FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 16, 2008

PHILANTHROPISTS MOULI AND STACY COHEN
SPONSOR A DEBUT RECORDING BY FAMED CONDUCTOR CARLO PONTI, FEATURING THE WORLD RENOWNED RUSSIAN NATIONAL ORCHESTRA

SAN FRANCISCO—Dec. 16,2009—The Russian Arts Foundation is pleased to announce that conductor Carlo Ponti has made a debut disc with the world renowned Russian National Orchestra (RNO). The recording was underwritten by San Francisco Bay Area philanthropists Mouli and Stacy Cohen, and was released early December.

The SuperAudio CD on the PentaTone Classics label features Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition and Night on the Bare Mountain, orchestrated respectively by Maurice Ravel and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Also included are symphonic selections from two Mussorgsky operas, The Sorochinsky Fair and Khovanshchina.

“The connection between classical music, culture, and society is a powerful one," said Mouli Cohen. "We made our first gift to the Russian Arts Foundation several years ago, when we underwrote a concert that offered underprivileged children the opportunity to experience the RNO conducted by the incredible Carlo Ponti. We are proud to be able to make Maestro Ponti’s first recording possible, and to once again share such magnificent music with the world.”

The critically acclaimed Ponti was appointed Associate Conductor of the Moscow-based RNO in 2000, and since 2001 has been Music Director and Principal Conductor of the San Bernardino Symphony in the United States. He has appeared as guest conductor with the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta de Valencia, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and Budapest Concert Orchestra, among others, as well as at numerous international music festivals.

Ponti joins an impressive roster of conductors represented in the RNO’s extensive discography: the orchestra’s founder and music director Mikhail Pletnev and principal guest conductor Vladimir Jurowski, along with Kent Nagano, Alexander Vedernikov and Paavo Berglund. Awarded a 2004 Grammy for its CD of Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf and Beintus’s Wolf Tracks, the RNO is the first Russian orchestra ever to receive the recording industry’s highest honor.

In addition to their substantial commitment to the arts, Mr. Cohen and his wife Stacy also provide major support to children’s charities and to medical research and education projects both nationally and internationally. They have supported a wide array of critical causes, including pediatric cancer and blindness, autism, stem cell research, and after-school education programs.

Media Contact: Mona Baroudi, 415.615.2735, mona.baroudi@sbcglobal.net

Pictured: Mouli and Stacy Cohen with Carlo and Andrea Ponti at the December 5, 2009 CD release party at Gagosian Gallery in Beverly Hills, CA

Biographies and high-resolution photos are available at:
Carlo Ponti – www.carloponti.com
Russian National Orchestra – www.rno.ru
Mouli and Stacy Cohen – www.moulicohen.com, www.stacycohen.com
PentaTone Classics – www.pentatonemusic.com