Contacts:
Jill Feinberg
Star-Spangled 200, Inc.
410-767-6267/443-931-6752
jfeinberg@starspangled200.com

Eileen Andrews
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
410-783-8020
eandrews@bsomusic.org

BSO adds O'Malley's March and U.S. Navy's official chorus to June concert

Star-Spangled Symphony features new work by Philip Glass
Funding by PNC Foundation keeps ticket prices at $15

Baltimore (April 27) - O'Malley's March -- Gov. Martin O'Malley's Celtic rock band - and the United States Navy Sea Chanters chorus have joined the performance line-up for Star-Spangled Symphony, Sunday evening, June 17 at 7:00 p.m. at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore. The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) and Star-Spangled 200, Inc. (SS200), the nonprofit affiliate of the Maryland War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission, made the announcement.

Star-Spangled Symphony - a 90-minute musical celebration that pays tribute to the start of Maryland's War of 1812 bicentennial commemoration - features a BSO world premiere performance of Philip Glass' Overture for 2012, as conducted by BSO Music Director Marin Alsop.  Glass, a Baltimore native, has composed 20 operas and eight symphonies during his prominent career. The evening includes BSO renditions of other patriotic musical selections.

Tickets for the Meyerhoff concert - sponsored by the PNC Foundation - are $15 and available online at the BSO web site. The BSO presents this event in conjunction with Star-Spangled Sailabration, the June 13-19 maritime festival in Baltimore's Inner Harbor, which launches the three-year bicentennial period.

"As we welcome international ships and visitors to Maryland for Sailabration, it is especially fitting to showcase our vibrant arts community," said Gov. Martin O'Malley who is also the front-man for O'Malley's March.  "The band is incredibly excited to perform with the BSO for this historic occasion."

O'Malley's March last performed a benefit concert with the BSO in 2003. The band is expected to play three of its original songs, including The Battle of Baltimore - a song about the courage, resilience and spirit of Baltimore residents (many of them immigrants) who stood up to invading British troops during the War of 1812. 

The U.S. Navy Band choral group, the Sea Chanters, performs throughout the U.S. (often at state occasions) and, has a repertoire that includes a wide range of music - from traditional choral selections to opera to Broadway musicals.  The group's mission includes carrying on the sea chantey tradition from shipboard life in the 1800s.

"I am delighted to welcome O'Malley's March and the Sea Chanters to the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall for Star-Spangled Symphony," said Maestra Alsop. "It will truly be a once-in-a-lifetime concert and a fitting complement to this historic commemoration in Baltimore. The BSO is thrilled to be a part of it." 

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About Star-Spangled 200, Inc. and Star-Spangled Sailabration
Star-Spangled 200, Inc. is the non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that supports the fundraising goals of the Maryland War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission and is charged with helping to ensure the realization of successful programs, events, and community investment during the three-year commemoration period.  Star-Spangled Sailabration is an international maritime festival in Baltimore June 13-19, 2012.  For more information about Star-Spangled Sailabration: visit www.starspangled200.com.

About the Maryland War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission and the Commemorative Coin
Established by Governor Martin O'Malley, the commission is staffed by the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development, Division of Tourism Film and the Arts. The bicentennial, which runs from June 2012 through February 2015, commemorates Maryland's unique contributions to the defense and heritage of the nation, including the pivotal battle that led to an American victory and the birth of "The Star-Spangled Banner." In 2010 President Obama signed a law to create coins commemorating the 200th anniversary of the writing of the Star-Spangled Banner.  The law allows the Commission to receive up to $8.5 million in coin surcharges to help support bicentennial activities, assist in educational outreach, and preserve sites and structures that have War of 1812 significance.  For more information: visit www.starspangled200.org.

About Marin Alsop, BSO Music Director
Hailed as one of the world's leading conductors for her artistic vision and commitment to accessibility in classical music, Marin Alsop became the first woman to head a major American orchestra with her appointment as the 12th music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra in 2007. She also holds the title of conductor emeritus at the Bournemouth Symphony in the United Kingdom, where she served as the principal conductor from 2002-2008. She was recently named the music director of the Orquestra Sinfônica do estado de São Paulo (OSESP), effective in the coming 2012-13 season. Additionally, in summer 2011, Maestra Alsop served her 20th season as music director of the acclaimed Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in California. For more information: visit www.bsomusic.org.

About O'Malley's March
O'Malley's March has been mining the deep traditions of Celtic music for the past 24 years.  Having evolved from a folk trio into a full blown Celtic rock band, singer/songwriter Martin O'Malley and his band mates have performed in concert with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, toured Ireland and released five CDs of traditional and original Irish music. For more information: visit www.omalleysmarch.com.

About the United States Navy Sea Chanters
The United States Navy Band Sea Chanters chorus is the official chorus of the United States Navy.  The ensemble performs a variety of music ranging from traditional choral music to Broadway musicals.  In 1956, Lt. Harold Fultz, then the Band's assistant leader, organized a group from the Navy School of Music in Anacostia to sing chanteys and patriotic songs for the State of Nations dinner.  An immediate success, Admiral Arleigh Burke, Chief of Naval Operations, transferred them to the Navy Band, named them the "Sea Chanters" and tasked this all-male chorus with perpetuating the songs of the sea.  In 1980, the group added women to their ranks and expanded their repertoire to include everything from Brahms to Broadway.  For more information: visit www.navyband.navy.mil/sea_chanters.shtml

About the PNC Foundation
The PNC Foundation, which receives its principal funding from the PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: PNC), actively supports organizations that provide services for the benefit of communities in which it has a significant presence.  The foundation focuses its philanthropic mission on early childhood education and community and economic development, which includes the arts and culture.  Through Grow Up Great, its signature cause that began in 2004, PNC has created a $350 million multi-year initiative to help prepare children from birth to age five for success in school and life.  For more information: visit www.pncsites.com/pncfoundation.