Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Performs Disney Tunes in Concert This Weekend

PITTSBURGH - The wonderful world of Disney joins the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra with high-resolution film clips and beloved music and songs for PNC Pops: Disney in Concert Tale as Old as Time, this weekend, June 19-21 at Heinz Hall.

The orchestra will be led by Pittsburgh Symphony Resident Conductor Lawrence Loh and joined by Broadway vocalists Lisa Livesay, Whitney Claire Kaufman, Aaron Phillips and Andrew Johnson. Together they bring to life some of Disney's most treasured musical moments from movies such as Frozen, The Lion King and Tangled.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets, ranging in price from $24.75 to $99.75, can be purchased by calling the Heinz Hall box office at 412-392-4900 or by visiting pittsburghsymphony.org/disneyinconcert.

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra would like to recognize and thank PNC for its 2014-2015 title sponsorship of PNC Pops. Fairmont Pittsburgh is the official hotel of the Pittsburgh Symphony.

Resident conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic and music director of the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra, Lawrence Loh is an engaging conductor of impressive range and talent. Beginning in the 2015-16 season, Loh will become the first music director of Symphoria, based in Syracuse N.Y., founded by former members of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra. As resident conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Loh works closely with Music Director Manfred Honeck and conducts a wide range of concerts including classical, educational and pops. He is active in the Pittsburgh Symphony's Community Engagement and Partnership Concerts, extending the symphony's reach into other communities. He made his debut on the main classical series conducting Handel's Messiah in December 2008. Loh led the enormously popular Fiddlesticks Family Concert Series where he played the part of host and conductor. In addition to his duties on the podium, he is an audience favorite in the Pittsburgh Symphony's Concert Preludes lecture series, edits radio broadcasts and makes many public appearances. His association with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra began as assistant conductor in 2005. He was promoted to associate conductor in 2006 and to resident conductor in 2007. Since his appointment as music director of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic in 2005, the orchestra has made its mark as an ensemble of superb musicianship, performing electrifying performances year-round. Off the podium, Loh is very active in the region as an arts leader and music advocate, and is constantly in demand as a guest speaker and clinician. Loh's recent guest conducting engagements include the National Symphony Orchestra, Knoxville Symphony, Florida Orchestra, Colorado Symphony, Charleston Symphony Orchestra (SC), Greater Bridgeport Symphony and return engagements with the Dallas and El Paso Symphonies. Other recent guest conducting appearances include the Malaysian Philharmonic, the Detroit Symphony and the San Angelo Symphony. He has conducted the symphony orchestras of Portland, Cedar Rapids, Colorado Springs, East Texas, Fort Collins, Fort Worth, Lubbock, Plano, Shreveport, Sioux City, Spokane and Tallahassee among others. He has led Korea's Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra, the Binghamton Philharmonic, the Yale Philharmonia, Omaha Area Youth Orchestra, Ottawa's National Arts Centre Orchestra and the Dallas Chamber Orchestra. His summer appearances include the festivals of Bravo Vail Valley, Breckenridge, Las Vegas and Hot Springs, the Kinhaven Music School (Vt.), the Performing Arts Institute (Pa.) and the Carnegie Mellon Summer Strings Camp. Loh held the positions of assistant and associate conductor of the Dallas Symphony from 2001 to 2005. He led the Dallas Symphony in a variety of classical subscription and educational programs throughout each season. He was brought to national attention in February 2004 when he stepped in to conduct on short notice for an ailing Charles Dutoit, conducting Stravinsky's Petrouchka and Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique. Prior to his Dallas appointment, Loh was appointed by Music Director Marin Alsop to be associate conductor of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra. From 1998 to 2001, he conducted more than 50 concerts annually, including classical subscription, pops, education, family and outreach programs. While in Denver, he was also music director of the Denver Young Artists Orchestra, the premiere youth orchestra in the Colorado Rocky Mountain Region. Additionally, Loh served as the interim director of Orchestras and Head of the Orchestral Conducting Program at Denver University's Lamont School of Music in 2000-2001. In May 1998, Loh received his artist diploma in orchestral conducting from Yale University, also earning the Eleazar de Carvalho Prize, given to the most outstanding conductor in the Yale graduating class. During his years at Yale, he was selected to be the assistant conductor of the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra and apprentice conductor of the Hot Springs Music Festival. He received further training at the world-renowned Aspen Music Festival and School and has additional degrees from Indiana University and the University of Rochester. A dedicated teacher, Loh held the position of associate instructor in music theory at Indiana University and teaching assistant at Yale University in advanced hearing, conducting and orchestration. He was also the guest curator at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science for "What Makes Music?" an interactive exhibit, offering the opportunity to explore the science of music and sound, as well as the role of music in culture. Loh was born in southern California of Korean parentage and raised in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He and his wife Jennifer have a son, Charlie, and a daughter, Hilary.

Lisa Livesay is thrilled to be a part of Disney in Concert. Her history with Disney began at Hong Kong Disneyland, where she played Belle in The Golden Mickeys, sang in High School Musical: LIVE! and was the voice of safety spiels and special announcements for various attractions and events throughout the park. Livesay was recently seen in the role of Glinda on the national tour of Wicked. Other theatre credits include Monteen in Jason Robert Brown's Parade (LA Music Center), Olive in25th...Spelling Bee, Peter Pan in Peter Pan, Cathy in The Last 5 Years and Belle in Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Livesay recently starred in the feature film Monday Nights at 7 (currently in post-production) with Edward James Olmos. Livesay also has performed with the San Francisco Symphony, Golden State Pops Orchestra, Orange County Symphony and Onstage Pops, to name a few. You can spot Livesay with Big|Brave foot on a Toyota commercial and, occasionally, you'll hear her voice on select films and TV shows. She resides in New York, with her husband, composer Nolan Livesay. Livesay is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA.

Whitney Claire Kaufman recently completed two years with the North American Tour of the Broadway smash-hit Mamma Mia! (Ensemble, Understudy for Sophie and Lisa). Her performance as Sophie garnered rave reviews from the Boston Globe. Kaufman has performed as guest soloist with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra and the Pacific Symphony Orchestra, guest soloist with the Florida Orchestra, and has appeared in Cabaret (Sally Bowles), A Midsummer Night's Dream (Peaseblossom), Marisol (June) and the Los Angeles Theatre Ensembles' production of Wounded, as well as many other theatrical productions. TV credits include General Hospital and the hit ABC series Modern Family. As both a singer and voiceover performer in film and television, Kaufman has been heard in productions including That Championship Season, The Secret of NiMH 2 and two MGM animated series, All Dogs Go to Heaven and Noddy. She recently recorded songs written by Oscar-winning composer Dimitri Tiomkin. Kaufman graduated with honors from Chapman University with a BFA in theater performance. Her favorite Disney movie is The Little Mermaid with Cinderella as a close second.

Aaron Phillips is very excited to be part of this wonderful production. Phillips is an Ovation Award nominated actor/singer, proud member of Actors' Equity and can frequently be seen on film and TV. Past theatre credits include Jekyll and Hyde (John Utterson), Batboy: The Musical (Batboy/Edgar), Songs for a New World and LES MISERABLES (Foreman/Combeferre). Opera credits include La Boheme with the Greensboro Opera Company, conducted by Valery Ryvkin; Pirates of Penzance (Pirate King); and Lakme (Frederic) by Delibes. Phillips recently appeared in a staged reading of The Bone Wars (O'Conner) with the prestigious New York playwright group, Youngbloods. Phillips has been seen as Carl, half of the duo that is the face of Lipton Iced Tea. He is an accomplished voice-over talent and can be heard in video games such as World of Warcraft, Grand Theft Auto V, Red Dead Redemption and Lord of the Rings. He is a man of many voices for commercials, cartoons and music sessions everywhere. Phillips has been a Disney fan his entire life and is happy to help bring this music to fans of all ages.

Andrew Johnson is a Disney kid at heart and is humbled and honored to share the music and magic from the stage! He has toured all over the United States, Europe and Asia as a lead vocalist and dancer, and his performances have been broadcasted on national and international television. You can currently catch him as a background vocalist and dancer on FOX's The X Factor. He most recently performed on The Conan O'Brien Show in the comedy spoof Broadway Rap Musicals: Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg & Vanilla Ice and performed with Florence and the Machine at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. His other theatrical credits include Rent (Benny), Five Guys Named Moe (Four-Eyed Moe), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Joseph, Asher), Godspell (Jesus) and Pippin (Lead Player). Johnson has shared the stage with singers/actresses Shirley Jones and Bernadette Peters and has performed live duets with recording artists Patti LaBelle and Erykah Badu and singer/actress Jodi Benson (the original voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid). He just recently released his new EP on ITunes entitled Elevation, under his artist name, Drew Michael. He would like to thank his family for their unconditional love and support and Ted Ricketts for the opportunity of being part of this show.

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, known for its artistic excellence for more than 119 years, is credited with a rich history of the world's finest conductors and musicians, and a strong commitment to the Pittsburgh region and its citizens. Past music directors have included Fritz Reiner (1938-1948), William Steinberg (1952-1976), Andre Previn (1976-1984), Lorin Maazel (1984-1996) and Mariss Jansons (1995-2004). This tradition of outstanding international music directors was furthered in fall 2008, when Austrian conductor Manfred Honeck became music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony. The orchestra has been at the forefront of championing new American works, and gave the first performance of Leonard Bernstein's Symphony No. 1 "Jeremiah" in 1944 and John Adams' Short Ride in a Fast Machine in 1986. The Pittsburgh Symphony has a long and illustrious history in the areas of recordings and radio concerts. As early as 1936, the Pittsburgh Symphony broadcast on the airwaves coast-to-coast and in the late 1970s it made the ground breaking PBS series "Previn and the Pittsburgh." The orchestra has received increased national attention since 1982 through network radio broadcasts on Public Radio International, produced by Classical WQED-FM 89.3, made possible by the musicians of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. With a long and distinguished history of touring both domestically and overseas since 1900 - including 36 international tours to Europe, the Far East and South America-the Pittsburgh Symphony continues to be critically acclaimed as one of the world's greatest orchestras.

Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts is owned and operated by Pittsburgh Symphony, Inc., a non-profit organization, and is the year-round home of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. The cornerstone of Pittsburgh's Cultural District, Heinz Hall also hosts many other events that do not feature its world-renowned orchestra, including Broadway shows, comedians, speakers and much more. For a full calendar of upcoming non-symphony events at the hall, visit heinzhall.org.

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