For immediate release:
May 10, 2023
Contact: Julie Goetz, Director of Communications
(412) 905-9058
jgoetz@pittsburghsymphony.org
MEDIA ASSETS HERE
PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY HEADS OUT IN THE COMMUNITY FOR SUMMER WITH THE SYMPHONY
“SUMMER SHORTS” CLASSICAL MUSIC CONCERTS AT THE O’REILLY THEATER DOWNTOWN
“FIDDLESTICKS IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD” WILL TRAVEL TO
FOUR SUBURBAN HIGH SCHOOLS
FREE CONCERTS AT THREE RIVERS ARTS FESTIVAL, SOLDIERS & SAILORS HALL, WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA JUNETEENTH HOMECOMING,
AND ALLEGHENY COUNTY PARKS
REMAINING SEASON CALENDAR INCLUDES THREE BNY MELLON GRAND CLASSICS CONCERTS (INCLUDING A COLLABORATION WITH PITTSBURGH BALLET THEATRE), TWO PNC POPS CONCERTS, PSO DISRUPT: RIOT, THE LITTLE MERMAID IN CONCERT, AND A SPECIAL CONCERT FOR THE LEAGUE OF AMERICAN ORCHESTRAS CONFERENCE
PITTSBURGH—The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra is heading out of Heinz Hall for Summer with the Symphony, with stops at 10 different venues that touch all corners of Allegheny County, including, for the first time, “Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood” concerts at four suburban high schools, and “Summer Shorts,” a classical music series at the O’Reilly Theater downtown. Tickets are available now through the Heinz Hall Box Office: online at pittsburghsymphony.org, by calling (412) 392-4900, or in person at 600 Penn Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh.
“While there is no place like home, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra also believes it’s true that there’s nothing like summer walks and road trips for fun, adventure and joining friends in new places to share great music,” said Melia Tourangeau, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. “Heinz Hall will be closed for the summer for extensive exterior renovations, so we’re thrilled that the Pittsburgh Symphony will not only make our regular appearances at festivals and the county parks, but we have also added two new series in July, based on our success last year with the ‘Beethoven in Your Neighborhood’ series. Fiddlesticks, our feline musical ambassador, did not want to stay home, so he will head out with the musicians to four suburban high schools for family concerts. We’ll also pop across the street to the O’Reilly Theater for ‘Summer Shorts’—three classical concerts that celebrate summer and are also a chance to get to know some of our PSO musicians more closely as soloists.”
About Summer with the Symphony:
Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood
Under the baton of assistant conductor Moon Doh, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra will travel to four suburban high schools for “Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood” concerts. These concerts are an extension of the Pittsburgh Symphony’s Fiddlesticks Family Concerts series, which are designed especially for families with children ages three to eight, and feature the orchestra’s feline musical ambassador, Fiddlesticks. Vocalist Katy Williams will join the Orchestra for these fun concerts, which are performed in a relaxed environment.
Tickets for “Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood” are $15 for adults and $10 for children and are available at the Heinz Hall Box Office.
Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood
Saturday July 15, 2023, at 11:15 a.m. at Moon Senior High School
Sunday, July 16, 2023, at 2:30 p.m., at Penn Hills High School
Saturday July 22, 2023, at 11:15 a.m., at Mars Area High School
Sunday July 23, 2023, at 2:30 p.m., at Bethel Park High School
Moon Doh, conductor
Katy Williams, vocalist
Music selections from composers Leroy Anderson, Leonard Bernstein, Edward Elgar, Aram Khachaturian, Arturo Marquez, Jacques Offenbach, Lucas Richman, Richard Rodgers, and Gioachino Rossini. Selections will include the “Mambo” excerpt from “West Side Story Suite” (Bernstein); “Do-Re-Mi” from “The Sound of Music” (Rodgers); and “Can-Can” from “Orpheus in the Underworld” (Offenbach).
Classical "Summer Shorts"
The Pittsburgh Symphony will take a walk across the street to its neighbor, The O’Reilly Theater, for its new “Summer Shorts” series of classical music concerts, under the batons of assistant conductors Moon Doh and Jacob Joyce. “Summer Shorts” are 90-minute (without intermission) classical music concerts on three consecutive Thursdays in July that are bursts of summer refreshment with the sounds of composers Anna Clyne, Aaron Copland, Felix Mendelssohn, Jessie Montgomery, Antonin Dvořák, Gabriela Lena Frank, Gioachino Rossini, Robert Schumann, Jean Sibelius, Pablo de Sarasate, and Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Two Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra musicians will take center stage as soloists: Victoria Luperi, principal E-flat clarinet, will perform Rossini’s Introduction, Theme and Variations for Clarinet and Orchestra on July 13; and Jennifer Orchard, first violin, will perform de Sarasate’s Zifeunerweisen for Violin and Orchestra (Gypsy Airs) on July 27.
Tickets for “Summer Shorts” range from $25-$50, with $10 student tickets, and are available at the Heinz Hall Box Office.
SUMMER SHORTS:
A Midsummer Night’s Symphony: Mendelssohn & Tchaikovsky
Thursday, July 13, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. at The O’Reilly Theater
Moon Doh, conductor
Victoria Luperi, clarinet
MENDELSSOHN Selections from Incidental Music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Opus 61
ROSSINI Introduction, Theme and Variations for Clarinet and Orchestra
ANNA CLYNE Sound and Fury
TCHAIKOVSKY Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
SUMMER SHORTS:
Spring into Summer: Copland’s Appalachian Spring
Thursday, July 20, 2023, at 7:00 p.m., at The O’Reilly Theater
Jacob Joyce, conductor
MONTGOMERY Strum for String Orchestra
COPLAND Suite from Appalachian Spring
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 1 in B-flat major, Opus 38, “Spring”
SUMMER SHORTS:
Summer Folk Sounds: Finlandia and Dvořák 8
Thursday, July 27, 2023, at 7:00 p.m., at The O’Reilly Theater
Jacob Joyce, conductor
Jennifer Orchard, violin
SIBELIUS Finlandia, Opus 26, No. 7
DE SARASATE Zigeunerweisen for Violin and Orchestra, Opus 20 [Gypsy Airs]
GABRIELA LENA FRANK Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout (movements IV and VI)
DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Opus 88
Free Summer Concerts
In addition to the two new series of concerts, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra will perform five free community outreach concerts at five different locations:
- Venture out to the Three Rivers Arts Festival’s Eighth Street Stage for a short evening concert that celebrates Pittsburgh’s three famous waterways;
- Salute those who serve with an evening of patriotic music at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall;
- Spend the day at Point State Park, and enjoy an afternoon concert with Principal Pops Conductor Byron Stripling and the Orchestra, joined by the Dr. James Johnson Trio, and rapper Frzy, as the Pittsburgh Symphony performs for the first time at the Western Pennsylvania Juneteenth Homecoming concert; and
- Pack a picnic and enjoy great music with the Orchestra over the Fourth of July weekend at South Park and Hartwood Acres, the Pittsburgh Symphony’s annual concerts that are part of the Allegheny County Summer Concert Series.
With deep gratitude:
- BNY Mellon Grand Classics concerts are made possible by title sponsorship support from BNY Mellon. The 2022-2023 season marks BNY Mellon’s 22nd consecutive year as title sponsor of this series.
- PNC Pops concerts are made possible by title sponsorship support from PNC. The 2022-2023 season marks PNC’s 22nd consecutive year as title sponsor of the series.
- The Pittsburgh Symphony orchestra is grateful for overall support is provided by local and state government entities: Allegheny Regional Asset District, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Community and Economic Development, and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.
- BNY Mellon Grand Classics 19: Boléro is supported in part by the Emma Clyde Hodge Memorial Fund, Tom and Dona Hotopp, and the Byham Charitable Foundation.
- The Stacy Garrop commission Forging Steel is made possible in part by support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
- Appearances by all piano soloists during the inaugural season of the Steinway concert piano are generously supported by Carol and Jon Walton.
- PSO Disrupt is supported in part by the Emma Clyde Hodge Memorial Fund.
- The special concert at the WPA Juneteenth Homecoming Celebration is made possible by generous support from Duquesne Light Company. Additional support has been provided by Pittsburgh Regional Transit.
- Fairmont Pittsburgh is the official hotel of the Pittsburgh Symphony.
- Delta Air Lines is the official airline of the Pittsburgh Symphony.
- Diehl Automotive Group is the official auto dealer of the Pittsburgh Symphony.
- Radio station WQED-FM 89.3/WQEJ-FM 89.7 is the official voice of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA SPRING AND SUMMER CONCERT CALENDAR
Summer with the Symphony concerts take place at multiple locations. See each event’s listing for date, time, location and ticket information. Programs are subject to change.
PNC POPS 6: RENÉE ELISE GOLDSBERRY
Friday May 12, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 13, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 14, 2023, at 2:30 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Renée Elise Goldsberry, vocalist
The Tony Award-winning star of the Broadway smash hit “Hamilton” and graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, Renée Elise Goldsberry joins the PSO to sing favorites from that iconic musical, as well as selections from other Broadway musicals and more.
BNY MELLON GRAND CLASSICS 17: THE RITE OF SPRING
Friday, May 19, 203, at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 21, 2023, at 2:30 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Pablo Heras-Casado, conductor
Alice Sara Ott, piano
BOULANGER D’un matin de printemps (Of a Spring morning)
GRIEG Concerto in A minor for Piano and Orchestra, Opus 16
STRAVINSKY Le Sacre du printemps (The Right of Spring)
PSO DISRUPT: RIOT
Saturday, May 20, 2023, at 7:00 p.m.; music begins at 7:45 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Pablo Heras-Casado, conductor
Jacob Joyce, host
BOULANGER D’un matin de printemps (Of a Spring Morning)
STRAVINSKY Le Sacre du printemps (The Rite of Spring), Part I and Part II
The PSO Disrupt series is a new way to do classical: it includes musical discussion about The Rite of Spring during the concert; pre-concert activities including a spring flower art installation; relaxed photos and entries during the concert; specialty drinks (“Hanky Panky “and “French 75” cocktails and mocktails) that reference the music; and post-concert socializing, and Q&A with the conductor, host and musicians in the theater.
PSO AT THE MOVIES: THE LITTLE MERMAID IN CONCERT
Saturday, June 3, 2023, at 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, June 4, 2023, at 2:30 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Moon Doh, conductor
DISNEY'S THE LITTLE MERMAID will be given new life for two special evenings at Heinz Hall. As “The Little Mermaid” plays on a large movie screen, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra performs the film’s Oscar® and Grammy®-winning score live to film. One of the most beloved films and soundtracks, “The Little Mermaid” features songs and score by Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman.
SPECIAL CONCERT: THREE RIVERS ARTS FESTIVAL
Monday, June 5, 2023, at 7:30 p.m.
Three Rivers Arts Festival – Dollar Bank Main Stage @Ft. Duquesne Blvd. This concert is free and open to the public.
Jacob Joyce, conductor
MOZART Symphony No. 31 in D major, K. 300a, “Paris”
MENDELSSOHN The Hebrides Overture, Opus 26 (Fingal’s Cave)
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Strum for String Orchestra
HANDEL Suite No. 2 in D major from Water Music
HANDEL Suite No. 1 in F major from Water Music
BNY MELLON GRAND CLASSICS 19: BOLÉRO
Friday, June 9, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, at 2:30 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box office
Manfred Honeck, conductor
Igor Levit, piano
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
STACY GARROP Forging Steel (world premiere; PSO commission)
GERSHWIN Concerto in F major for Piano and Orchestra
STRAUSS (arr. Honeck/Ille) Salome Suite for Orchestra
RAVEL Boléro
Performed with the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
SPECIAL CONCERT: LEAGUE OF AMERICAN ORCHESTRAS CONFERENCE
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at 7:30 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Manfred Honeck, conductor
María Dueñas, violin
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
WYNTON MARSALIS Herald, Holler and Hallelujah
STACY GARROP Forging Steel
LALO Symphonie espagnole for Violin and Orchestra, Opus 21
STRAVINSKY Suite from The Firebird
RAVEL Boléro
Performed with the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
BNY MELLON GRAND CLASSICS 20: THE PINES OF ROME
Friday, June 16, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, at 2:30 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Manfred Honeck, conductor
María Dueñas, violin
RESPIGHI Feste romane (Roman Festivals)
LALO Symphonie espagnole for Violin and Orchestra, Opus 21
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Transfigure to Grace
RESPIGHI I pini di Roma (The Pines of Rome)
SPECIAL CONCERT: WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA JUNETEENTH HOMECOMING
Monday, June 19, 2023, at 3:00 p.m.
Point State Park; this concert is free and open to the public.
Byron Stripling, conductor
Bobby Floyd, Hammond organ and piano
Jim Rupp, drum set
Jeffrey Grubbs, jazz bass
Jennifer Orchard, violin
Dr. James Johnson, piano
James Johnson III, drum set
Frzy, rapper
Alexandra Cutler-Fetkewicz, violin
Under the baton of Principal Pops Conductor Byron Stripling, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra salutes Juneteenth with great works from gospel, jazz, folk and pop. A virtuoso trumpet player, Byron Stripling will play, sing and conduct, and the PSO will welcome to the stage two Pittsburgh music stars: Dr. James T. Johnson’s trio will pay tribute to Pittsburgh jazz legend Ahmad Jamal; rapper Frzy and the PSO will premiere a new arrangement of “What Do I Know,” with Frzy’s original recording collaborator Alexandra Cutler-Fetkewicz, violin; and, PSO first violin Jennifer Orchard will be a featured soloist.
PNC POPS 7: THE DOO WOP PROJECT
Friday, June 23, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, June 24, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, June 25, 2023, at 2:30 p.m.
Heinz Hall; tickets are available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Byron Stripling, conductor
Dominic Nolfi, vocals
Charl Brown, vocals
John Michael Dias, vocals
Russel Tischer, vocals
Dwayne Cooper, vocals
Santino Paladino, piano
Old school meets new generation! This concert features soulful harmonies from street corners to modern hits on the radio today, The Doo Wop Project takes you from the origins of Doo Wop to the favorites you know and love. You’ll hear the music of the Temptations, the Four Seasons, Smokey Robinson, the Flamingos, Maroon 5, Jason Mraz and much more.
LEARNING & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: AMERICANA
Thursday, June 29, 2023, at 7:00 p.m.
Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum; this concert is free and open to the public, but reservations are requested and available through the Heinz Hall Box Office.
Moon Doh, conductor
Katy Williams, vocalist
Join the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for a concert of sing-alongs, marches, and tributes to our military personnel, with music from John Williams, Margaret Bonds, Samuel Ward, George Cohan, John Phillip Sousa, and others.
SPECIAL CONCERTS: ALLEGHENY COUNTY SUMMER PARKS SERIES
Saturday, July 1, 2023, at 8:15 p.m. at South Park Amphitheater
Sunday, July 2, 2023, at 8:15 p.m. at Hartwood Acres Amphitheater
These concerts are free and open to the public.
Moon Doh, conductor
It’s a weekend of patriotic musical festivities as the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra salutes America with selections from Leonard Bernstein, Margaret Bonds, Antonín Dvořák, and John Williams, amongst others, plus the traditional Armed Forces Salute sing-along.
CLASSICAL - SUMMER SHORTS
A Midsummer Night’s Symphony: Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky
Thursday, July 13, 2023, at 7:00 p.m.
The O’Reilly Theater; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Moon Doh, conductor
Victoria Luperi, clarinet
MENDELSSOHN Selections from Incidental Music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Opus 61
ROSSINI Introduction, Theme and Variations for Clarinet and Orchestra
ANNA CLYNE Sound and Fury
TCHAIKOVSKY Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood
Saturday, July 15 at 11:15 a.m.
Moon High School; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office.
Moon Doh, conductor
Katy Williams, vocalist
Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood
Sunday, July 16 at 2:30 p.m.
Penn Hills High School; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office.
Moon Doh, conductor
Katy Williams, vocalist
CLASSICAL - SUMMER SHORTS
Spring into Summer: Copland’s Appalachian Spring
Thursday, July 20, 2023, at 7:00 p.m.
The O’Reilly Theater; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Jacob Joyce, conductor
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Strum for String Orchestra
COPLAND Suite from Appalachian Spring
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 1 in B-flat major, Opus 38, “Spring”
Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood
Saturday, July 22 at 11:15 a.m.
Mars High School; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office.
Moon Doh, conductor
Katy Williams, vocalist
Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood
Sunday, July 23 at 2:30 p.m.
Bethel Park High School; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office.
Moon Doh, conductor
Katy Williams, vocalist
CLASSICAL – SUMMER SHORTS
Summer Folk Sounds: Finlandia & Dvořák 8
Thursday, July 27, 2023, at 7:00 p.m.
The O’Reilly Theater; tickets available at the Heinz Hall Box Office
Jacob Joyce, conductor
Jennifer Orchard, violin
SIBELIUS Finlandia, Opus 26, No. 7
DE SARASATE Zigeunerweisen for Violin and Orchestra, Opus 20 [Gypsy Airs]
GABRIELA LENA FRANK Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout (movements IV and VI)
DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Opus 88
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