Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey

View the Boston Pops roster and musician bios

For more than 135 years, the Boston Pops has entertained audiences in Boston and beyond, with Boston Pops Conductor Keith Lockhart leading the orchestra since 1995. In 1881, Civil War veteran Henry Lee Higginson founded the Boston Symphony Orchestra, calling its establishment “the dream of my life.” From the start he intended to present, in the warmer months, concerts of light classics and the popular music of the day. Seventeen Pops conductors, beginning with Adolf Neuendorff, preceded the legendary Arthur Fiedler (Conductor, 1930-1979). The first American-born musician to lead the orchestra, he established the Boston Pops as a national icon. When John Williams (Conductor, 1980-1993) succeeded Fiedler in 1980, he was the most highly acclaimed composer in Hollywood, and today, with 52 Academy Award nominations, he is the most-nominated living person in Academy history. With the Pops, Mr. Williams made a series of best-selling recordings, broadened and updated the Pops repertoire, and entertained audiences with live orchestral accompaniment to memorable movie scenes, many of which featured his own iconic scores. Having led over 2,000 Boston Pops concerts in his tenure to date, Keith Lockhart (Conductor, 1995-present) has created programs that reach out to a broader and younger audience by presenting artists—both established performers and rising stars—from virtually every corner of the entertainment world, all the while maintaining the Pops' core appeal. He has made more than 80 television shows, led 45 national and four overseas tours with the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra, led the Pops at several high-profile sports events, and recorded 14 albums. Mr. Lockhart's tenure has been marked by a dramatic increase in touring, the orchestra's first Grammy nominations, the first major network national broadcast of the July 4 Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular from the Esplanade, and the release of the Boston Pops' first self-produced and self-distributed recordings.

The Boston Pops Orchestra may be heard on Boston Pops Recordings, RCA Victor, Sony Classical, and Philips Records.

Steinway & Sons Pianos, selected exclusively for Symphony Hall.

The BSO’s Steinway & Sons pianos were purchased through a generous gift from Gabriella and Leo Beranek.

Special thanks to Fidelity Investments, Arbella Insurance Foundation, Fairmont Copley Plaza, and American Airlines.

New arrangements and works for the Boston Pops are generously supported by the Cecile Higginson Murphy Pops Programming Fund.

Broadcasts of the Boston Pops are heard on 99.5 WCRB.

Programs and artists subject to change.

The BSO’s 2022-23 season is supported in part by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, which receives support from the State of Massachusetts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Boston Symphony Orchestra, Inc.
Board of Trustees | Board of Advisors | Staff and Administration

The June 8th concert is dedicated to Arthur Fiedler, Conductor of the Boston Pops from 1930 until his death in 1979. Fiedler, who left an indelible mark on the Boston Pops and American musical life was, for many, the very image of an orchestra conductor. Born in Boston on December 17, 1894, he came from a musical family. After early training with his father, a violinist in the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Arthur went to study in Berlin, returning to the United States at the outbreak of World War I. He joined the Boston Symphony in 1915 as a second violinist, later moving to the viola section.

Eager to move beyond the career of an orchestral player, he formed the Fiedler Sinfonietta, a chamber orchestra, in 1924. But he also had an even more ambitious dream: to offer free concerts to the citizens of Boston. In 1929 that dream became a reality, when he led the first Esplanade Concert, initiating a tradition that endures to this day.

Meanwhile, the Boston Pops was faltering under the overly serious direction of the Italian composer Alfredo Casella. The BSO management let Casella’s contract expire and offered Fiedler the job in 1930, sparking a period of remarkable growth for the Boston Pops. Under the leadership of its first American-born conductor, the orchestra became a best-selling recording ensemble and, years before it was referred to as “America’s Orchestra,” probably the country’s most famous orchestra. Fiedler’s innovative programs, mixing a wide range of classical music with arrangements of current popular songs and novelty numbers, grew widely popular and spawned numerous imitators. For years Fiedler and a touring orchestra took the Pops’ music around the country. Beginning in 1970, Evening at Pops, a joint production of WGBH-TV in Boston and the BSO, gave both conductor and orchestra a national television presence.

Surely it didn’t hurt that Fiedler was a master of self-promotion and had a colorful personality, a combination of old-world charm and curmudgeonly cynicism. On his 80th birthday, the indefatigable conductor remarked, “Give up? Quit now? Never. I’ll keep working until I die. I’ll die with my boots on. He who rests, rots.” A Boston Globe editorial, published on July 11, 1979, the day after his death, commented, “By fighting his 84 years, by railing against them, the maestro realized what many fail to. He knew in his bones that you have to work, enjoy, complain, react, joke, assert oneself each minute, good or bad, until the end in order to live. Arthur Fiedler pulled that trick off neatly, and the man who was perhaps the best-known Bostonian in the world managed to avoid the withering of spirit which crushes many in their declining years.” Nearly forty years after his death, Arthur Fiedler’s spirit continues to hover over springtime in Boston and the eternal return of the Pops.

The Boston Pops salutes its friends, old and new, for their generosity. Fiedler Society members generously contribute annual gifts that fund Pops performances, education and outreach programs, and free Pops concerts throughout the community.

The BSO gratefully acknowledges the following Pops Annual Fund donors who, as of April 24, 2023, are current members at the following levels. For more information about becoming a Fiedler Society member, please contact the Friends Office at 617-638-9276.

‡ This symbol indicates a deceased donor.

FIEDLER ENCORE ($25,000 AND ABOVE)
Barbara and Amos Hostetter
The O'Block Family
Mitch J. Pomerance
Mr. Nicholas Vantzelfde and Ms. Lauren Erb

FIEDLER CONDUCTOR ($10,000 - 24,999) 
Stephen and Joan Clark
Douglas and Christine Emond
Richard and Nancy Heath
Kathleen and Ronald Jackson
Mr. Mark Legan
Rich and Holly Linton Jr.
Dr. and Mrs. Frederick H. Lovejoy, Jr.
The McDonald Family in honor of Patricia McDonald
Joseph C. McNay, The New England Foundation
Paul & Joyce Mucci Family Foundation
In Loving Memory of Richard O’Brien
Bob and Laura Reynolds
Katherine Chapman Stemberg
Mr. and Mrs. Patrick J. Sullivan
Richard and Bonnie Sullivan
Jean C. Tempel
Scott and Catherine Webster
Sidney and Deanna Wolk

FIEDLER BACKSTAGE ($5,000 - 9,999 )
Mr. Daniel Brownell and Ms. Kelley Laurel
James Bunt
Camille Carlstrom
The Cavanagh Family
Jim and Shirley Curvey
Mr. David D'Alessandro
Mr. and Mrs. James Davis
Mary Dunbrack
Deirdre and Jeff Hannon
John W. Henry Family Foundation
Frances and Tom Knight
Peter and Connie Lacaillade
Emily and Malcolm MacNaught
Mr. Patrick MeLampy and Rev. Priscilla Lawrence
Jennifer and Brad Moyer
Doug and Karen Pettingell
Carmichael Roberts and Sandra Park
Alex and Mimi Rozek
Carol Searle and Andrew Ley ‡
Peter and Barbara Sidel
Maggie and Jack Skenyon
Tony and Martha Vorlicek
Anna Marie Wagner and Rob Sinnott
Howard and Karen Wilcox
Ed and Judi Zuker
Anonymous (2)

FIEDLER SOCIETY ($3,000 - 4,999) 
Mr. and Mrs. Eugene F. Barnes III
Mr. and Mrs. Eliot Beal
Edward S. W. Boesel
Mr. David R. Bolton
Cathy and Jack Brennan
John and Trish Brennan
Franklyn Caine
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Cella
Mark Condon and Jean Hynes
Charles L. and Nancy T. Donahue
Loretta H. and Gregory J. Gailius
Patricia Romeo-Gilbert and Paul B. Gilbert ‡
Dr. and Mrs. Richard Gillis
Mr. and Mrs. Michael Gilroy
Mr. Herbert H. Gowen II
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel A. Grady
Ms. Joanne Hayes-Rines
Mr. and Mrs. Blair E. Hendrix
Mary Hines
Peter Hornstra
Alan and Wendy Issokson
J. M. Electrical Co., Inc.
Mr. Timothy Johnson
John and Nancy Kendall
Mr. and Mrs. Carleton F. Kilmer
Ms. Danielle M. Lauzon and Mr. James R. Kasinger
Thomas Lewis and Ailene Robinson
Keith and Emiley Lockhart
In loving memory of Carlin F. Lynch
Erin and Craig Majernik
Joe and Liz Marconi
Bernhard Metzger in memory of Karen Zander
Jeffrey Moore and Barbara Southcote
Slocumb H. and E. Lee ‡ Perry
Mr. and Mrs. Dwight Poler
Mary Jane Restuccia
Peter and Karen Rhoten
Frederick J. and Bonnie M. ‡ Rich
Margaret and Fred Richardson
Lars and Elizabeth Schuster
Ms. Karin Settel
Bill and Anne Marie Teuber
Mr. and Mrs. William G. Walker
Susan Sprague Walters and Richard Walters
Dr. Xuqiong Wu

The operating support from the following generous donors enables the Boston Symphony Orchestra to maintain an unparalleled level of artistic excellence, to keep ticket prices at accessible levels, and to support extensive education and community engagement programs throughout the greater Boston area and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The BSO gratefully acknowledges these contributors for their philanthropic support during fiscal year 2022 through major corporate sponsorships and events, BSO Business Partners, and foundation and government grants.

$500,000 AND ABOVE
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Fidelity Investments
Morgan Stanley

$250,000 - 499,999
Microsoft New England
Fairmont Copley Plaza
Bank of America
Massachusetts Cultural Council

$100,000 - 249,999
American Airlines
Arbella Insurance Foundation
Miriam Shaw Fund
The Nancy Foss Heath and Richard B. Heath Educational, Cultural and Environmental Foundation
Yawkey Foundation

$50,000 - 99,999
Berkshire Health Systems
Brightcove Inc.
Elizabeth Taylor Fessenden Foundation
Fromm Music Foundation
Genesis Motor America
Kingsbury Road Charitable Foundation
Mass General Brigham
Miraval Berkshires Resort & Spa
Mugar Foundation
National Endowment for the Arts
Richard Saltonstall Charitable Foundation
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

$25,000 - 49,999
The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, Inc.
Adage Capital Management
Eaton Vance
Edwin S. Webster Foundation
ESAI Energy LLC
Grew Family Charitable Foundation
Hemenway & Barnes LLP
Liberty Mutual Foundation
Overly Foundation
Bayberry Financial Services
New Balance Foundation
Richard and Ann J. Prouty Foundation
Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation; John and Amy Smith Berylson, James Berylson, Jonathan Block and Jennifer Berylson Block, Robert Katz and Elizabeth Berylson Katz, Robert and Dana Smith, Madeleine Smith, Ryan Smith, Debra Smith Knez, Jessica Knez, and Andrew and Krista Knez
UniFirst Corporation
Anonymous

$10,000 - 24,999
Abrams Capital
Altimeter Capital Management, LP
Arthur J. Hurley Company, Inc.
Asia Alternatives Management, LLC
Berry Drew Family Foundation
Billy Rose Foundation
Boston Business Journal
Boston Globe
Cabot Corporation
Corvus Insurance
Council on Library and Information Resources
Elliott Management Corporation
Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton
GRAMMY Museum Foundation
Goodwin
Lucia B. Morrill Charitable Foundation
MEDITECH
Miss Wallace M. Leonard Foundation
Nancy Lurie Marks Family Foundation
Ruane Family Foundation
Saquish Foundation
Tetlow Realty Associates
The Alice Ward Fund of The Rhode Island Foundation
UniFirst Corporation
Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Wilmington Trust, part of M&T Bank Family

$5,000 - 9,999
Stevens Foundation
Adelaide Breed Bayrd Foundation
Allison Hamilton Consulting LLC
The Amphion Foundation, Inc.
The Baupost Group
Cambridge Homes
CIBC Private Wealth Management
Connell Limited Partnership
Consulate General of the Netherlands/DutchArts USA
Demoulas Foundation
The E. Nakamichi Foundation
Edward A. Taft Trust
Encore Boston Harbor
Fiduciary Trust Company
The Fuller Foundation
Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce
Herb Chambers Companies
Jack Madden Ford
Jackson and Irene Golden 1989 Charitable Trust
Katharine L.W. and Winthrop M. Crane, 3D Charitable Foundation
Mattina R. Proctor Foundation
The Summer Fund
Polar Beverage Corporation
PwC
Saks Fifth Avenue
William E. and Bertha E. Schrafft Charitable Trust
Stetson Whitcher Fund
Thomas A. and Georgina T. Russo Family Fund
Walsh Brothers, Inc.
Anonymous

$2,500 - 4,999
Albert O. Wilson Foundation
American-Scandinavian Foundation
Analytix Live
Aqueduct Technologies, Inc.
Bicon Dental Implant
Brookline Youth Concerts Fund
Cambridge Community Foundation
Chubb
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Elizabeth Grant Fund
Fire Equipment, Inc.
Goddard House
Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents
Natixis Global Asset Management
Norbella, Inc.
Old Town Trolley Tours of Boston
Oxford Fund
Rockland Trust
Sametz Blackstone Associates
True Tickets
Vacovec, Mayotte & Singer LLC
Verrill
Welch & Forbes, LLC