Rheanna Bellomo

For Peter Holland-Recine, a senior in music production and engineering at Berklee College, getting his band onto Berklee’s student-run record label, Heavy Rotation Records,has been a boost.

“The most important things that we have gained from Heavy Rotation are recognition and exposure, which then give us validation in the [music] industry,” he said of his Black Lettle band.

The label recently sold out its 10th annual release concert for its latest album, Dorm Sessions: 7 at the college’s 1,200-seat performance center, where all nine of the artists featured on the album performed.

Many agreed that the label has given their musical careers a terrific jump start.

Black Kettle is one of nine local artists featured on Dorm Sessions. 7 Others include Ann Driscoll, Jordan Tarrant, Liz Longley, Tin Soldier, Julia Easterlin, Liptease, Tais Alvarenga, and KR & the Future. The album features a compilation of rock, pop, Latin, folk and hip-hop genres.

Commonly known as HR, the label has released 12 albums since 1995, which have featured artists such as Big D and the Kids Table, The Click Five, and Emerson’s own Passion Pit. Heavy Rotation Records is run by students participating in the music business and management practicum at Berklee.

“The label serves as a springboard for careers in the music industry,” said Berklee’s website, which cited HR alumni as current Interscope, Capitol Records, DreamWorks, Live Nation, and Universal employees.

The faculty advisor of the label, Jeff Dorenfeld, who is also the former manager of the band Boston, said that the practicum gives students the opportunity to work with realities of the music world.

“The students must apply what they’ve learned in a practical sense, take risks, and do the work of a true label. The result isn’t a test score, it’s the record itself,” he said.

Heavy Rotation student director Cierra Walker, a senior music business and management major, said the best part of running the practicum as a “true label” is that it helps the artists focus on their music. “We take care of all the business aspects so that the artists don’t have to. That way, they can focus on putting their best work forward, creating the best show possible and getting the most exposure they can,” she said.

Heavy Rotation produced 2,000 copies of Dorm Sessions: 7, which was given away to those who attended the release concert.

Berklee junior music production and electronic production design double major Julia Easterlin said the album and its release performance have given her a broader audience and acknowledgement in the Berklee music scene.

“I have received a lot of positive feedback from not only the Berklee community but from the Boston community as a whole. People recognize me and are so enthusiastic about and supportive of my music,” she said. “I’ve gained lot more listeners than I ever could have on my own.”

Holland-Recine, Black Kettle’s guitarist, said that the band had put a lot of work into promoting themselves but that it was Heavy Rotation that sparked the band’s exposure.

“All of a sudden things just exploded for us with the release of the album and after the performance. It all happened much faster than ever before,” he said.

Both Easterlin and Black Kettle agree that Heavy Rotation’s support has been the most beneficial to them. Black Kettle vocalist and guitarist Kailynn West, a Berklee senior music production and engineering major, said the band’s collaboration with the label has given it the reputation it needs to continue on in the business.

“We’re not sure where we’ll be headed next, but we know that our relationship with Heavy Rotation will extend beyond Berklee and we will be able to continue to work together,” she said. “That kind of support is really encouraging.”

Easterlin said Heavy Rotation has helped her become more secure in her musical style and identity. “It makes it so much easier when you’re booking a gig to have someone there to back you up and say, ‘She really can do this,’” she said. “Their support really boosts my faith in having a musical career.”

Heavy Rotation is currently working with four of its recorded artists and will be attending the “South by Southwest” music festival in Austin, Texas, which Dorenfeld described as one of the largest independent music events in the country. “The music never stops at South by Southwest, it is 24/7,” he said. “A lot of artists get discovered there.”

The festival will begin on March 17 and end March 21. Attending the event will be Black Kettle, Ann Driscoll, Jordan Tarrant, and Nini & Ben, a Heavy Rotations alumni group.

“We’re driving down and checking out all the major music cities along the way,” Holland-Recine said. “We’re going to see where we fit in.”

Editor’s addendum:  I went to the last Dorm Sessions concert, which is why I asked Rheanna to write about this.  It was the night of the ‘blizzard that wasn’t,’ and a meeting had been cancelled, so I decided to celebrate by asking for a press pass to this event – I have never been happier with a blizzard in my life.  This year more than 300 individuals and groups auditioned, so the nine who were finally selected all totally feel like “top of the heap” performers.

I won’t try to say something intelligent about every single act, although I really liked every single one.  But I was especially moved by Liz Longely and Julia Easterlin.  When they sing about love it’s easy enough to imagine being in love with them, if you’re inclined that way.  But what they really accomplish is to model a version of love that you want to adopt as your own.  For a few minutes they make what should be seem like what actually is.  That’s what makes us want to listen to them over and over again.

I also appreciate that the concert organizers topped it off with KR and the Future – they were a great band to climax the evening with – sent us back out into the faux storm with a little extra energy.
- Stephen Brophy

by Tracey Cusick

Stick Fly. the latest production of the Huntington Theatre Company at the Calderwood Pavilion, is a play about examining other people. The play takes place in a well-to-do house on Martha’s Vineyard, a vacation home belonging to the LeVays, an upper class African American family. It captures a few days in the lives this family; after which family dynamics will never be the same.

Kent “Spoon” LeVay, the son of Dr. Joseph LeVay, has brought his fiancee Taylor to meet the family. Taylor, who’s also African American, grew up in less affluent circumstances than the LeVays, and her self-consciousness in the upper class household is palpable. Meanwhile, Spoon’s older brother Flip shows up with his girlfriend Kimber. A self-described WASP. Kimber is from the same economic class as the LeVays; one of the running jokes in the first act is Flip’s attempt to make his family overlook this racial difference by introducing Kimber to them at “Italian.” Also present is the African American high school aged housekeeper Cheryl who’s filling in for her mother, the long-time housekeeper who called in sick.

These characters don’t balk when conversations that start out light reveal underlying assumptions about race and class, they respond with more assumptions, setting up many of the very funny lines in the play. But there’s clearly more going on: Dr. LeVay arrives without his wife and is evasive about her absence. Despite supposedly being sick, Cheryl’s mother keeps calling, and Taylor is strangely awkward about the subject of her father, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Various secrets are revealed during the course of the play, some secrets resulting from assumptions made much earlier than this weekend at the Vineyard.

The conversations between the characters are significant in that they mirror what often happens when real people discuss race and class: offense, often unintended, is given and taken. In some ways these characters serve as models for such conversations; despite conflicts they continue to interact, and some end up liking each other despite trying not to. Much of the play is laugh-out-loud funny, in part because the characters clearly articulate familiar cliches usually clouded behind metaphor. Ironically, the most hurtful and potentially unresolvable conflict is not the result of anything anyone says, but the result of something too long left unsaid.

The play gives the audience many questions to ponder. Is an elite education an automatic entrée into a higher social class? To what extent does family confer social status? How does financial support compensate for a lack of emotional support?

The set depicts the living room, kitchen, and porch of the LeVay home, and captures the feeling of a well-appointed vacation home. By virtue of the open design, some separate scenes cleverly play out simultaneously. The characters are all likeably affable and the players seamlessly slip into their roles. This play is very enjoyable as both a comedy and thought-provoking drama and will undoubtedly be a spark to many post-theater discussions.

Editorial addendum: I also saw this play and want to commend the entire cast for its excellent ensemble work. Playwright Lydia Diamond has constructed a narrative full of serious interaction (so much so that even the absent parents have quite a bit of stage presence), and the Huntington actors really make it work. It would be impossible to single out one of them as more powerful than another, but I still want to put in a special word for Amber Iman, who plays Cheryl, the “maid.” I found myself expecting to laugh a little harder every time her character had something to say. Except of course when things got serious…

The Huntington Theatre Company has just added several performances to the schedule because of the play’s popularity.
Stephen Brophy

Follow this link to find out about tickets and times.

KEITH LOCKHART AND BOSTON POPS CELEBRATE ORCHESTRA’S 125TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON, MAY 4 – JUNE 20, 2010

WORLD PREMIERE OF “THE DREAM LIVES ON: A PORTRAIT OF THE KENNEDY BROTHERS,” BY COMPOSER PETER BOYER AND LYRICIST LYNN AHRENS, TO TAKE PLACE MAY 18

POPS ANNOUNCES NATIONAL CONTEST THROUGH TWITTER, FACEBOOK, AND MOBILE PHONE TEXT MESSAGES FOR FAMILY OF FOUR TO WIN TRIP TO BOSTON’S FOURTH-OF-JULY CELEBRATION, DETAILS AT BOSTONPOPS.ORG/125

BOSTON POPS‘ 2010 SEASON AND OPENING NIGHT SPONSORED BY FIDELITY INVESTMENTS

Today, Friday, February 19, Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops announce details of the orchestra’s 125th anniversary season, May 4-June 20, 2010, outlining programs that celebrate the orchestra’s rich tradition of performing the great music of this country’s past and present, for which the Boston Pops is so well known. Season details are also available at www.bostonpops.org TICKETS FOR THE 125TH BOSTON POPS SEASON, PRICED FROM $20-$99, GO ON SALE MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22, THROUGH BOSTONPOPS.ORG OR BY CALLING 888-266-1200.

SEASON OVERVIEW
The 125th season opens on May 4 with a gala concert featuring multiple Tony Award-winner Idina Menzel and the inimitable Doc Severinsen, who holds the distinction of having performed under the batons of Arthur Fiedler, John Williams, and Keith Lockhart—a perfect addition to a program honoring the leadership legacies of the three most famous Boston Pops conductors. During the season the Pops will present the world premiere of a new work in honor of the Kennedy brothers, mark the 10th anniversary of the popular radio and TV show “From the Top,” focus on esteemed artists from the fields of jazz, musical theater, and pop, including Dave Brubeck, Kelli O’Hara, and Maureen McGovern, and honor the legacies of such musical titans as Ray Charles, Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, and Rodgers and Hammerstein. Daniel Bernard Roumain, who in concert melds his classical music roots with his own Haitian-American cultural references and vibrant musical imagination, and Ozomatli, the multi-Grammy award-winning, genre-defying sensation, join the orchestra for programs that continue the Pops tradition of focusing on the best and brightest new talent on the musical scene today. Returning to the Pops schedule is the legendary film music series under the direction of John Williams, this year marking his 30th anniversary with the Pops, and one of the newest Pops traditions, Gospel Night with Charles Floyd. To bring the 125th season to a close in June, the Boston Pops will present one of this country’s greatest living legends—the incomparable Arlo Guthrie. A complete program listing appears at the end of this press release.

Photos, video, artist bios, and a Boston Pops 125 timeline and history are available at www.bostonpops.org/presskit.

WHAT FOLLOWS ARE SECTIONS ON SPECIAL EVENTS AND INITIATIVES; WEEKLY PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS; DETAILED TICKET INFORMATION; A SHORT HISTORY OF THE ORCHESTRA; AND A CONCERT LISTING.

SPECIAL EVENTS AND INITIATIVES THROUGHOUT THE 125th BOSTON POPS SEASON

WORLD PREMIERE OF KENNEDY BROTHERS TRIBUTE, MAY 18
On May 18, Keith Lockhart, the Boston Pops Orchestra, the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, and several celebrity narrators will perform the world premiere of “The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers,” honoring Massachusetts native sons John, Robert, and Edward Kennedy. Written by Peter Boyer, composer of Ellis Island, which many rank as one of the most successful large-scale American orchestral works of the last decade, and Lynn Ahrens, lyricist of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Ragtime, “The Dream Lives On” pays tribute to the call to public service, drive for social change, and the legacy of optimism for America’s future, a spirit epitomized by the Kennedy brothers. This new piece will feature four narrators: three male voices representing the three Kennedy brothers and a female voice for the portions of the narration that are not quotes. The new work will also be featured in concert on May 19, 20, 21, and 22. With these performances, the Boston Pops also marks the 40th anniversary of the Tanglewood Festival Chorus.

BOSTON POPS 125th TELEVISION DOCUMENTARY TO AIR ON PBS IN SPRING
A Boston Pops 125th documentary, to air nationally on PBS this spring (further details about broadcast dates to be announced at a later date), will highlight the Pops as an intrinsic part of this country’s musical heritage by celebrating its past, present, and future. The tribute recalls how Arthur Fiedler (1930-79) created the modern-day Pops, establishing the orchestra as a national icon and introducing innovations that continue today. The program will also reflect on how Conductor Laureate John Williams (1980-1993) and present-day conductor Keith Lockhart (1995 to present) have shepherded the orchestra through three decades of change in the world of music. The Boston Pops 125th documentary was made possible by a grant from the Mugar Foundation.

This special program will feature interviews and/or performances by Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, Vanessa Williams, Keith Lockhart, John Williams, Yo-Yo Ma, Wynton Marsalis, Sarah Vaughan, and Roberta Flack. Rare footage of favorite artists past and present, including Ella Fitzgerald, Johnny Cash, Benny Goodman, Tony Bennett, James Taylor, Sammy Davis, Jr., John Raitt, k.d. lang, Patti LaBelle, and Elvis Costello, as well as Broadway stars Ethel Merman, Bernadette Peters, Nathan Lane, and Jerry Herman will also be featured.  The program is being produced by longtime Evening at Pops producer, Susan Dangel.

NATIONAL CONTEST FOR FAMILY OF FOUR TO ATTEND BOSTON’S 2010 4TH OF JULY CONCERT USES FACEBOOK, TWITTER, AND TEXT MESSAGING TO DETERMINE WINNER
The Boston Pops is also announcing a national contest to bring a family of four to Boston for the Boston Pops‘ Fourth-of-July concert on the Charles River Esplanade, with airfare, hotel and ground transportation to and from Logan Airport provided by the travel partners of the Boston Pops:  American Airlines, The Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel, and Commonwealth Worldwide Chauffeured Transportation.  Contestants must submit a 125-character-or-less message describing why the Pops should choose their family for a trip to Boston’s famous July 4 celebration this year. Entries can be submitted via text message by cell phone, on the Pops Facebook and Twitter pages, or on the Boston Pops website. All submissions are due by May 15.  For more information about this contest, please visit www.bostonpops.org/125.

SPECIAL 125TH ANNIVERSARY EDUCATION PROGRAM WITH KEITH LOCKHART AND DANIEL BERNARD ROUMAIN
The Boston Pops will present a special 125th anniversary education program at three area schools to bring music into the classroom by creating connections between music and the lives of today’s students. The program, headed by Keith Lockhart, joined by composer and violinist Daniel Bernard Roumain and members of the Boston Pops in performance, will feature in school lecture-demonstrations, and provide students the opportunity to attend live performances at Symphony Hall.  To accompany the in-school program and reach out to other kids, the Pops will create an online, interactive feature as part of this new initiative.  The details will be announced in the spring.

FIDELITY FUTURE STAGE MUSIC COMPETITION, MAY 26
Following the phenomenal success of its launch in 2009, Fidelity FutureStage at the Boston Pops returns to Symphony Hall in 2010.  Developed by Fidelity Investments to expand its long-standing support of the arts through music and other arts education programs in local communities, the Fidelity FutureStage at the Boston Pops Music Competition is open to full time students grades 9-12 attending any public high school in Boston or Cambridge.  Up to four instrumental and/or vocal grand prize winners will be selected to perform at a special Boston Pops Concert on May 26 at Symphony Hall.  Applications for the 2010 music competition are now available and will be accepted through March 26, 2010. For more information and application details, visit www.bostonpops.org or www.futurestage.com.

125 WEB INITIATIVES AND WEEKLY WGBH CONCERTS
BostonPops.org celebrates the Pops 125th anniversary season with an interactive timeline of the Pops and its history and a weekly series of Pops video podcasts throughout the season.  Highlights will include details about the Pops inception by civil war veteran and Boston Symphony Orchestra founder Henry Lee Higginson; its explosion into the public awareness during the 50-year tenure of the charismatic maestro Arthur Fiedler; its Hollywood partnerships under the baton of John Williams; and its continuing evolution under the leadership of Keith Lockhart, all of which will be illustrated in a colorful, interactive interface with historic and current day images.  The site will also feature weekly video podcasts throughout the 125th season, each taking a closer look at the week’s programming with interviews with Keith Lockhart and special guest artists.   The Boston Pops is online at bostonpops.org, part of bso.org, the largest and most visited orchestra site in the world, receiving more than 7.5 million visitors annually.

In addition, WGBH’s 99.5 All Classical station will air weekly Saturday-evening Boston Pops broadcasts throughout the season, May 4-June 20.

CONCERTS IN THE PARKS AND SHOPS AT PRUDENTIAL CENTER CELEBRATES BOSTON POPS’ 125TH
Boston’s Shops at Prudential Center will mark the Boston Pops‘ 125th anniversary with an archival exhibit at the Huntington Avenue Arcade, starting in mid-April for three weeks.  The focal point of this special display will be a Boston Pops 125 timeline that will give viewers a look into the orchestra’s storied history and the many accomplishments that collectively have made the Boston Pops one of Boston’s and the country’s most treasured traditions.  Photos and video of past and present times, along with archival materials including old album covers, programs, and menus, as well as special features on Arthur Fiedler, John Williams, and Keith Lockhart, are just a few of the highlights of this 125th exhibit.

Performing ensembles made up of members of the Boston Pops will present a series of parks concerts, bringing their music to communities throughout the Greater Boston area.

PRESIDENTS AT POPS GALA CELEBRATES 125TH, MAY 19
In honor of the Pops 125th Anniversary, the annual Presidents at Pops fundraising event, now in its 29th year, will present a program marking this landmark year for the Pops.  The evening will begin with a pre-concert celebratory reception in festively decorated Symphony Hall.  The evening’s program, including a performance of the Pops‘ new work, “The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers,” honoring Massachusetts native sons John, Robert, and Edward Kennedy, will pay special homage to the history of the orchestra by highlighting the unique contributions of the Arthur Fiedler, John Williams, and Keith Lockhart eras, with special guests joining the orchestra for this anniversary celebration.  Although tickets to this event have traditionally been available exclusively to the Boston business community, individual tickets and special ticket packages will be offered to the general public.  Further details about this gala fund raiser will be announced at a later date.

BOSTON POPS 125TH SEASON PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS WEEK BY WEEK, MAY4-JUNE 20

WEEK ONE, MAY 4-8
OPENING NIGHT, MAY 4
Keith Lockhart leads the Boston Pops in a concert that celebrates the 125-year storied history of the Boston Pops in a three-part program that showcases the Pops—past, present, and future—starting with the modern-day Pops, ushered in by Arthur Fiedler starting in the 1930s.  The program begins with an exploration of the legacy of Arthur Fiedler and how he put the Pops on the musical map, highlighted by a performance of George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” by pianist Michael Chertock. The program continues with musical selections that consider the singular contributions of conductor/composer John Williams, with a special focus on the great film scores he brought to the Pops.  An appearance by the inimitable Doc Severinsen, former band leader of “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” and one of the few artists to have performed with Arthur Fiedler, John Williams, and Keith Lockhart, will also be featured. For the final portion of the program, Keith Lockhart presents musical selections that highlight the orchestra’s present-day accomplishments, while also providing a lighthearted glimpse into the Pops‘ future and imagining what might be in store down the road for this great orchestra.  This portion of the program will feature multiple Tony Award-winning actress and vocalist Idina Menzel (Rent, Wicked) who will sing her Broadway hits and a selection from her new CD “I Stand.”

IDINA MENZEL, MAY 5 AND 6, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
Broadway powerhouse Idina Menzel – the multiple Tony Award-winning singer/actress who played “Elphaba” in the international blockbuster Wicked – joins Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops for two nights this spring, May 5 and 6. Idina Menzel, considered one of the great vocal performers of our time, with a repertoire that focuses largely on classic pop and musical theater favorites, will sing hits from Wicked and Rent, as well as songs from her album “I Stand.”  Recently in the news, Ms. Menzel will be featured on the popular FOX TV show “Glee!” this spring.

OZOMATLI, MAY 7 AND 8, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
Winners of multiple Grammy Awards, Ozomatli perform a genre-defying blend of Latin, hip hop, rap, funk, and rock. The group is well known for going beyond the bounds of the usual performance space, playing in the aisles, and creating a party atmosphere that adds both fun and excitement to all their performances. These performances by Ozomatli continue the Pops tradition of bringing the best and brightest new talent on today’s music scene to the Boston Pops stage.

Ozomatli, designated U.S. Cultural Ambassadors, have showcased their unique sound in appearances on TV’s Sex and the City, Dancing with the Stars, and Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and in the Drew Barrymore film Never Been Kissed as well as in concerts at Coachella, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Berkshire Music Festival, and on tour as the opening act for Carlos Santana.

WEEK TWO, MAY 11-15
HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD, MAY 11-15, JOHN WILLIAMS CONDUCTING
John Williams, the highly acclaimed composer and conductor behind blockbuster films including Jaws, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and the Harry Potter series, brings audiences a night showcasing some of the most memorable movie music of all time. Currently Boston Pops Conductor Laureate and celebrating his 30th anniversary with the Pops, John Williams served as Boston Pops Conductor from 1980-1993.  The May 15 performance is SOLD OUT.

When John Williams succeeded Arthur Fiedler in 1980, he was the most highly acclaimed composer in Hollywood, and today, with 45 Academy Award nominations, he is the most-nominated living person in Academy history. With the Pops, John continued the orchestra’s prolific recording tradition and entertained audiences with live orchestral accompaniment to some of the great film clips of the 20th and 21st centuries.  He brought in the great arrangers of the day to produce new and exclusive Boston Pops arrangements of American songbook classics and legendary hits of the jazz, swing, and big band eras.  And he brought a bit of Hollywood to the Pops stage, with special appearances by Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and Frank Langella, not to mention Darth Vader, R2D2, and C3PO.

WEEK THREE, MAY 18-22
WORLD PREMIERE IN TRIBUTE TO THE KENNEDY BROTHERS, AND DISPLAY OF 9/11 FLAG, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
“American Heroes” concerts celebrate the legacy of many of our great nation’s leaders, servicemen, and everyday citizens, whose lives and principles are forever woven into the fabric of American history. The program features the world premiere performances of “The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers,” honoring Massachusetts native sons John, Robert, and Edward Kennedy. Written by Peter Boyer, and Lynn Ahrens, the new work pays tribute to the call to public service, drive for social change, and the legacy of optimism for America’s future, a spirit epitomized by the Kennedy brothers.  With these performances, the Boston Pops also marks the 40th anniversary of the Tanglewood Festival Chorus.

These concerts also feature a very special Star-Spangled Banner, The National 9/11 Flag – the flag that was hanging before, during, and after the attacks across from the South Tower – accompanied by members of the New York and Boston Fire Departments, as well as volunteers who travel to disaster areas to help rebuild in a mission to “Pay It Forward.” The flag presentation includes a preview of a feature-length documentary film by Scott Rettberg and Megan Sleeper, called “New York Says Thank You,” which will make its world premiere at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival. The presence of the 9/11 Flag is an especially appropriate accompaniment to these Boston Pops concerts premiering “The Dream Lives On,” as President Obama signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which for the first time officially recognized September 11 as a National Day of Service and Remembrance.  Also, in the aftermath of 9/11 Senator Kennedy personally called the 177 Massachusetts families who had lost loved ones in the attack.

The May 19 program is the annual Presidents at Pops gala, described earlier in the release.  The May 18 and 20 performances are SOLD OUT.

Peter Boyer is one of the most celebrated young composers working today.   His work has been commissioned and performed by more than 80 orchestras worldwide including the London Symphony Orchestra, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and the Dallas Symphony.  In addition to his work for the concert hall, Boyer is an active film and television arranger and has twice arranged and orchestrated music for the Academy Awards.  His . His Grammy-nominated work Ellis Island : The Dream of America, which premiered in 2002, was broadcast on NPR’s SymphonyCast and recorded with actors including Barry Bostwick, Blair Brown Olympia Dukakis and Eli Wallach.

Writer and lyricist Lynn Ahrens began her career writing songs for “Schoolhouse Rock.” In her longtime partnership with composer Stephen Flaherty, she’s enjoyed tremendous Broadway success with shows including Once on this Island, Dessa Rose, Seussical the Musical, and Ragtime for which Ahrens won the Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards. The pair also collaborated on the animated movie Anastasia. Her songs have been recorded and/or performed by Aretha Franklin, Aaliyah, Johnny Mathis, Richard Marx and Donna Lewis, Renée Fleming and Bryn Terfel, Donny Osmond, Deana Carter, Audra McDonald, and many others.

WEEK FOUR, MAY 25-29
AN EVENING WITH MAUREEN MCGOVERN MAY 25, 26, AND 27, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
Maureen McGovern, one of America’s most popular vocalists, performs a concert that features songs from her newest album, A Long and Winding Road, celebrating the music that inspired her beginnings as a singer in the late ’60s. The album features an eclectic mix of songs from such groundbreaking singer-songwriters as Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, Carole King, and Paul McCartney, including “The Times They Are a-Changin’,”  “The 59th Street Bridge Song,” “Fire and Rain,” and “Let It Be.” The May 27 performance is SOLD OUT.  The May 26 concert will feature on-stage performances by the winners of the Fidelity FutureStage Music Competition.

Maureen McGovern burst onto the music scene in the early 1970s and quickly became known for her hit theme songs to The Poseidon Adventure,The Towering Inferno, and Gold, and later for her appearance as Sister Angelina, the singing nun, in the 1980 disaster movie spoof Airplane. Ms. McGovern has also been acclaimed for her success on the Broadway stage, with roles in The Pirates of Penzance, Nine, Three Penny Opera, and most recently as Marmee in Little Women. Her CD, “A Long and Winding Road,” was released in 2009 and is a tribute to the music of her baby boomer childhood.

RAY CHARLES TRIBUTE, MAY 28 AND 29, ROBERT BERNHARDT CONDUCTING
The legendary Ray Charles set the standard for greatness during a remarkable career that spanned more than five decades. This Boston Pops concert, under the direction of Robert Bernhardt, features Ray Charles’s protégé Ellis Hall singing hits including “Georgia on My Mind,” “Hit the Road Jack,” and “Unchain My Heart.” The May 28 performance is SOLD OUT.

The first and only artist signed to Crossover Records, the record label formed by his mentor Ray Charles, Ellis Hall is a dynamic multi-instrumentalist (piano, bass, drums, and guitar) and singer who has performed and recorded with many musical giants including Patti LaBelle, John Mayer, John Legend, Herbie Hancock, the Temptations, Earth Wind & Fire, the Spinners, Natalie Cole, Michael McDonald, James Taylor, and Stevie Wonder, as well as Ray Charles himself. Hall was featured as the lead vocalist for Kenny G on his debut hit single “What Does it Take,” was lead vocalist, keyboardist, songwriter, arranger, and producer for the group Tower of Power, and enjoyed tremendous acclaim as a member of the multi-platinum group the California Raisins. Conductor Robert Bernardt has been described in the press as having a “high energy conducting style and easy stage presence.”  A frequent guest on the Boston Pops podium, Bernhardt serves as music director of the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera and principal pops conductor of the Louisville Orchestra.  He has performed with artists from all arenas of the musical world including Ray Charles, Wynona Judd, Ben Folds, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and PDQ Bach.

WEEK FIVE, JUNE 1-5
AN EVENING WITH DAVE BRUBECK, JUNE 1 AND 2, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
A Library of Congress “Living Legend,” 90-year-old pianist Dave Brubeck and his acclaimed quartet perform orchestral arrangements of “In Your Own Sweet Way,” “A Salute to The Count – The Basie Band Is Back in Town,” “Unsquare Dance,” and “The Duke.” The program also features a special nod to the fiftieth anniversary of the chart-topping “Take Five,” performed by The Dave Brubeck Quartet on their 1959 album Time Out, which remains one of the best known jazz standards ever.

2009 Kennedy Center honoree Dave Brubeck’s signature innovative rhythms and unusual time signatures have made him one of the most popular jazz musicians of all time. The Dave Brubeck Quartet has been performing to sell-out audiences since their first crossover hit “Take Five” was released over fifty years ago.

A TRIBUTE TO DUKE ELLINGTON, JUNE 3, 4, AND 5, JEFF TYZIK CONDUCTING
The Pops and jazz vocalist Dee Daniels pay homage to Duke Ellington, one of the most influential figures in American music. Duke Ellington, who recorded with Arthur Fiedler and the Pops, wrote over 3,000 songs during his lifetime, but is best known for “It Don’t Mean a Thing if It Ain’t Got That Swing,” “Sophisticated Lady,” “Mood Indigo,” “Solitude,” and “Satin Doll,” all of which will be performed by the Boston Pops. The June 3 performance is SOLD OUT.

Known for her powerful four-octave voice, jazz vocalist Dee Daniels has performed with some of the R&B, gospel, blues, and jazz world’s best-known musicians including Sarah Vaughan, Lionel Hampton, Bill Charlap, and Toots Thielemans. She has also performed in solo concerts with symphony orchestras throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and Africa.  Considered “one of the best pops conductors in America,” Jeff Tyzik, principal pops conductor of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the Oregon Symphony, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, is known for his creative arrangements, original programming, and engaging rapport with audiences.

WEEK SIX, JUNE 8-12
FROM THE TOP JUNE 8, WITH CHRISTOPHER O’RILEY, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
For the past decade, “From the Top” has been the preeminent showcase for America’s best young musicians through its weekly NPR radio series and its recent television show on PBS. The Boston Pops celebrates the 10th anniversary of this successful program with a concert featuring young musicians from Boston and across the country, who join Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops for a live taping of the popular radio program, this time with acoustically acclaimed Symphony Hall serving as backdrop. Renowned pianist Christopher O’Riley, who shares a special rapport with the musicians, will serve in his role as program host.

AN EVENING OF COLE PORTER WITH BROADWAY STAR KELLI O’HARA, JUNE 9-11, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
Spotlighting the extraordinary talents of Broadway star Kelli O’Hara, these programs pay special tribute to legendary composer/songwriter Cole Porter, one of the best-known contributors to the Great American Songbook. Vocal Fellows from the Tanglewood Music Center, the Boston Symphony’s prestigious summer music academy for young professional musicians, will also be featured in this program, to include such Cole Porter hits as “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “In the Still of the Night,” “Love for Sale,” “Night and Day,” and “Don’t Fence Me In,” as well as favorites from the Tony award-winning musical comedy Kiss Me, Kate.

Kelli O’Hara recently starred on Broadway as Nellie Forbush in the Tony Award-winning revival of South Pacific.  She has also appeared on Broadway in A Light in the Piazza, for which she was nominated for Tony and Drama Desk awards, The Sweet Smell of Success opposite John Lithgow, and with Harry Connick, Jr., in The Pajama Game.

GOSPEL NIGHT, JUNE 12, CHARLES FLOYD CONDUCTING
Conductor Charles Floyd, special guests, and the Boston Pops Gospel Choir, bring thrilling performances of the some of America’s best contemporary Gospel music to Symphony Hall. The passion, delight, and sense of celebration that these programs have consistently evoked, have made them one of the highlights of every Pops season.

In January 2009, Charles Floyd conducted the HBO pre-inaugural concert “We Are One” on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial for President Barack Obama.  Leader of the beloved Gospel Night at Pops since 1993, Charles Floyd has worked with orchestras throughout the country and world and enjoyed an eleven-year tenure as music director for singer Natalie Cole. Projects with Ms. Cole have included the multiple Grammy Award-winning tribute to Nat King Cole entitled Unforgettable, With Love, the Emmy Award-winning PBS Great Performances concert video of the same title, as well as the Grammy-winning releases Take a Look and Stardust. Charles Floyd has created arrangements and orchestrations for wide variety of artists, including Sting, Elton John, Patti LaBelle, Grace Bumbry, James Taylor,  Yolanda Adams,  Mark O’Conner, k.d. lang, Stevie Wonder,  and Wynona Judd.

WEEK SEVEN, JUNE 15-20
RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN JUNE 15 AND 16, EMIL DECOU CONDUCTING
Re-mastered clips from the great movie musicals of Rodgers & Hammerstein come together with the films’ original vocals and a live orchestra soundtrack by the Boston Pops for this inventive program honoring two of America’s most revered musical theater figures. Prime-time anchor of Turner Classic Movies television network Robert Osborne hosts the evening of memorable scenes from classic films such as Oklahoma! and Carousel, both starring Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones, South Pacific starring Mitzi Gaynor and Rossano Brazzi, The King and I starring Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner, and The Sound of Music starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. Audiences will hear these iconic performances of the past reinvigorated by the presence of full orchestral sound.

Dynamic American conductor Emil DeCou serves as the associate conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra and as the NSO @ Wolf Trap festival conductor. He has conducted orchestras throughout the country, most recently, at the request of soloist Renée Fleming, leading a performance with the Colorado Symphony and the NSO’s traditional Labor Day performance on the West Lawn of the Capitol. Turner Classic Movies network’s Robert Osborne hosts four primetime movies each night on the network, was a longtime columnist for the Hollywood Reporter, and is the author of the book 80 Years of the Oscar: The Official History of the Academy Awards, released in 2008.

THE WORLD OF ARLO GUTHRIE, JUNE 17 AND JUNE 18, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
Folk music icon and legendary artist Arlo Guthrie will be featured in performances of the unforgettable classics so long associated with the Guthrie Family legacy.  With his singular voice as both a singer-songwriter, story teller, and social commentator, Guthrie will also share timeless stories that have captivated and entertained audiences over many decades. The evening will also feature the Boston Pops debut of the ground-breaking string trio Time for Three, who will perform the Boston premiere of a new work, “Travel in Time for Three,” by Chris Brubeck.

Singer, songwriter, social commentator, and folk music icon Arlo Guthrie has been performing for more than four decades and has a fan base that spans the globe. Guthrie’s  “Alice’s Restaurant,” “City of New Orleans” and “The Motorcycle Song,” along with his memorable appearance at 1969’s Woodstock Festival, have made him a household name. Guthrie has previously joined the Pops at Symphony Hall in a concert that was broadcast on Evening at Pops and on the Esplanade for the Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular in 2001.  String trio Time for Three, whose music melds elements of classical, country western, gypsy, and jazz to create a sound all their own, have performed with artists ranging from the Philadelphia Orchestra to k.d. lang.  Chris Brubeck began performing with his father, the legendary Dave Brubeck in the 1970s.  Having distinguished himself as an innovative jazz and rock performer on the bass, trombone, piano and guitar, he has recently earned international acclaim as a composer.

FATHER’S DAY FAMILY CONCERT WITH DANIEL BERNARD ROUMAIN, JUNE 20 3PM, KEITH LOCKHART CONDUCTING
This special Father’s Day concert features the Boston Pops debut of Haitian-American artist Daniel Bernard Roumain, the innovative composer, performer, violinist, and bandleader, who melds his classical music roots with his own cultural references and vibrant musical imagination.  Mr. Roumain is composing a new work for six string violin and orchestra to receive its world premiere at the June 20 concert.  This interactive program will feature two of the most beloved classic works written for children: the timeless tale Peter and the Wolf and the whimsical suite Carnival of the Animals. In a dynamic collaboration with the Underground Railway Theater of Cambridge, young members of the audience will participate in the performance using movement and puppetry. The program will also include some of the iconic film score themes of John Williams.

As a composer, Daniel Bernard Roumain has written works that range from orchestral scores and chamber pieces to music for film, theater, modern dance, and electronica. He has been spotlighted as a “New face of classical music” by Esquire Magazine, served as assistant composer-in-residence at the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and music director of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, and recently collaborated and performed with Lady Gaga on FOX’s American Idol.  Underground Railway Theater works to create dynamic connections between high-quality professional theater and community. Combining actors, puppets and music, URT presents theater of social content and great visual beauty— theater that challenges and delights, informs and celebrates.

TICKET AND SPONSORHIP INFORMATION

TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for the 2010 Boston Pops season at Symphony Hall, priced from $20-$99, go on sale at 10 a.m. on February 22. All performances start at 8 p.m. with the exception of the Sunday Family Concert at 3 p.m. on June 20. Tickets for “Opening Night at Pops” on May 4 are priced from $40 to $119.

Tickets may be purchased online at www.bostonpops.org or by phone through SymphonyCharge at 617-266-1200 or 888-266-1200, Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (with a $5.50 handling fee for each ticket ordered online or by phone). Tickets may also be purchased in person at the Symphony Hall box office, open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and on Sunday from 1 p.m. through the first concert intermission on concert dates. Most major credit cards and cash are accepted at the box office. For Group Sales of 25 or more, please call 617-638-9345 or 800-933-4255.

Tickets to the gala fund raiser, Presidents at Pops, on May 18, start at $500, with some options including tickets to an exclusive Boat Cruise and Esplanade Concert on July 3, as well an additional Pops 125 event to be announced soon.  For further information, call 617-638-9466.

The Boston Symphony has a dedicated line for disabled patrons who would like to purchase tickets to BSO, Boston Pops, or Tanglewood concerts, or who need information about disability services at Symphony Hall or Tanglewood. This line can be reached by dialing 617-638-9431. For access via TDD/TTY, please call 617-638-9289. Patrons with disabilities can access Symphony Hall through the Cohen Wing on Huntington Avenue or through the Massachusetts Avenue entrance.

SPONSORSHIP
Opening Night at Pops and the entire 2010 Boston Pops season is sponsored by Fidelity Investments. The Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel is the Official Hotel of the Boston Pops. Commonwealth Worldwide is the Official Chauffeured Transportation Provider of the Boston Pops. American Airlines is the Airline Partner of the Boston Pops.

The Film Night Series (May 11-14) is sponsored by Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation, the Boston Pops‘ Official Automobile Insurance sponsor. The World of Arlo Guthrie Series (June 17-18) is sponsored by New England Coffee, the Official Coffee of the Boston Pops. The June 1 Dave Brubeck concert is sponsored by The Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel. The June 16th Rodgers and Hammerstein at the Movies concert is sponsored by UBS.

All programs are subject to change.

BOSTON POPS 125TH: BACKGROUND AND PERSPECTIVE

Celebrating its 125th anniversary this spring, May 4-June 20, the Boston Pops Orchestra has distinguished itself as the founder of and leader in its genre, presenting the best of a wide variety of music from jazz to pop, indie rock to big band, film music to the great American songbook, and Broadway to classical.  Though Arthur Fiedler’s nearly 50-year tenure as Pops conductor (1930-1979) established the Boston Pops as a national icon, Conductor Laureate John Williams (1980-1993) and present-day conductor Keith Lockhart (1995 to present) have shepherded the orchestra through three decades of tumultuous change in the world of music.

With the 125th anniversary season, the Boston Pops reaches a landmark moment in a storied history that began with its founding in 1885.   Civil War veteran Henry Lee Higginson, the founder of the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops, intended from the very start to present concerts of light classics and the popular music of the day. The introduction of these spring and summer-time concerts also provided a very practical service–year-round employment for the Boston Symphony musicians.

It was Arthur Fiedler’s nearly 50-year tenure as Pops conductor that established the Boston Pops as a national icon.  He organized the first free outdoor orchestral concerts on the Charles River Esplanade that led to Boston’s first Fourth of July concert, established the Pops as the most recorded orchestra in history, and introduced the “Evening at Pops” television series, bringing the orchestra into the living rooms of countless Americans.

When John Williams succeeded Arthur Fiedler in 1980, he was the most highly acclaimed composer in Hollywood, and today, with 45 Academy Award nominations, he is the most-nominated living person in Academy history.  With the Pops, John continued the orchestra’s prolific recording tradition and entertained audiences with live orchestral accompaniment to great film clips of the 20th and 21st centuries.  And he brought a bit of Hollywood to the Pops stage, with special appearances by Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and Frank Langella, not to mention Darth Vader, R2D2, and C3PO.

In response to the ever-diversifying trends in music, Keith Lockhart has taken the Pops in new directions to reach out to a broader and younger audience, while maintaining its appeal to its core audience.  Keith Lockhart has worked with artists from  virtually every corner of the entertainment world, bringing many of the great musicians and entertainers of our day to the Pops stage: from Hollywood and Broadway stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Nathan Lane, Martin Short, Mandy Patinkin, and Jason Alexander, to popular singers k.d. lang, Barry Manilow, Celine Dion, Elvis Costello, and Patti LaBelle, to jazz and American songbook legends Barbara Cook, Terence Blanchard, Natalie Cole, and Mel Tormé, to country stars Rascal Flatts, Big and Rich, and Trisha Yearwood, to classical favorites Dawn Upshaw and Gil Shaham, to jazz and indie artists Chick Corea, Dianne Reeves, Guster, My Morning Jacket, Ben Folds, Amanda Palmer, and Natalie Merchant. Mr. Lockhart has also led the Boston Pops at several high-profile sports events, including the pre-game show of Super Bowl XXXVI and the opening game of the 2007 World Series at Fenway Park with the Boston Red Sox.

Drawing over a half million people to the banks of the Charles River each Fourth-of-July, the Boston Pops— also known as “America’s Orchestra”—is the only ensemble of its kind that has an annual show on network television (July 4 on CBS) and performs regularly on tour in sports arenas and concert halls across the country.

Keith Lockhart has made 67 television shows with the Boston Pops, most recently leading a concert featuring jazz trumpeter Chris Botti, and special guests Sting, John Mayer, and Steven Tyler, which was taped for national broadcast on PBS in 2009.  The concert was also recorded for release on DVD and CD, both of which were recently nominated for several Grammy awards.  Mr. Lockhart and the Boston Pops, the most recorded orchestra in history (the 1936 Boston Pops recording of Jalousie was the first orchestra recording to sell a million copies), have released four self-produced recordings, including, most recently, the Red Sox Album. The Pops’s recording Oscar & Tony provided the basis for the Pops’s first Internet TV broadcast, the first such program offered by a symphony orchestra.  In addition, Lockhart and the Pops have recorded eight albums with RCA Victor, including the Latin Grammy-nominated The Latin Album.

The Boston Pops is online at bostonpops.org, part of bso.org, the largest and most visited orchestra site in the world, receiving more than 7.5 million visitors annually.  The site’s Digital Music Service, launched in December 2008, has accumulated more than 55,000 downloads to date. The Pops can also be seen on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Boston-Symphony-Orchestra/6390708268?ref=ts and MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/thebostonpops.  Keith Lockhart is on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Keith-Lockhart/7933239366?ref=ts and Twitter at www.twitter.com/keithlockhart.

BOSTON POPS 2010 SEASON LISTING, MAY 4 – JUNE 20
WEEK ONE, May 4-8
Tuesday, May 4, 2010, 8:00 PM
Opening Night at Pops: 125th Anniversary Celebration
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Doc Severinsen, trumpet
Idina Menzel, vocalist
Michael Chertock, piano
Featuring festive opening night pre-concert reception
Program includes Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and the film music of John Williams. Doc Severinsen, one of the few artists to have performed with all three Pops maestros, performs. Broadway powerhouse Idina Menzel—the Tony award-winning “Elphaba” from the international blockbuster Wicked—joins Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops for this program, performing diverse repertoire including classic pop, musical theater favorites, featuring hits from Wicked and Rent, as well as songs from her album I Stand.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010, 8:00 PM
Thursday, May 6, 2010, 8:00 PM
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Idina Menzel, vocalist
Michael Chertock, piano
Broadway powerhouse Idina Menzel—the Tony award-winning “Elphaba” from the international blockbuster Wicked—joins Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops for this program, performing diverse repertoire including classic pop, musical theater favorites, featuring hits from Wicked and Rent, as well as songs from her album I Stand. Program includes Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue.

Friday, May 7, 2010, 8:00 PM
Saturday, May 8, 2010, 8:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
125th Anniversary Celebration
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Ozomatli
Michael Chertock, piano
Program includes the film music of John Williams. This program features the Pops debut of the Grammy Award-winning band Ozomatli, official U.S. Cultural Ambassadors, performing music with an urban Latin flavor.

WEEK TWO, May 11-15
Tuesday, May 11, 2010, 8:00 PM
Wednesday, May 12, 2010, 8:00 PM
Thursday, May 13, 2010, 8:00 PM
Friday, May 14, 2010, 8:00 PM
Saturday, May 15, 2010, 8:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Horray for Hollywood
John Williams, conductor
John Williams, composer and conductor behind films including Jaws, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and the Harry Potter series, features a night of some of the most memorable movie music of all time.

WEEK THREE, May 18-22
Tuesday, May 18, 2010, 8:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Thursday, May 20, 2010, 8:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Friday, May 21, 2010, 8:00 PM (Arthur Fiedler Memorial Concert)
Saturday, May 22, 2010, 8:00 PM
Stars and Stripes
Keith Lockhart, conductor
The Pops celebrate the American spirit with a patriotic program honoring all those who have shaped our great nation. The program features the world premiere of The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers by Peter Boyer (Ellis Island) and Lynn Ahrens (Ragtime), honoring the legacy of Massachusetts native sons John, Robert, and Edward Kennedy. “America’s Orchestra” and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus perform patriotic tunes.  The National 9/11 Flag, which was on display across from the South Tower before, during, and after the attacks on 9/11/01, will be on display above the Symphony Hall stage for these special patriotic programs.

WEEK FOUR, May 25-29
Tuesday, May 25, 2010, 8:00 PM
Wednesday, May 26, 2010, 8:00 PM
Thursday, May 27, 2010, 8:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
An Evening with Maureen McGovern
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Maureen McGovern, vocalist
Maureen McGovern, one of America’s most popular vocalists, performs a concert that features songs from her newest album, A Long and Winding Road, which finds her reconnecting with the songs that inspired her beginnings as a singer in the late ’60s. The album features an eclectic mix of tunes from such groundbreaking singer-songwriters as Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, Carole King, and Paul McCartney. Songs include “The Times They Are a-Changin’,”  “The 59th Street Bridge Song,” “Fire and Rain,” and “Let It Be.”

Friday, May 28, 2010, 8:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Saturday, May 29, 2010, 8:00 PM
Ray Charles Tribute
Robert Bernhardt, conductor
The legendary Ray Charles set the standard for greatness during a remarkable career that spanned more than five decades. This celebration features his protégé Ellis Hall singing hits including “Georgia on My Mind,” “Hit the Road Jack,” and “Unchain My Heart.” Ellis Hall is a multi-instrument virtuoso who has performed and recorded with many musical giants including Patti LaBelle, John Mayer, John Legend, Herbie Hancock, The Temptations, Earth Wind & Fire, The Spinners, Natalie Cole, Michael McDonald, James Taylor, and Stevie Wonder.

WEEK FIVE, June 1-5
Tuesday, June 1, 2010, 8:00 PM
Wednesday June 2, 2010, 8:00 PM
An Evening with Dave Brubeck
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Dave Brubeck, piano
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
A Library of Congress “Living Legend,” 90-years-young pianist Dave Brubeck and the Dave Brubeck Quartet perform orchestral arrangements of “In Your Own Sweet Way,” “A Salute to The Count – The Basie Band Is Back in Town,” “Unsquare Dance,” and “The Duke.” The program also features the fiftieth anniversary of the chart-topping “Take Five,” performed by The Dave Brubeck Quartet on their 1959 album Time Out, which remains one of the best known jazz standards ever.

Thursday, June 3, 2010, 8:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Friday, June 4, 2010, 8:00 PM
Saturday June 5, 2010, 8:00 PM
A Tribute to Duke Ellington
Jeff Tyzik, conductor
Dee Daniels, vocalist
Duke Ellington remains one of the most influential figures in American music. Joined by jazz and blues vocalist Dee Daniels, the Pops pays homage to a musician who filled the world with a treasure trove of music that renews itself through every generation of fans and music-lovers. Duke Ellington wrote over 3,000 songs during his lifetime, but is best known for “It Don’t Mean a Thing if It Ain’t Got That Swing,” “Sophisticated Lady,” “Mood Indigo,” “Solitude,” and “Satin Doll.”

WEEK SIX, June 8-12
Tuesday June 8, 2010, 8:00 PM
“From the Top” at Pops
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Christopher O’Riley, host
For the past decade, “From the Top” has been the preeminent showcase for America’s best young musicians. As a part of their 10th anniversary celebration, an all-star cast of “From the Top” kids from across the country and right here in Boston join Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops for a live taping of this successful NPR radio program. Renowned pianist and host Christopher O’Riley shares a special rapport with the musicians, which adds to the magic of the evening.

Wednesday June 9, 2010, 8:00 PM
Thursday June 10, 2010, 8:00 PM
Friday June 11, 2010, 8:00 PM
An Evening with Cole Porter
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Casey Hushion, stage director
Larry Goldberg, musical director
Kelli O’Hara, vocalist
Fellows from the Tanglewood Music Center
Broadway sensation Kelli O’Hara and Fellows from the Tanglewood Music Center bring to life a selection of composer/songwriter Cole Porter’s many hits including “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “In the Still of the Night,” “Love for Sale,” “Night and Day,” “Don’t Fence Me In,” and selections from the Tony award-winning musical comedy Kiss Me, Kate.

Saturday June 12, 2010, 8:00 PM
Gospel Night
Charles Floyd, conductor
Boston Pops Gospel Choir
Charles Floyd, the Boston Pops, the Boston Pops Gospel Choir, and special guests, bring the most beloved traditional and contemporary Gospel music in America to Symphony Hall.

WEEK SEVEN, June 15-20
Tuesday June 15, 2010, 8:00 PM
Wednesday June 16, 2010, 8:00 PM
Rodgers and Hammerstein at the Movies
Emil DeCou, conductor
Robert Osbourne, host
This program features stunning re-mastered clips from the great movie musicals of Rodgers & Hammerstein together with the original vocals and a live orchestra soundtrack. Prime-time anchor of Turner Classic Movies television network Robert Osborne hosts the evening of classic films such as Oklahoma! and Carousel, both starring Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones, South Pacific starring Mitzi Gaynor and Rossano Brazzi, The King and I starring Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner, and The Sound of Music starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer.

Tuesday June 17, 2010, 8:00 PM
Wednesday June 18, 2010, 8:00 PM
The World of Arlo Guthrie
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Featuring Arlo Guthrie
Time for Three
Folk music icon and legendary artist Arlo Guthrie shares timeless stories and unforgettable classic songs as he carries on the Guthrie Family legacy. With his singular voice, as both a singer-songwriter and social commentator, he has maintained a dedicated fan base that spans the globe. The evening will also feature the Boston Pops debut of the ground-breaking string trio Time for Three, performing a new work by Chris Brubeck.

Saturday, June 19, 2010, 8:00 PM
125th Anniversary Celebration
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Armen Babakhanian, piano
This Boston Pops concert celebrates the 125-year storied history of the Boston Pops in a three-part program that showcases the Pops—past, present, and future, by featuring some of the musical contributions of the orchestra’s three famous maestros—Arthur Fiedler, John Williams, and Keith Lockhart. Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and the film music of John Williams, will be among the music to be featured.

Sunday June 20, 2010, 8:00 PM
Father’s Day Family Concert
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Daniel Bernard Roumain, performer/composer
Underground Railway Theater of Cambridge
This program features two of the most beloved classic works written for children: the timeless tale Peter and the Wolf and the whimsical suite Carnival of the Animals. In a dynamic collaboration with the Underground Railway Theater of Cambridge, young members of the audience participate in the performance using movement and puppetry. The program also features the enduring film music of John Williams and the Boston Pops debut of Haitian-American artist Daniel Bernard Roumain, whose new work for six string violin and orchestra will receive its world premiere—with the composer in the soloist role—at this concert.

All programs are subject to change.

For new wing, MFA rolls out a masterpiece – Moves meticulous and mighty do the trick in 11 days
By Geoff Edgers – Globe Staff / February 19, 2010

After 10 years of effort and more than $500 million in fund-raising, the Museum of Fine Arts installed the first painting in its new Art of the Americas Wing yesterday, and it’s no ordinary work.

Thomas Sully’s 19th-century masterpiece “The Passage of the Delaware’’ is just the kind of painting the MFA hasn’t been able to display properly in the past. Why? It’s simply one of the largest in the museum’s collection. At 17 feet by 12 feet and weighing 1,000 pounds, with lively brushwork showing General George Washington on the banks of the Delaware River, the painting has been too big to put in a gallery.

This was no typical installation, either, with 19 staffers – from videographers, curators, and conservators to MFA director Malcolm Rogers – crowding around to watch as muscle-bound workers hoisted the gilded frame onto a wall.

“It’s a big, symbolic moment,’’ said Rogers, who scooted down to the gallery between his lunch and a trustees meeting. “After years of planning, seeing the first work of art in place is thrilling for me. It also relieves a lot of tension. We’re on our way.’’

Boston Pops turns 125 with a nod to the past
By Jim Sullivan/Boston Herald – February 19, 2010

The Boston Pops, getting ready to celebrate its 125th anniversary, today announced details of the coming season, which kicks off in May.

Among the diverse participants: Grammy-winning Latin, funk and hip-hop band Ozomatli (May 7-8); Pops laureate conductor John Williams and his famous movie scores (May 11-15); and jazz pianist Dave Brubeck, who returns for his first appearance since the days of Arthur Fiedler (June 1-5).

Asked to pick his top of the Pops 2010, conductor Keith Lockhart said, “the big event is the Kennedys piece, which is something I’ve had in mind for years.”

Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers” was written by Peter Boyer with lyricist Lynn Ahrens. The piece, which will be performed May 18-22, was originally intended as a tribute to President John F. Kennedy, with Sen. Edward M. Kennedy narrating.

“But when Ted got ill,” Lockhart said from Salt Lake City, “it took on a whole different context. So we’re honoring the end of an era.”

On view February 11–March 3
2010 “Student Annual Exhibition”

At the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Opening Reception, February 11, 5–7 pm

The “2010 Student Annual Exhibition” presents the largest annual overview of current work by Museum School students, celebrating artists who are on the threshold of their field with exciting anticipation of their creative futures.

Works by 75 students were selected from 380 entries by a jury of arts professionals unaffiliated with the Museum School. Alongside the juried pieces, the exhibition also showcases work by 2009–10 Museum School award winners—2009 Boit Awards for work created independently over the summer, the 2010 Dana Pond Awards in painting, the 2010 Yousuf Karsh Prize in photography, the 2010 Will and Elena Barnet Award in painting and the 2010 Stella and Sumner Cooper Award for work in metals, glass and ceramics.

Admission to the exhibition and all related events is FREE.

Related Events
Opening Reception: Thursday, February 11, 5–7 pm
Artists’ Talk: Monday, February 22, 12:30 pm
Special Event Wandelprobe: Tuesday, February 23

Image: Sung-Won Yun, The two silences of heaven and earth 6, 2009. Digital inkjet print, Karsh Prize winner.

Location
School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

230 The Fenway,

Boston, MA 02115.

For more information, visit www.smfa.edu/announcements.

Gallery Hours: Monday–Saturday, 10 am–5 pm; Thursday 10 am–8 pm. Closed Sundays and holidays.

Rising to meet an infinite need – Partners in Health, long a force in Haiti, vaults into central role
By Stephen Smith and James F. Smith – Globe Staff / January 24, 2010

CANGE, Haiti – His hometown in ruins, his right arm broken, Frantz Verdieu knew he had to escape the acrid air and rubble-strewn streets of Port-au-Prince.

There was, he decided in the desperate hours after the earthquake that sundered the capital city, only one place to seek safe harbor and medical care: Cange, a town of about 30,000 in Haiti’s Central Plateau, and the birthplace of Partners in Health.

So he traversed mountain roads – rough as a washboard in patches – along with hundreds of others who fled here by auto, truck, and bus. Overnight, they crowded Cange with their needs, and transformed the mission of an organization that for 25 years has built a worldwide reputation by treating tuberculosis, AIDS, and other chronic diseases that flourish among Haiti’s poor.

“I took four cars to get here,’’ the 34-year-old teacher said, sitting inside a chapel converted into a ward for the injured on the organization’s bucolic but overrun campus. “I heard about the name before, and I knew I needed to get here.’’

With 10 hospitals and deep roots in Haiti, Boston-based Partners in Health has became one of the pillars of the worldwide response to the Jan. 12 earthquake.

[Partners in Health has offices at 888 Commonwealth Ave.]

Startling ‘Treasures’ to behold at Boston Public Library
By Tenley Woodman/Boston Herald – January 24, 2010

There’s only one place you can leaf through a copy of William Shakespeare’s “First Folio” from 1623 and also touch President John Adams’ personal copy of “Common Sense” – and do it for free.

The Boston Public Library in Copley Square.

“We are a public library and we really take our public mission very seriously,” said Susan Glover, keeper of the BPL’s special collections.

There are nearly five million items stored in the library’s special collections, ranging in age and scope from medieval manuscripts to photographs of first lady Eleanor Roosevelt performing with the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Support for president holds in MIT group

By Ira Kantor/Boston Herald – January 24, 2010
President Obama capped off his first 12 months with a job-approval rating that has dipped by a dozen percentage points since he got to work in Washington last Jan. 20.

One group Obama has not lost favor with is Chocolate City, a 28-member black organization at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Members say the president “hit the ground running” by taking on problems left by the Bush administration.

“Just because of the climate of what he inherited, you would need almost a superhuman to be able to tackle it,” said Howard Liles, 22, a mechanical engineering major and Chocolate City’s co-chairman.

“I mean he believed in change and that doesn’t mean you’re not going to make mistakes,” he said. “But the fact is he was doing his best efforts, and I feel that’s all you can really ask of an individual.”

Obama’s job-approval rating, according to a Gallup poll released Jan. 18, is at 51 percent, a 12 percent decrease from a year ago. Chocolate City, which takes its name from a 1975 song by funk band Parliament about blacks rising to the White House, said much of Obama’s performance was “motivating,” including his efforts to bridge diplomacy between foreign nations.

Gardner design in tune
By Carley Thornell/Boston herald – January 24, 2010

It must have been destiny for a man with the name Renzo Piano to design a new performance hall.

“Music is my beloved art,” the architect of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s expansion said. “It is what I wanted to be myself.”

That appreciation gave the prize-winning architect a touch for performance-hall design, and the Gardner project marks his 14th such undertaking. The 296-seat venue is to be the capstone in his cantilevered, modular, glass- and light-filled new building, next to the old museum in the Fenway.

It is a striking juxtaposition to the 1903 Italian-style palace that for a century has enchanted visitors who stumble upon its Venetian-inspired courtyard. But the buildings are of a piece, said Piano.

Isabella Gardner “tried building a modern Venetian palace. It does capture the magic of Venice,” he said. “You enter this space that is timeless. That’s Venice. It’s not about tourists, it’s not about food, it’s about the light made by the water, and water makes things beautiful.” Sound and light are the two cornerstones of the new “music box,” he said, as the hall will have a glass ceiling to let in sun.