William Ross will be at the Oscar® podium as conductor for the 79th Academy Awards, telecast producer Laura Ziskin announced today. This will be the first time that Ross has conducted the Academy Awards Orchestra.

Ross is a prolific, award-winning composer and arranger whose work has spanned feature films, television and the recording industry. He recently composed music for the motion picture September Dawn. Ross has composed music for other films such as The Game of Their Lives, Ladder 49, Tuck Everlasting and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2006 will be presented on Sunday, February 25, 2007, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®.

The Oscars® will be televised live by the ABC Television Network at 5 p.m. PST (8 p.m. EST), beginning with a half-hour red carpet arrivals segment, The Road to the Oscars.