Pittsburgh Symphony OrchestraClick here to go back to the home page

A recipient of the Takaya Urakawa Foundation Grant awarded to promising young musicians, Moon Doh is associate conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, appointed by Music Director Manfred Honeck in 2021. In this role, he has conducted subscription, education, family and movie concerts as well as sold-out performances with artists such as Sting. An active community builder, he has presented Beethoven’s string quartets in various libraries across Pittsburgh, held Discovery and Drinks talks in different breweries, and led children’s concerts in diverse venues including the MuseumLab in collaboration with Mo Willems. 

As the Artistic Director and Conductor of the Flora Symphony Orchestra in Cologne, Germany prior to his Pittsburgh appointment, he initiated the orchestra’s first ever live stream concerts that reached an unprecedented number of audiences across the globe over three seasons. He not only led exciting subscription concerts but also worked closely with music pedagogues in order to give young people a chance to learn and experience orchestral music in a meaningful way. 

In recent years, Moon has worked with many orchestras across Europe: WDR Funkhausorchester, Duisburger Philharmoniker, Düsseldorfer Symphoniker, Neue Philharmonie Westfalen, and Bergische Symphoniker, Dortmunder Philharmoniker in Germany, Romanian Chamber Orchestra in Romania, Malaga Philharmonic Orchestra in Spain, Sinfonietta Cracovia in Poland, and Pleven Philharmonic in Bulgaria to name a few. Moon's latest collaborations in the US include debuts with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Symphoria.

Born in South Korea, Moon spent much of his childhood in the Philippines, Russia, and the United States. At the age of nine, he began cello and piano studies in Russia and has since performed with various youth and student orchestras across the globe. As a passionate advocate for young rising artists, he led concerts with the All-State Orchestra of Hessen in Germany. In addition, he was also the conductor of the Under-16 Orchestra of Tonhalle Düsseldorf and regularly coached the Youth Orchestra of Essen.

A staunch believer in empowering others, Moon has actively worked with asylum seekers in Hungary, children in underserved areas of Bangladesh, and inmates in Baltimore as the president of a student organization while completing his B.A. in International Relations and Economics from Johns Hopkins University. He currently sits on the Board of Violence Prevention Network USA, an organization that helps people at risk of radicalization.

Moon studied orchestral conducting at the Robert Schumann Hochschule Düsseldorf in Germany. Prior to his conducting studies, he received a B.A. in music composition from Sahmyook University in South Korea. Moon has participated in renowned music festivals such as Accademia Chigiana in Italy and Bartók Festival in Hungary. His mentors include Manfred Honeck, Rüdiger Bohn, Cristian Măcelaru, Peter Eötvös, and Jorma Panula. IG: @doh.moon

Harvey “Frzy” Daniels is a 2018 regional Emmy Award winner for his collaboration with WQED on his hip-hop version of “Won’t You Be My Neighbor.” The City of Pittsburgh was inspired to officially declare January 11, 2018, “Frzy Day.” Since then, Frzy has become a 2020 Guinness World Record holder for longest freestyle rap at 31 hours, the new Smiley Face Cookie at Eat ‘N Park, and has had a mural created in his likeness by famous muralist Jeremy Raymer. 

Frzy is a member of the Recording Academy (which bestows the annual GRAMMY® Awards) and is a Governor of the Board for the Philadelphia Chapter of the Recording Academy. Frzy has also joined the Board of Directors of The Lindsay Theater, all while being the face of Steve Madden’s “Self Made” campaign. He has helped to raise more than one million dollars for charities and this year helped to increase diversity and inclusion awareness via the successful “Books to Bars” campaign with the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. 

Christian Kriegeskotte (b. 1980) is a composer, arranger and orchestrator with nearly two decades of experience in the performing arts and the entertainment industry. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Music in composition from Carnegie Mellon University School of Music, where his primary teachers were Leonardo Balada, Nancy Galbraith and Fabien Levy. Kriegeskotte additionally studied conducting and choral arranging with GRAMMY®-winning choir director Robert Page, who was himself a great supporter and patron of Kriegeskotte’s compositions. While his degrees were awarded in composition, Kriegeskotte started his formal education in 1998 as a performance major in Highland Bagpipe under the tutelage of Pipe Majors Alasdair Gillies and James McIntosh, MBE. As his schedule allows, he continues to play pipes with the Carnegie Mellon Pipes and Drums. 

Kriegeskotte’s professional career began in Hollywood as a union studio orchestra musician (AFM Local 47) where he worked for Jo Ann Kane Music Service as a copyist. Kriegeskotte worked on music for film and television with some of Hollywood’s most legendary composers including John Williams, John Debney, Marco Beltrami, Danny Elfman, Alf Clausen and many others. 

Kriegeskotte’s film credits include, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Stephen Spielberg’s War of the Worlds, Robert Rodruiguez’s Sin City, the animated feature film Robots, Idiocracy, Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Skeleton Key, The Longest Yard, The World’s Fastest Indian, The Interpreter, Hide and Seek, Meet the Fockers, The Pacifier, Red Eye, XXX 2: State of the Union, Ice Princess, The Fantastic Four, Elektra and others. Christian additionally prepared music for two seasons of The Simpsons, Family Guy, King of the Hill and for the debut season of American Dad. Additional credits include orchestral charts for Kanye West, medley scores for the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and charts for Paul Anka's 2005 album Rock Swings (featuring Anka’s cover of Soundgarden's "Blackhole Sun"). 

After relocating to New York City, Kriegeskotte served as an Associate Producer for storied booking agency, Columbia Artists Management. There, Kriegeskotte produced tours and engagements for Broadway star Betty Buckley and legendary songwriter, pianist and conductor Marvin Hamlisch (an EGOT and Pulitzer Prize recipient and former Principal Pops Conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony). A highlight of this time for Kriegeskotte was accompanying the late Maestro Lorin Maazel on the inaugural tour of the Symphonica Toscanini. 

From 2014 to 2018, Kriegeskotte worked in the record industry for The Orchard, an indie record, film and television distributor, where he rose to the position of Director of Digital Integrations. His work primarily focused on the acquisition and distribution of historic record label catalogs and the integration of international distributors and labels acquired by either The Orchard or its parent company, Sony Music Entertainment. 

As a composer, Kriegeskotte’s work has been performed by GRAMMY® winning ensemble eighth blackbird, The Ethel Quartet, The Parker Quartet, Cuarteto Latinoamericano, The American Composers Orchestra, The New York Miniaturist Ensemble, IonSound Project and The Pittsburgh Opera, among others. Kriegeskotte contributed a live score to Nicktoons Nitro, a game produced in collaboration with Nickelodeon and Chicago-based arcade game designer Raw Thrills Entertainment. Kriegeskotte composed the main title theme for Pittsburgh indie slasher film Scream Park and has provided music for the popular YouTube channel Scenic Fights, which boasts over half a million subscribers. 

As of 2023, Kriegeskotte is a voting member of the Recording Academy and currently serves as Senior Manager of Popular Programming for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, Kriegeskotte is an active writer and music critic and covers contemporary concert music and jazz crossover for I Care If You Listen, a popular blog administered by The American Composers Forum. 

The Faculty first formed as a Rock Band in 2020 after playing live with national recording artist Frzy for multiple high-profile shows. The band has also worked with several featured artists which has allowed the group to bring a unique perspective to multiple genres. They use their resources and experience to work with other artists to foster growth in the Pittsburgh music community. 

DJ Solo Dolo is a nationally recognized DJ. Born in New Jersey and raised in Pittsburgh, PA, Solo Dolo has taken DJing to the next level. DJ Solo Dolo has gone from behind the turntables to TV and radio—from bringing in and playing with world famous artists, to being a soundtrack for the city’s nightlife and wedding. Now he will share the stage with the world-renowned Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra alongside Emmy Award Winning Rapper Frzy with whom he also tours. DJ Solo Dolo’s name is as recognizable to a turntable as Heinz is to Pittsburgh.  

Dwayne Fulton is the founder and Chief Executive of Kingdom People Productions, Inc. (1999) and The SouLyfe Cafe (2003). He has produced and co-produced over 7 musical projects, moving well over 10,000 units to date. Kingdom People, “The Journey,” 2000; Mt. Ararat Church, “Called To Relationship,” 2008 and “Only Jesus,” 2010; Anita Levels “Heal The Soul,” 2006; Anthony “Pops” Mitchell and Friends, “Because of My Faith” 2012; The Brydge “Livin Lyfe Volume 1” 2014. Other artists include Carrie R. Wood (Country Artist), Jamal Peek (Hip Hop Artist), Scribe (Hip Hop Artist), Margo B. (Pop, also stars in HBO’s Boardwalk Empire) and LoRen Knight (Pop). 

Dwayne is an accomplished pianist. His music career dates back from the eighth grade to the present. He’s had the honor of accompanying such great musicians as Grover Washington, Jr., Roger Humphries, Sean Jones, and Nathan Davis. He has shared the stage with other greats such as Keith Sweat, Guy, Fred Hammond, Bobby Jones, Kirk Franklin, The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Michael Bublé’. In 2011 he was hired as the Musical Director for the Opera “Gospel at Colonus” with the Opera Theatre of Pittsburgh, and in 2012 he composed his first opera short for the Opera Theatre of Pittsburgh’s Summer Festival, “Bridal Suite.” In 2013 he composed his second opera short, “The Mayoral Suite,” also for the Opera Theatre of Pittsburgh. In 2010 he was the Musical Director of Raising In The Sun by The Kuntu Repertoire Theatre. Hired as the Musical Director in 2012 for the stage play Who Do You Love by playwright Shaunda Miles of DeMaskus Productions. Dwayne can also “shake a leg,” winning the 2012 Pittsburgh celebrity “So You Think They Can’t Dance” fundraiser at the August Wilson Center. 

Dwayne is a polished actor. He has starred, co-starred in the following works: Annie, George M. Cohen, The Boyfriend, The Amen Corner, and Gypsy Lee Rose. He produced, co-wrote, and starred in an Easter presentation called “King of Every Nation” (2006). He also produced and co-wrote Christmas at The Mount (A Christmas Carol adaptation) in 2013. Must Be Love is his most recent work, producing both soundtrack and script. 

In 2017, Fulton composed his first full length opera with the Pittsburgh Festival Opera Theatre, A Gathering of Sons. This production met with such success that the last performance was filmed and produced to be aired nationally on PPS 4 times in 2018. This production also won a bronze medal in the 2019 New York Festivals and International T.V. & Film Awards presented at the NAB show in Las Vegas, NV. 

In December of 2018 Dwayne composed his second full length opera with the Trilogy Opera Company of Newark, NJ, Scott, Garner, Gray, says Jimmy Baldwin, performed to a full house at the beautiful NJPAC Theatre in New Jersey. Fulton recently (March 2019) completed composing scene and background music for a production in Pittsburgh called “Savior Samuel” with the Pittsburgh Playwright Company. In 2021, Fulton composed the music score for The Martinsville 7 with Trilogy Opera Company that was submitted for a Pulitzer Prize. Dwayne has produced two sellout tribute concerts at The Kelly Strayhorn Theater: “When Doves Cry” a Tribute to Prince in 2022, and a Tribute to the “Queen of Soul” Aretha Franklin in February of 2023. 

Currently he is composing and arranging music for two musicals: Shantytown, The Ballad of Father James Cox and Our Song a DEMASKUS production, as well as an opera, BUMPY, The Ballad Of Bumpy Johnson. All 3 productions will be released in the spring and fall of 2023. Dwayne is entering into movie scoring and soundtracks by scoring the music for a local movie in Pittsburgh, House of Stones, a Redwood Media Production (to be released in 2023). Fulton cofounded The Mt. Ararat Baptist Church Community Center Arts Academy (MACAC Arts Academy), where students aged 10-18 will learn the various disciplines of the art world, such as; music, dance, performance, media, studio recording just to name a few. The Academy will perform The Story of THE WIZ in September 2023, directed and produced by Fulton. 

Afro-Latina soprano Zuly Inirio hails from the Dominican Republic and has appeared as a soloist throughout the United States and Europe. She actively pursues bringing awareness to Afri-Latinidad in classical music with her “Afro-Latinx Song and Opera Project” whose goal is to commission new works about Afro-Latin and Afro-Latinx communities, as well as decolonize the classical music canon by uplifting the contributions and stories of Afro-Latin American and Afro-Latinx classical composers. Through her artistry and activism, she works toward representation and equity for BIPOC. 

Dr. Inirio is also well-versed in concert work and as a recitalist, most notably in the Lyrica Dialogues organized by the Lyrica Society at Harvard in Boston, MA, performing Jake Heggie’s Natural Selection in Baton Rouge, LA, where she worked with the composer directly, and in Austin Opera’s Concerts at the Consulate. Her most notable roles include soprano soloist in Verdi’s Requiem in Munich, Germany under the baton of Massimiliano Murrali, and the title role in Verdi’s Aida in Sicily. 

She was on o the Pittsburgh Concert Society’s Major Artist Competition winners in 2020 and has collaborated with the Incidental Chamber Players, Resonance Works, Edgewood Symphony Orchestra, Bach Choir of Pittsburgh, Quantum Theater, Demaskus Theater Collective, and the National Opera House. She was also the recipient of Unisound’s BTAR (Black Teaching Artist-in-Residence) in 2021 and The SCALE Fellowship in 2022, a program designed by Leigh Solomon Pugliano to advance Black women in music. 

Current affiliations include fellowships with the Sphinx Organization’s SphinxLEAD (Leaders in Excellence, Arts & Diversity), National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC), 1Hood Media Artivist Academy, Latina Women in Opera, and Black Opera Alliance. 

Dr. Inirio holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts from Louisiana State University and a Master’s in Social Work. She is the co-director of the Center for Ethnic Studies Research (CESR) at the University of Pittsburgh. 

Mychole Anderson, known professionally as Mychole Starr, is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Starr is known for her unconventionality as well as her entrancing voice and provocative lyrics. 

Starr began her musical career performing songs at open mic venues, school musicals and the church choir. She studied voice and dance at Larry Cervi’s School of Performing Arts, and Gargaro Pittsburgh. She attended the Pittsburgh High School for Creative and Performing Arts in 2004, where she performed background vocals for Josh Groban with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Following high school, she moved to Washington D.C. to pursue her dream of becoming a professional musician. In D.C., she would become the first female singer in the world-renowned Go-Go Band Northeast Groovers, where she’d win an award for best female vocalist at the 2009 Go-Go Awards. 

After a brief hiatus from the music scene, she co-wrote the hit single “Personal Freak,” featuring legendary rapper Twista. Not long after, she released her first studio album titled Siren The EP. 

Starr has been showcased on BET Jams, MTV Jams, Sirius XM Radio, Music Choice and many other major music outlets. Starr has performed at numerous music conferences and opened for some of the industry’s most popular artists including Fabolous, Jill Scott, K Michelle, and Tory Lanez. 

In October of 2019, Starr had the opportunity to work with AVEX Music publishing and spent 10 days in a writing camp in Tokyo, Japan, later placing a charting song on the J-Pop charts. Starr attended her first Grammy Award show in January of 2020 alongside her brother (one half of the Super Group known as Social House) and Ariana Grande. 

Making a career-changing decision in March 2020, Starr moved to Atlanta, Georgia where she signed with Sony Orchard and released her second studio album, Jaded The EP, in February of 2022. Starr has been featured in Hype and Rolling Out magazines, which highlighted her sultry voice and edgy lyrics. 

Here you meet Bird, Pittsburgh native, up-and-coming female artist and entrepreneur. Hill District born and raised, a woman with many hats, a trailblazer she is! Bird is the founder of NubiQueen17, created in hopes of inspiring other young girls to chase their dreams, bring them confidence, and comfort through sisterhood. Her deepest passion is being a lover and building a village of true community! As an artist, her biggest aspiration is to simply inspire! Keeping it funky, fresh, and cool, she is unapologetically a representation of her generation and a student of those who come before: real raw, uncut, HIP HOP. While hip hop is where the heart lies, Bird is inevitably an artist: painting pictures through words with diversity is her forte! 

Bird the chameleon—while standing out, she gets in where she fits in. Aspiring to mass appeal, an artist, lover and friend. If you ain’t BirdWatching, seriously—wyd!?  

Affectionately nicknamed the “Best Kept Secret in Western Pennsylvania,” singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Megan Paullet is a force to be reckoned with. A multi-genre artist, Megan’s vocal and compositional influences range from “A to Z” (Aretha to Zappa) and everything in between. The dynamic contrast between Megan’s captivating, high-energy full band performances and her intimate, impassioned acoustic original material blend musicianship, artistry, and versatility. Described as a “musical alchemist,” Megan’s music transforms emotions and experiences into inventive lyrics and captivating melodies that fans say leaves them feeling as though “she wrote that song about me.” 

Megan has received numerous local and national awards and accolades, a testament to her remarkable talent and immeasurable dedication to her craft. For two consecutive years (2022 and 2023), she has been nominated for Multi-Genre Vocalist of the Year by the committee of the Josie Music Awards, the largest, most prestigious association in the independent music industry. She has also shared the stage with many internationally acclaimed artists, including Mike Massé, John Hall (Orleans), and Josh Gallagher (NBC’s The Voice Top 4 finalist). 

By day, Megan shines as a dedicated educator, encouraging the next generation of young minds to “ride passionately in pursuit of their dreams.” Alongside her teaching responsibilities, Megan is the lead singer of the band 56 East (Funk/Rock/Oldies), Pyramid Incident (Psychedelic Rock), and is currently fronting an original project. For more information about Megan, please visit meganpaulletmusic.com. 

Dr. Jason Kush is an active saxophonist, educator, and scholar.  Kush has performed as a soloist and ensemble member in wide variety of genres in the United States, Europe, Central and South America.  Kush has extensive experience as an orchestral musician, performing with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (over 200 services including a 2013 European tour), the Russian National Orchestra, and New World Symphony (including a 2008 European Tour).  In addition to his membership in the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra, Kush has worked as a free-lance jazz/commercial saxophonist with the Woody Herman Orchestra, the Manchester Craftsman’s Guild Big Band, the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, the South Florida Jazz Orchestra, East Central Jazz Educators All-Star Big Band, Paquito D’Rivera, Arturo Sandoval, Eddie Daniels, Christian McBride, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Benny Golson, Maceo Parker, Sean Jones, Freddy Cole, Kevin Mahogany, Wayne Bergeron, Frank Sinatra, Jr., Patti Austin, Dave Koz, Andrea Bocelli, Barry Manilow, Common, Patti LuPone, Jane Lynch, Michael Feinstein, Johnny Mathis, Freddy Cole, Michael Bolton, Hugh Jackman, the Temptations, the Supremes, the O’Jays, and the Four Tops, among many others.  Kush’s Carnegie Hall debut occurred in 1998 with a performance by the All-Eastern U.S. High School Honors Band, with a return visit in 2008 to premier Christopher Rouse’s “Wolf Rounds” for wind ensemble.  In addition to live performances, Kush recorded with the South Florida Jazz Orchestra, the Stephen Philip Harvey Jazz Orchestra, the East Central Jazz Educators All-Star Big Band, Pittsburgh Festival Opera, reggatone artist Hector el Father, the South 9 Ensemble, the Nathan Douds Ensemble, as well as Eddie Daniels, Tom Scott, and the Henri Mancini Institute Big Band, a project that received a two Grammy Nominations in 2006.   

Kush’s solo discography includes Intersecting Lines (New Focus Records/Naxos) and Sonate (Armazi Productions). The Jason Kush Quartet is anticipating at 2023 release on MCG Jazz. 

Kush is the leader of the Bridges Saxophone Quartet, a fresh new chamber group composed of four versatile saxophone artists of the Pittsburgh/Western Pennsylvania region.  Bridges seeks to honor the classic repertoire of the idiom while surging forward into new compositions.  The group explores myriad genres, from medieval compositions to modern classical and jazz works.    

Kush’s scholarly work includes a dissertation on the life and innovations of Belgian inventor François Louis, as well as feature articles and interviews in various magazines and journals pertaining to saxophone performance and pedagogy, including in Saxophone Journal, Polyphonic.org, The Instrumentalist, and The International Musician. 

In 2013, Kush established the Three Rivers New Music Consortium, an internationally reaching non-profit organization whose goal is to unite musicians, arts enthusiasts, and musical composers in a common quest for newly composed music. The first commission by this organization premiered in 2014 – Out of this World – a trio for alto saxophone, cello, and piano by David Maslanka. 

Ryan Neitznick is a Pittsburgh-based guitarist, composer and record producer who currently heads the guitar program at CAPA, Pittsburgh’s premier Creative and Performing Arts Magnet School. A graduate of CAPA himself, Neitnick has studied with many Pittsburgh jazz legends including Joe Negri and Roger Humphries and additionally holds a bachelor of fine arts in guitar performance and composition from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. He has written cues for television ("Making It" on NBC with Amy Poehler and "Nashville" on ABC). Neitznick played guitar on tour with Mac Miller in 2013 (Space Migration Tour), and has additionally performed with indie rock group Dr. Dog and on tour with Eric Slick. For over 10 years Neitznick ran Ice House Recordings in Lawrenceville. Neitznick has producer-performer credits on Mac Miller's albums "On and On and Beyond..." (Live Free, guitar and bass, In the Air, keyboard and producer) and "Blue Slide Park" (Of the Soul, piano with ID Labs), Wiz Khalifa's album "ONIFC" (guitar) and "Blacc Hollywood" (guitar). He has worked with ID Labs and Rostrum Records.