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ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAMERS STEELY DAN COMING TO MUSIKFEST AUG. 10

DATE: FMarch 7, 2011
CONTACT: Mark Demko, ArtsQuest, 610-332-1300, ext. 342, or mdemko@artsquest.org

ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAMERS STEELY DAN COMING TO MUSIKFEST AUG. 10

BETHLEHEM, PA--Grammy Award winning Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Steely Dan will rock Musikfest this August as part of their Shuffle Diplomacy Twenty Eleven summer tour. Greatest hits and deep cuts alike will be showcased when the tour hits the festival's Sands Steel Stage Wed., Aug. 10 at 7 p.m. Acclaimed jazz artist Sam Yahel is on board as the tour's main support act.

For Shuffle Diplomacy Twenty Eleven, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker are back with their awesome group of players, now dubbed the Miles High Big Band, and their saucy backup trio, the Embassy Brats. The Band and the Brats include Keith Carlock (drums); Jon Herington (guitar); Freddie Washington (bass); Jim Beard (keys); Michael Leonhart, Walt Weiskopf, Roger Rosenberg and Jim Pugh (horns); plus background singers Carolyn Leonhart, Cindy Mizelle and Catherine Russell.

Steely Dan has sold more than 30 million albums worldwide and helped define the soundtrack of the '70s with hits including "Do It Again," "Reelin' in the Years," "Bodhisattva," "Rikki Don't Lose That Number," "F.M.," "Peg," "Deacon Blues," "Hey Nineteen" and "Babylon Sisters." They reunited in the early '90s and have toured throughout the decade and beyond, releasing multi-Grammy winner Two Against Nature in 2000 and its acclaimed follow-up, Everything Must Go, in 2003. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001.

Critics raved about Steely Dan's performances on their Rent Party 2009 tour, with The New York Times stating that Fagen "was deep in the music… a cross between Count Basie and Ray Charles." The Chicago Sun-Times proclaimed: "This was different. This was live. This was vibrant. This was a cascade of color carried along by Fagen, Becker, eight brilliant supporting musicians and three superb backing vocalists." The Los Angeles Times raved: "Everyone gathered Friday evening was a believer – and they were treated to something close to rapture."

The Steely Dan concert is sponsored by Bank of America, IndependenceIT and 99.9 The Hawk. Tickets for the show are $49 and $69. They will go on sale at www.musikfest.org and 610-332-3378 starting Tues., March 15, 10 a.m., to ArtsQuest Members and Fri., March 18, 10 a.m., to the public. Anyone interested in purchasing tickets before the public to this show is invited to become an ArtsQuest Member. Memberships are available at www.artsquest.org or by calling 610-332-3378.

ABOUT ARTSQUEST

ArtsQuest™ is a Bethlehem, PA-based nonprofit dedicated to presenting music, arts, cultural experiences and educational and outreach programs that aid in economic development, urban revitalization and community enrichment. Through festivals such as its flagship event, Musikfest®, and the Banana Factory® cultural arts and education center, ArtsQuest's programming currently reaches more than 1.3 million people annually. ArtsQuest is furthering its mission of celebrating arts and culture through the development of the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks™. The 65,000-square-foot building, set to open in May 2011, will feature live music, independent and scientific films, new festivals and community celebrations year-round, reaching an additional 750,000 people each year.

For more information on ArtsQuest, visit www.artsquest.org or call 610-332-1300.

Town Square in Front of the ArtsQuest Center

Town Square in Front of PBS 39 Public Media and Education Center