Rules, entry form and additional information are available at www.wqed.org/musicalkids. Questions may be directed to musicalkids@wqed.org, no phone calls please.

Funding for Musical Kids is made possible by a grant from the Snee-Reinhardt Charitable Foundation.

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