Heinz School Student Receives the 2005 VITA Award
Colin O'Donohoe, a student in the Master of Arts Management Program, has
been selected to receive the VITA
award from WQED and the
Dominion Foundation,
in recognition of his volunteer work to create Pittsburgh's only Chinese Orchestra,
the New Moon Orchestra.
WQED and Dominion promote the arts by recognizing outstanding volunteers. Colin will receive the award at a ceremony in September.
Colin has a strong background as a performer and conductor of world music. To create the New Moon Orchestra he identified local musicians who could perform traditional Chinese music as well as contemporary pieces. He obtained the use of traditional Chinese instruments from the University of Pittsburgh. In addition, Colin translates original Chinese scores into Western scores so they can be read by modern musicians. The ability to translate these scores is a rare skill.