Let the Trumpets Sound! Pittsburgh Symphony Brass Returns
As storybook Foxburg glows with thousands of holiday lights during Light Up Weekend, begin your season festivities as Allegheny RiverStone Center for the Arts welcomes back a beloved holiday tradition: The world-celebrated Pittsburgh Symphony Brass performing “The Spirit of Christmas” in the historic Memorial Church of Our Father on Sunday, November 29 at 7:30 PM.
Making a triumphant return to the Allegheny-Clarion River Valley for the first time since the pandemic, some of the finest brass musicians in the world will fill the intimate, soaring stone acoustics of the neo-Gothic church with brilliant holiday masterworks, cherished carols, and their trademark friendly, jovial spoken program commentary. Their concerts have been described as “Holiday cheer delivered with virtuoso flair.”
Framed by the glow of lights around the village and the lush poinsettias inside the church, the thrilling sounds of their Christmas brass will prepare your hearts for the Season with its splendor and joy – and entertain you and yours as they take you on a holiday musical journey.
Because capacity is restricted in the historic venue—advance purchase or reservations is required. This audience favorite will sell out.
TICKETS: Adults $40, Members $35, Students $5 Buy online at alleghenyriverstone.org or call 724-659-3153 to reserve EARLY and pay with cash or check at the door.
PARKING is at the former A-C Valley Medical Center, now The Training Center, up the hill from the church, one-half mile, on route 58, across from the A-C Valley Schools. Shuttle service to and from the church will be provided beginning at 6:00 PM.
Organized in 1994, the group possesses a unique blend of virtuosity with brilliant sonority, stretching the limitations of performance and exploring a wide range of musical expression rarely achieved in brass music. Sir Andre Previn, former PSO Music Director, said of the group, “Brass ensemble playing cannot possibly be more virtuosic or musical…”
Current PSO Brass members include Trumpeters Chad Winkler and Conrad Jones, French Horn Principal William Caballero, Trombonist James Nova, Bass Trombonist Jeffrey Dee and Principal Tubist, Craig Knox.
The concert will feature elegant arrangements of holiday favorites from their three acclaimed Christmas CDs (available on Amazon) as collected by Grammy award winner and longtime (now retired) PSO Principal Trumpet, George Vosburgh.
The American Record Guide described the ensemble’s first compact disc as “Magnificent, an extended example of first rate playing, with beautiful tone qualities, impeccable intonation, and polished execution.”
The ensemble’s second recording, A Christmas Concert, has been described by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as, “Holiday cheer delivered with virtuoso flair.”
After a performance for the Pittsburgh Chamber Music Society, the Tribune-Review wrote, “Full of brilliance and power, but also stunning in subtle artistic qualities made possible only by masterful control.”
The group’s featured performance on National Public Radio’s “Performance Today” is replayed annually on NPR stations throughout the United States. The Pittsburgh Symphony Brass has performed in Italy, Canada and the United States.
Before the concert, plan to tour the stunning Holiday Art Exhibit at the Red Brick Gallery and Gift Shop, and pick up a gift for those special people on your Christmas list – or for yourself – from the affordable, unique hand-made artwork of 18 RBG Cooperative Artists. On Sunday, November 29, the Red Brick Gallery is open from 12 noon to 5 PM.
