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Buffalo Bills come on board as major sponsor of BPO Carnegie trip

by jmaloni

Press release

Fri, Mar 1st 2013 10:45 pm

Deadline extended for priority tickets to "Spring For Music" at Carnegie Hall

Due to the strong response to ticket sales for "Spring For Music," the deadline for purchasing the best seats in the house has been extended until March 15. To date, the orchestra has sold more than 800 tickets and is on its way toward filling Carnegie Hall.

The Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra will hold priority seats for its May 8 concert until March 15. Those wishing to attend should visit www.bpo.org or call 716-885-5000 to join the growing group of Buffalo fans going on the road to Carnegie Hall with the BPO. Don't delay: The orchestra has seen increasing demand for the tickets and is beginning to fill the prime seats.

The orchestra has welcomed several new sponsors in the past few weeks and is pleased to announce the Buffalo Bills joined this august group.

"We welcome the opportunity to support the BPO and its performance at Carnegie Hall," said Bruce Popko, senior vice president of business development for the Buffalo Bills. "To showcase the incredible talent of the BPO to a statewide audience allows us to help spotlight one of the many treasures the Buffalo community has to offer."

About the Concert

The BPO is one of five orchestras chosen from a national field to perform at "Spring For Music." The weeklong festival showcases innovation and creativity in classical music programming, and seeks to make classical music more accessible. JoAnn Falletta will conduct the BPO as it performs two rarely heard works, both by Russian composers: Reinhold Gliere's Symphony No. 3 "Il'ya Muromets" and "Morning Prayers" from Life Without Christmas by Giya Kancheli.

A Chance to Connect

The BPO's performance at "Spring For Music" has emerged as a rallying point for organizations, corporations and individuals to build and maintain connections and to show their regional pride. Buffalo State College, Canisius High School, Hilbert College, Nardin Academy, Niagara University, University at Buffalo, Nichols, The Park School and the Buffalo Seminary are joining forces to hold an alumni reception prior to the concert in Carnegie Hall's Citi Café. The Buffalo ExPat Network, which connects former Western New Yorkers and has a large New York City membership, is also hosting the pre-concert get-together at Citi Café. To join in the party, visit tickets.bpo.org to reserve tickets.

Local leaders in tourism and business development have jumped on board to showcase the quality of life Western New York offers. Visit Buffalo Niagara will host travel and tourism writers, and Buffalo Niagara Enterprises plans to bring site selectors and corporate real estate executives to the concert. There has been a tremendous groundswell of support around one of this region's major cultural ambassadors.

Showing Support

Since the announcement of the performance, Western New York's corporate community has rallied around the effort, with more than 40 sponsors sending the BPO to New York City. M&T Bank is the lead corporate sponsor of the BPO's appearance in "Spring For Music." Other support has come from companies as diverse as the Acxiom Corporation; Buffalo Bills; Buffalo Niagara Enterprise; Buffalo Sabres Foundation; CNN; Crowley Webb; First Manhattan Consulting Group; Harter Secrest & Emery LLP; Hodgson Russ; Jaeckle, Fleischmann & Mugel LLP; Keller Technology Corporation; LPCiminelli Inc.; NOCO; Philips Lytle; Rich Products; Rosetta; SourceLink; Superior Group; and Uniland Development Company. WNED is the media sponsor for the trip. Additional support is provided by Buffalo Ex-Pat Network; Lawley Insurance; Christye Peterson and Peter Grogan; and The Travel Team/American Express.

Individuals who have donated to the effort are Cindy Abbott Letro and Francis M. Letro; Clement and Karen Arrison; Brian and Barbara Baird; Gary and Willow Brost; Tony and Barbara Cassetta; Anthony and Carmela Colucci; Peter and Maria Eliopoulos; Warren and Carol Emblidge; Angelo and Carol Fatta; David and Eva Herer; John and Maureen Hurley; Thomas and Martha Hyde; Michael and Roberta Joseph; Robert and Carol Morris; Michal and James Wadsworth; and John and Carolyn Yurtchuk.

Charitable foundations supporting the BPO's trip to New York City are the The Baird Foundation; The Robert and Patricia Colby Foundation (Michal and James Wadsworth, Trustees); The Cullen Foundation; Robert J. and Martha B. Fierle Foundation; and The John R. Oishei Foundation.

There is still time to get involved. Contact Jennifer Barbee at 716-242-7810 or [email protected] regarding sponsorship.

If You're Going

A variety of travel and ticket packages are available. Visit bpo.org to see the options. Customization is also possible. The most popular packages include concert tickets and a post-concert celebration at the Russian Tea Room. As media sponsor of the event, WNED is also hosting two of the tour packages with discounts for its members. WNED radio personality Peter Hall will travel with the orchestra and act as master of ceremonies for several events. To find out more about tour packages, contact the Travel Team at 716-862-7667.

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