Aetna Supports Sphinx Virtuosi Tour

Aetna Supports Sphinx Virtuosi Tour

-- Exceptional young Sphinx musicians to inspire audiences with their performances and inspire children as Sphinx Aetna Wellness Ambassadors -

HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Aetna (NYSE: AET) encourages fans of classical music to enjoy a performance of the current Sphinx Virtuosi Tour. Soon to visit many major cities, the Sphinx Virtuosi (formerly Sphinx Chamber Orchestra) is a conductorless ensemble comprising alumni from the Sphinx Competition for young Black and Latino string players. This unique group has earned rave reviews from critics and audiences.

Aetna is proud to be a tour sponsor, and to help the Sphinx musicians expand their inspirational outreach to children in the tour communities as Wellness Ambassadors. In cities throughout the tour, the musicians visit with children, particularly in underprivileged communities. The musicians, who are generally in their late teens to late 20s, encourage the children they meet to understand and explore classical music as a possible future path for their talent. As they share their stories with children, they also will stress the importance in their own lives of healthy eating, exercise and other healthy behaviors that help them perform at their personal best.

"Community engagement and leadership are central to the mission of Sphinx, so the Sphinx Aetna Wellness Ambassadors program dovetails well with our Sphinx Virtuosi program," said Andre Dowell of the Sphinx Organization. "The Sphinx Virtuosi tour is about transforming lives through incredible performances and meaningful community engagement. We applaud Aetna's commitment to healthy communities and its innovation in supporting the strong connection between the arts, healthy people, and vibrant, healthy communities."

"In the battle against poor health and obesity in our communities - particularly within diverse communities in every major city in America - we have to use every tool in the kit," said Miguel Centeno, managing director, Aetna Community Relations and Urban Marketing. "Children absorb and learn in surround sound and we think these inspiring young musicians can hit the right notes and leave a memorable, powerful message of health, hope and bright futures with the children they meet. We are thrilled to support this tour and to be working with the Sphinx Organization on this unique program."

The Sphinx Organization is based in Detroit and has as both its vision and mission to "... transform lives through the power of diversity in the arts." The organization pursues this mission by developing Black and Latino classical musicians. The Sphinx Story is in a video at http://www.sphinxmusic.org/index.html.

In addition to the support from Aetna for the Sphinx Virtuosi Tour and the Wellness Ambassadors program, the Aetna Foundation also sponsored the Tour's performance at Carnegie Hall on October 8.

The Sphinx Virtuosi Tour offers a diverse program featuring a well-known repertoire in addition to works by African-American and Latino composers. The remaining 2013 tour dates are:

For more information on tour dates, times, venues and tickets, please visit the Sphinx Organization at http://www.sphinxmusic.org/performance-calendar.html.

About The Sphinx Organization

The Sphinx Organization is a national non-profit founded in 1996 by Dr. Aaron P. Dworkin, a graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy and the University of Michigan (B.B. and M.M.) and Carrie A. Chester, a graduate of the University of Michigan (B.A. in Multicultural Studies and M.A. in Elementary Education). A violinist himself, Dr. Dworkin founded the organization to help overcome the cultural stereotype of classical music, and to encourage the participation of Blacks and Latinos in the field. Sphinx is the national organization dedicated to transforming lives through the power of diversity in the arts. Through its programming, Sphinx reaches approximately 20,000 young people and 2 million in live and broadcast audiences. Learn more at www.SphinxMusic.org.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving an estimated 44 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities, Medicaid health care management services, workers' compensation administrative services and health information technology products and services. Aetna's customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, health care providers, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com.

Aetna Media Contact:
Susan G. Millerick, 860-273-0536
millericks@aetna.com
or
Sphinx Media Contact:
Andre Dowell, 313-877-9100 x712
Andre@SphinxMusic.org

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