Allentown Arts Commission to honor Allentown Symphony Music Director

By JOHN J. MOSER
THE MORNING CALL | 

SEP 06, 2019 | 6:05 AM

Arts Ovation Awards 2019 – Receiving a top award will be Allentown Symphony Orchestra’s music director and conductor Diane Wittry, who will start her 25th season with the symphony with the Sept. 21 opening. Wittry will be honored for Outstanding Achievement in Literary Arts.

Wittry has written two books. “Beyond the Baton” is a required text at many colleges and universities, including in Great Britain and Australia. “Baton Basics — Communicating Music Through Gestures,” is used in conducting classes across the country and in Europe.

 She’s also a sought-out conducting teacher and mentor, and this summer was invited to teach at three international conducting seminars.

 Wittry’s Allentown Symphony tenure is the second-longest in the symphony’s history and just five years short of the record. Since joining Allentown Symphony, Wittry has expanded the orchestra to perform throughout the region. In recent years, ASO performed a Broadway Music concert at the Levitt Pavilion in Bethlehem, an orchestra on ice programs at Allentown’s PPL Center and a concert this spring at State Theatre in Easton. Last year, Wittry agreed to extend her contract through 2021.

 In 2015, Wittry was chosen among the Top 30 Professional Musicians by Musical America magazine. 

A cocktail reception will precede the ceremony at 5:30 p.m. Tickets, at $60 per person and $30 student (ages 21 and younger) are available by reserving at ovation.allentownarts.com by Sept. 19. Sponsorship opportunities also are available for $250-$1,000; contact Arts Commission Ovation Chairwoman Jane Heft at Arts@AllentownPA.gov or 610-762-8099.

 Morning Call Lehigh Valley Music reporter and columnist John J. Moser can be reached at 610-820-6722 or jmoser@mcall.com