Fiddlesticks Family Concert Series 2017-18 Season Celebrates Fiddlesticks' 25th Anniversary

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Fiddlesticks, the orchestra's feline ambassador to children, have a big milestone to celebrate in the 2017-2018 season - the 25th anniversary of the Fiddlesticks Concert Series!

Throughout the season, Fiddlesticks and friends will share some of Fidd's favorite things with audiences during the upcoming season, such as dressing up and pretending, animals and enjoying nature with family and friends. Fiddlesticks concerts are designed to have a relaxed, welcoming and interactive environment that is perfect for families with children ages three to eight to enjoy together.

Family restrooms, braille programs, a quiet room, fidgets and noise-cancelling headphones are available upon request at all Fiddlesticks concerts. Families can visit pittsburghsymphony.org/family to preview concert selections, practice "Music Makes Your Life Complete," Fiddlesticks' theme song, learn about the instruments that make up an orchestra, watch videos and more!

The 2017-2018 season of the Fiddlesticks Family Concerts is:

· Musical Masquerade - October 21, 2017

Put on your favorite costume and join the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Fiddlesticks for a musical Halloween adventure! Hear the magical sounds of Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean and Star Wars, along with the rousing In the Hall of the Mountain King and the swirling Sorcerer's Apprentice.

· Carnival of the Animals - February 10, 2018

Fiddlesticks will introduce you to his favorite animal friends, featuring Camille Saint-Saens' Carnival of the Animals. Each movement in this spectacular orchestral work illustrates a different animal, from the royal lion to the graceful swan. Joining the Pittsburgh Symphony onstage is cartoonist Joe Wos, who will be doing live drawings as the orchestra performs.

· Outdoor Overtures - May 12, 2018

Discover the music of the great outdoors with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra! Travel to the Wild West with Copland's Hoe Down, soar with Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee and journey to the majestic Grand Canyon with Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite. Create a live rainstorm inside Heinz Hall with your friends and family. The stars at night are big and bright in this fanciful outdoor adventure!

Three-concert season packages go on sale May 8 and are $30 and $54. Packages can be purchased in person at the Heinz Hall box office, over the phone at 412-392-4900 or online at pittsburghsymphony.org/fiddlesticks. Single tickets for these concerts are $15 and $27 and go on sale this summer.

All Fiddlesticks Family Concerts take place at Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts on Saturday mornings at 11:15 a.m. and are approximately 45 minutes in length. Ticketholders are encouraged to come to the hall at 10 a.m. for Discovery Time Adventures, where children experience music through different interactive displays and activities throughout Heinz Hall and have the chance to meet Pittsburgh Symphony musicians.

Families should save the date for Fiddlesticks Birthday Celebration, a special gala event for kids and families, at the Carnegie Science Center on March 10, 2018!

The Pittsburgh Symphony would like to recognize and thank Macy's for its sponsorship of Fiddlesticks Family Concerts. This series is endowed by Gerald and Audrey McGinnis, honoring the Center for Young Musicians. Pittsburgh Symphony Education & Community Engagement programs are also generously supported by Lincoln Learning Solutions and the Allegheny Regional Asset District.

The PITTSBURGH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA, known for its artistic excellence for more than 120 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), André 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. Its "Pittsburgh Live!" series with Reference Recordings has resulted in back-to-back Grammy Award nominations in 2015 and 2016. 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 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 hosts many events that do not feature its world-renowned Orchestra including Broadway shows, popular touring artists, comedians, speakers and much more. For a full calendar of upcoming non-symphony events at the hall, visit heinzhall.org.

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