Tuesday (2/9) on Bloomberg.com, Patrick Cole writes, “When Pittsburgh tries to lure a foreign company, it often turns to maestro Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra to close the deal. The Pittsburgh Regional Alliance used the world-class orchestra as a selling point to persuade Germany’s Sycor AG to open an office in the one-time steel capital in 2008. That same year, an Amsterdam concert by the orchestra triggered talks with KLM Chief Executive Officer Peter Hartman about establishing nonstop airline service between Pittsburgh and Paris through its U.S. partner, Delta Airlines. … ‘We want to be ambassadors for the city, and we shouldn’t hide at all the quality of what we do,’ said Honeck, who will conduct the orchestra tonight at New York’s Carnegie Hall in a concert featuring violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter. Started in 1896, the orchestra is a treasure in a city that has transformed itself into a medical, educational and technology mecca since the decline of the steel industry in the 1980s. … During the symphony’s next European tour in May, Honeck will meet with business executives during stops in Budapest, Paris, Frankfurt and Luxembourg.”
Photo: Honeck (right) is interviewed at Mozart’s apartment for a segment on Pittsburgh’s WQED.
Credit: Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
Posted February 9, 2010
