Nikki Porter, Head of Staff and Minister of Music at Eastminster Presbyterian Church, leads the Unity Choir in “Lift Every Voice and Sing” – Saturday October 22 at Heinz Hall with the Pittsburgh Symphony. She tells her story to Jim Cunningham and suggests the spirit will move you downtown on Saturday evening. Kellen Gray conducts the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for the fourth Lift Every Voice concert! After more than two years, back together in Heinz Hall to experience music’s power to bring us forward. Kendra Ross and Garfield Lemonius host this one-night-only celebration of dynamic contemporary artists, including the world premiere of As I Please, a multimedia work by composer Kathryn Bostic, filmmaker Njaimeh Njie, and writer Jessica Lanay, commissioned by the PSO.
Josh Jones, alumnus of the Paul J. Ross Fellowship program, makes his PSO solo debut performing Vivaldi’s Concerto for Piccolo on marimba, Jasiri X makes his solo debut performing the Academy and Grammy Award-winning “Glory” from the movie Selma, Jessie Montgomery’s Strum for String Orchestra musically animates the mural “Playing the Cosmic Strings” by local artists Mikael Owunna and Marques Redd.