Charles Fox And Freinds Present THE SONGS OF OUR LIVES Benefit Concert 12/8

Some of the greatest songwriters of the past 50 years will convene in New York City on Tuesday, December 8, 2009 for The Songs of Our Lives: Performed by the Songwriters Who Wrote Them, a benefit concert for Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts. The unique evening will feature songwriters talking about - and performing - the songs they wrote. The program will include recollections from such musical luminaries as High School of Music and Art alumnus Charles Fox ("Killing Me Softly," "I Got a Name," "Ready to Take A Chance Again"), as well as songwriters Hal David ("What The World Needs Now," "Alfie"), Alan Bergman ("The Way We Were," "The Windmills of Your Mind"), Charles Strouse ("Bye Bye Birdie," "Annie"), Paul Williams ("Evergreen," "We've Only Just Begun"), Alan Menken ("Little Shop of Horrors," "Beauty and the Beast," "Aladdin") and David Zippel ("City of Angels," "Hercules"). In addition to Mr. Fox, the work of other school alums including songwriting greats Marilyn Bergman, Cy Coleman and Ed Kleban, will be performed during the evening. Tony Walton directs.

The 7p.m. concert will be held in the intimate 500-seat Little Flower Theatre (100 Amsterdam Avenue @ 66th Street). Tickets are $300 and include a post show reception with the songwriters and special guests at O'Neal's Restaurant (46 West 64th Street - between Broadway & Central Park West). There are a limited number of $150 tickets available for the concert only. To purchase tickets, please call 212-595-1301. For more information, visit www.alumniandfriends.org.

The Songs of Our Lives was conceived and organized by composer Charles Fox to help the school through a budget cutting period brought on by the general economic conditions and to continue to provide the highest standard of nurturing and developing young, gifted students in the arts. "As an alumnus of Music and Art High School which merged with the High School of Performing Arts 25 years ago, I benefited enormously in my early musical education and development at this extraordinary school," explains Fox. "I feel devoted to helping the school continue the same high level of opportunities that it has offered so many of us in the arts over the years."

Kim Bruno, principal of LaGuardia High School, when asked about the event said,
"We are thrilled to have Charles Fox and this extraordinary group of talented songwriters at LaGuardia. This event starts the 25th anniversary year of LaGuardia and I can think of no better way to mark the occasion."

In addition to raising the needed funds for The LaGuardia High School for the Arts to continue all of its arts programs during this difficult economic period, it is the hoped that the concert will also raise public awareness of this unique and extraordinary institution that has produced many of the world's great artists in every category for the past 60 years.