FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 26, 2017

Internationally Renowned Pianist Lang Lang to Play at PSO 2017 Gala and Soirée

Lang Lang to be joined by 14-year-old piano prodigy, Maxim Lando, in special arrangement of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue

PITTSBURGH — On Saturday, September 16 at 7pm, internationally renowned pianist Lang Lang will join Music Director Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra to perform George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue – with a unique twist.

Lang Lang will present a special arrangement of this iconic jazz-concerto composed as a piano duet in which two players perform on a single piano. Lang Lang will play the right hand, and 14-year-old prodigy, Maxim Lando, will play the left.

Lando, who is a Lang Lang International Music Foundation Scholar, was selected from hundreds of applicants to perform with Lang Lang. The duo will also perform special arrangements of Saint- Saëns’s Aquarium from The Carnival of Animals, Bernstein’s America from West Side Story, and Tchaikovsky’s Sugar Plum Fairy from The Nutcracker.

Several months ago, Lang Lang sustained an injury to his left arm, but he is now ready to return to the stage. "I've invited a friend to help present this piece in a very special way," said Lang Lang. "With the exciting young talent Maxim Lando, we hope to delight the audience and take a little pressure off my left arm while it continues to heal."

“It was particularly important to Lang Lang that his comeback concert be with the PSO,” says Music Director Manfred Honeck. “He is a great friend of the Orchestra and we look forward to his return to the stage at our Gala event.”

The Gala and Soirée are fundraising events taking place the night of the Rhapsody in Blue concert at Heinz Hall, and offer different options for a pre-concert cocktail reception, premium concert seating, and your choice of post-concert events—a glamorous seated dinner and dessert reception with Maestro Honeck, or a speakeasy lounge party with food stations and dancing at the Fairmont Pittsburgh. Click here to learn more.

Single tickets to the Gala Concert are also available. They range from $35 – $150, and can be purchased online at pittsburghsymphony.org or (412) 392-4900.

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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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Contact: Laura D. Soldati, Interim Public Relations Manager Phone: 412.392.4866 | email: [email protected]

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