News of Note From Pitt: Pitt Bioengineer Wins One of Field's Most Prestigious Prizes and Pitt Composer Honored With Two Commissions For New Work

· Pitt professor’s contributions to bioengineering recognized with prestigious 2011 Van C. Mow Medal, the only institution with faculty who have received the award twice since it was established in 2004 

· Two foundations award a commission for new work to Pitt Professor of Music Composition and Theory Eric Moe 

PITTSBURGH—Behind the larger stories about the University of Pittsburgh are other stories of faculty, staff, and student achievement as well as information on Pitt programs reaching new levels of success. The following is a compilation of some of those stories.  

Pitt Professor’s Contributions to Bioengineering Recognized With Prestigious 2011 Van C. Mow Medal, the Only Institution With Faculty Who Have Received the Award Twice 

David Vorp, a Pitt professor of bioengineering and surgery whose research combines human blood vessels with mechanical theory, has been awarded the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ 2011 Van C. Mow Medal, one of the most prestigious awards in engineering. The annual prize recognizes notable and lasting contributions to the field of bioengineering. 

Vorp is the second Pitt professor to win the award since 2009, joining Michael Sacks, the John A. Swanson Endowed Chair of bioengineering. Pitt is the only institution with faculty who have received the award twice since it was established in 2004 to honor the eponymous founder of Columbia University’s biomedical engineering department. Other past recipients have represented such institutions as Duke University, Rice University, and the University of California at Berkeley. 

As a researcher, Vorp focuses on vascular biomechanics and how the structure of vessels contributes to various medical conditions. His current projects include studying the mechanisms of abdominal aortic aneurysm rupture, the urethra and stress urinary incontinence, and aneurysm weakening. He also works on the design of tissue-engineered blood vessels. 

Vorp serves as a director of the Center for Vascular Remodeling and Regeneration and as director of the Vascular Surgery and Vascular Biomechanics Research Lab, both based in the Pitt-UPMC McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine. For more information, contact Pitt News Representative Morgan Kelly at 412-624-4356 (office), 412-897-1400 (cell), mekelly@pitt.edu.  

Two Foundations Award Commission for New Work to Pitt Professor of Music Composition and Theory Eric Moe 

The Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation in the Library of Congress and the Koussevitzky Music Foundation, Inc., have jointly awarded commissions for new works by eight composers in New York and Pennsylvania, including Erie Moe, Pitt professor of music composition and theory. 

This is Moe’s second Koussevitzky commission; the first was Up and At 'Em (1989), scored for chamber ensemble. As a pianist and keyboardist, Moe has recorded works of John Cage, Marc-Antonio Consoli, Mathew Rosenblum, Jay Reise, and Roger Zahab, in addition to his own music; his recorded performances are on the Koch, CRI, Mode, AK/Coburg, and Albany labels. 

Moe, who codirects the Pitt Music on the Edge series, has received numerous awards and grants from, among others, the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the Guggenheim Foundation. He has received commissions from the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, The Fromm Foundation, and Meet-the-Composer USA. 

Recently, Moe became one of only 10 composers nationwide selected for a prestigious Aaron Copland Award residency at Copland House in Mt. Kisco, N.Y., the home of the late eminent composer that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. That residency runs from mid-April to mid-May 2011. 

Koussevitsky was a celebrated Russian-born conductor, composer, and double-bassist known for his 1924-49 tenure as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and for his commissions and world-premiere performances of many 20th-century works now accepted as staples of the standard orchestral repertoire. For more information, contact Pitt News Representative Sharon Blake at 412-624-4364 (office); 412-277-6926 (cell); blake@pitt.edu. 

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