The most successful classical/crossover recording artist in chart history, Erich Kunzel rose to fame during his lengthy reign as the conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra. Educated at Dartmouth, Harvard, and Brown Universities, he studied under French conductor Pierre Montreux, later serving as his personal assistant; in 1965, Kunzel was... [+] Read More

The most successful classical/crossover recording artist in chart history, Erich Kunzel rose to fame during his lengthy reign as the conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra. Educated at Dartmouth, Harvard, and Brown Universities, he studied under French conductor Pierre Montreux, later serving as his personal assistant; in 1965, Kunzel was invited by music director Max Rudolph to join the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, soon taking over their Eight O'Clock Pops series. His affinity for the pops repertoire was immediate, and in 1970 Arthur Fiedler invited him to conduct the Boston Pops; in the years to follow, he returned to Boston annually to assume guest conductor duties, and by the time the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra was officially established in 1977, Kunzel was the obvious choice for conductor.

Becoming a fixture of pops performances, Kunzel subsequently served as regular guest conductor with orchestras all over the country, appearing annually with the Chicago Symphony at the Ravinia Festival, the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, the Cleveland Orchestra at the Blossom Festival, the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Mann Music Center, the Toronto Symphony, the Minnesota and Detroit Symphonies, and the National Symphony both at the Kennedy Center and on the lawn of the Capitol, returning each year for the nationally televised Memorial Day and Independence Day concerts. Many of Kunzel's recordings with the Cincinnati Pops -- among them The Sound of Music, Victory at Sea and Chiller -- topped Billboard's chart of best-selling classical crossover records; in total, over three dozen of his works made chart appearances, a number unpredecedented for pops recordings. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Billy Vaughn was one of the most popular orchestra leaders and pop music arrangers of the '50s and early '60s. In fact, he had more pop hits than any other orchestra leader during the rock & roll era. Vaughn was also the musical director for many of the hitmakers on Dot Records, including Pat Boone, the Fontane Sisters, and Gale Storm. As a pop... [+] Read More

Billy Vaughn was one of the most popular orchestra leaders and pop music arrangers of the '50s and early '60s. In fact, he had more pop hits than any other orchestra leader during the rock & roll era. Vaughn was also the musical director for many of the hitmakers on Dot Records, including Pat Boone, the Fontane Sisters, and Gale Storm. As a pop music arranger, his most distinctive feature was his clean, nonoffensive mainstream adaptations of rock & roll and R&B hits. Vaughn was also a recording artist, and he cut a number of albums of easy listening, instrumental music that were very popular throughout the '60s.

Vaughn began his professional music career in 1952, forming the vocal quartet the Hilltoppers with Don McGuire, Jimmy Sacca, and Seymour Speigelman. From 1952 to 1957, the Hilltoppers had numerous hit singles, beginning with Vaughn's song "Trying." He left the group in 1955 to join Dot Records as a musical director.

Vaughn was responsible for most of Dot's biggest hits of the '50s as he rearranged popular rock & roll and R&B songs for white, mainstream groups. His first success was with the Fontane Sisters, who sang with his orchestra on all their singles, including their 1954 breakthrough hit "Hearts of Stone." However, Dot's biggest success was Pat Boone, who had a series of hits with Vaughn's cleaned-up arrangements of rock & roll songs.

At the same time he was leading the vocal pop division of Dot, Billy Vaughn was recording his own instrumental records, which frequently were also covers of R&B and country songs. Beginning with 1954's "Melody of Love," Vaughn had a string of easy listening U.S. hit singles that ran for over a decade. He also recorded numerous hit albums, with 36 of his records entering the U.S. album charts between 1958 and 1970.

Though he was the most successful orchestra leader of the rock & roll era, he wasn't able to sustain an audience in the late '60s. Vaughn released his last album in 1970 and quietly retired. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Not only was he one of the finest comedians America has ever produced, Jackie Gleason applied his prodigious talents to music as well. With a strong jazz roots background (leaning to mesmerized idolatry when dealing with good trumpet players), Gleason developed a chart-topping series of mood music albums in the '50s, citing his reason for their... [+] Read More

Not only was he one of the finest comedians America has ever produced, Jackie Gleason applied his prodigious talents to music as well. With a strong jazz roots background (leaning to mesmerized idolatry when dealing with good trumpet players), Gleason developed a chart-topping series of mood music albums in the '50s, citing his reason for their existence: "Every time I ever watched Clark Gable do a love scene in the movies, I'd hear this really pretty music, real romantic, come up behind him and help set the mood. So I'm figuring that if Clark Gable needs that kinda help, then a guy in Canarsie has gotta be dyin' for somethin' like this!"

Gleason began making films in the '40s, but he rose to stardom in the early '50s, thanks to the late '40s/early '50s television series The Life of Riley and Cavalcade of Stars. His television stardom led to a contract with Capitol Records, who released his first album, Music for Lovers Only, in 1953. As a musician, Gleason favored lush, dramatically orchestrated instrumentals, patterned after the mood music of Paul Weston. Gleason wasn't a trained musician, but he was responsible for the musical direction of his records; when he did write a piece, he would dictate to someone who could read and write music.

Music for Lovers Only was a surprise hit, selling over 500,000 copies. Every subsequent Gleason album was a major hit, reaching the Top Ten and selling a large number of copies. Gleason continued to release albums into the '60s, but his popularity dipped dramatically after 1957. After that year, he no longer was able to make it into the Top 15, even though his records continued to appear in the lower regions of the charts. Gleason's records have continued to be popular cult items and they have come to be regarded as definitive mood music albums. ~ Cub Koda & Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

First emerging in 1970, the Canadian Brass went on to establish brass music and instruments as a newly vital force in classical performance. A quintet (longtime members included trumpeters Frederic Mills and Ronald Romm, French horn player David Ohanian, trombonist Eugene Watts, and tuba player Charles Daellenbach), the Canadian Brass'... [+] Read More

First emerging in 1970, the Canadian Brass went on to establish brass music and instruments as a newly vital force in classical performance. A quintet (longtime members included trumpeters Frederic Mills and Ronald Romm, French horn player David Ohanian, trombonist Eugene Watts, and tuba player Charles Daellenbach), the Canadian Brass' virtuosic, classically trained style is widely credited for infusing a neglected group of instruments -- hampered by a rather limited repertoire -- with new vitality and relevance; performing everything from Mozart and Bach to Gerswhin and jazz, the group paved the way for an entirely new measure of acceptance for brass ensembles. The first Western chamber ensemble ever to tour the People's Republic of China, they also headlined venues including New York's Carnegie Hall, Orchestra Hall in Chicago, the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, the Ambassador Auditorium in Los Angeles, and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; in addition to their many live performances, the quintet also issued myriad recordings. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide [-] Hide

For year after year, decade after decade, the Boston Pops were one of the most popular orchestras in America. Through concerts, tours and an endless series of record albums, they brought classical music, marches and contemporary pop to millions of listeners. Over the course of the 20th century, the orchestra was recorded more than any other.... [+] Read More

For year after year, decade after decade, the Boston Pops were one of the most popular orchestras in America. Through concerts, tours and an endless series of record albums, they brought classical music, marches and contemporary pop to millions of listeners. Over the course of the 20th century, the orchestra was recorded more than any other. They developed a repertoire that functioned as the de facto American classical and pop lexicon. The Boston Pops were populists, emphasizing melody and texture instead of somber, challenging classical pieces. This direction was devised by Henry Lee Higginson, who formed the prototype of the Pops in 1885. The orchestra remained a popular local attraction for the first three decades of the 1900s, but it became nationally famous when Arthur Fiedler was appointed as conductor in 1930. Over the next five decades, he perfected a friendly, accessible sound that emphasized familiar classical pieces with popular tunes, marches and excerpts from film and Broadway scores. By the time John Williams took over for Fiedler in 1980, the Boston Pops were internationally known, but Williams took great steps to ensure that the outfit remain contemporary, frequently adding new pieces to their repertoire. Williams stayed with the outfit until 1995, when he passed the mantle on to Keith Lockhart. In all three incarnations, the basic sound of the Boston Pops remained unchanged, and the orchestra retained its popularity throughout shifting musical tastes.

The formula for the Boston Pops was unwittingly devised by Henry Lee Higginson, the founder of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. On July 11, 1885, Higginson gave the first Music Hall Promenade Concert, where the program consisted of "light music of the best class." He had based the program on garden concerts he attended as a student in Vienna, but it also borrowed heavily from the Promenade Concerts Benjamin Bilse conducted in Berlin, copying the style of opening with a light piece, moving to the heaviest composition on the program, and then concluding with another light number. It also had a medley of familiar numbers Bilse performed. Both the medleys and style of the program would provide the template for the Boston Pops. Higginson led the Boston Symphony Orchestra throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s. At first, his programs relied heavily on European classical pieces, but as more American composers emerged, he incorporated them into his sets, thereby giving such writers as John Philip Sousa and Victor Herbert invaluable exposure. In 1900, the Promenade Orchestra became a separate entity from the Boston Symphony Orchestra. It was now known as the Boston Pops.

Higginson passed the leadership of the Pops to Adolf Neuendorff, a member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra who followed his predecessor's formula. He was the first in a line of conductors of European descent that dominated the Pops during the early 1900s. Neuendorff didn't stay with the Pops long, and he was succeeded by a number of similarly minded conductors, often promoted from the ranks of the Symphony Orchestra, including Timothee Adamowski, Max Zach, Gustav Strube and Agide Jacchia. In 1927, an Italian composer and pianist named Alfred Casella was brought in to conduct and direct the Boston Pops. Although his tenure was brief, lasting only two years, it was influential, because it illustrated what the Boston Pops could not do. Casella decided that it was his duty to treat the Boston Pops like a conventional symphonic orchestra, having them perform full symphonies and pieces from contemporary avant-garde composers. Accustomed to "light classics," the audiences complained incessantly. Faced with public dissatisfaction, the Boston Symphony Orchestra decided to let Casella's contract expire in 1929 and hire Arthur Fiedler, a 35-year-old violist from the BSO. Fiedler had previously applied for the conductor position once Jacchia resigned, but the job went to Casella instead. As Casella led the Pops, Fiedler formed a chamber orchestra named the Fiedler Sinfonietta, which performed a series of concerts called the Esplanade Concerts. Once the Pops hired Fiedler, the Esplanade Concerts were folded into the BSO and eventually became a respected, popular Boston tradition.

Fiedler began his tenure as Pops conductor in 1930. As the first American-born conductor to lead the Pops, Fiedler developed a unique repertoire that came to define the Boston Pops. His Pops performed a wildly diverse variety of music, playing both traditional and contemporary classical music, jazz, opera, film and Broadway scores, and contemporary pop hits. He wasn't shy about incorporating new music into the orchestra's program -- his first concert featured "Strike Up the Band" and Ravel's Bolero, which was no more than a year old at the time -- and he was determined in expanding the Pops' repertoire far beyond light European classical music. Fiedler was also prescient about recordings, knowing that they were vital to the success of not only the Boston Pops, but classical music in general. In July 1935, he recorded 40 compositions for RCA Victor, including Jacob Gade's recent "Jalousie." When it was released as a single, "Jalousie" sold over a millon copies, becoming the first major hit orchestral record, as well as the first RCA Victor single to sell a million copies. (The name the Boston Pops Orchestra wasn't official until these RCA recordings, since the label needed a sharp, catchy name to put on the records.)

The recordings, in addition to constant touring, established the Boston Pops as national phenonmenons, but instead of resting on his laurels, Fiedler continued to push the orchestra forward, showcasing new (usually American) composers and soloists. He also skillfully promoted his orchestra through recordings and media. In 1952, the Boston Pops began broadcasting locally. Ten years later, their radio broadcasts were syndicated nationally and remained on the air until 1992. In 1969, he arranged for Boston Pops concerts to be broadcast on American Public Television as Evening at Pops. These televised concerts brought the Pops to a huge audience, not only in America but throughout the world. During the '70s, the Boston Pops were inarguably the most popular orchestra in the world, and their success culminated with a spectacular Fourth of July concert on the American Bicentennial in 1976.

Through a combination of talent, innovation and savvy, Fiedler established the Boston Pops as the world's pre-eminent orchestra, and he stayed with the ensemble until his death on July 10, 1979. He left behind a legacy that was seemingly impossible to fill, and for a while, it looked like the Boston Symphony Orchestra had no idea who could replace him. Harry Ellis Dickson, the associate conductor, finished the 1979 concerts, along with a series of guest conductors. Finally, in January 1980, John Williams was named conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra. Williams was best known for his scores for such hit films as Jaws and Star Wars, yet his musical background was vast and deep. A classically trained musician, he had also worked as a jazz pianist and a pop arranger. Prior to the Pops, he had little experience as a conductor, but he had the skill and taste to succeed, as well as the fame to bring new audiences to the Pops.

During his tenure with the Boston Pops, Williams continued to write film scores -- including those for Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial -- but he devoted himself to his orchestra. He made sure the group's repertoire didn't become static by adding new pieces to their canon (including some specially commisioned pieces) and having the orchestra perform symphonic arrangements of film scores. He continued the radio and television broadcasts of the Pops, and he toured the orchestra consistently. Williams also made sure the Boston Pops kept recording, releasing popular albums on the Philips and Sony Classical labels.

On Christmas 1991, John Williams announced he was retiring as conductor at the conclusion of the 1993 season. At the end of the season, he would be given the title Laureate Conductor and serve as Music Adviser. By the time Williams left in 1993, the BSO had found his replacement -- the 35-year-old Keith Lockhart, who had previously served as the conductor of the Pittsburgh Civic Orchestra. During his first few years conducting the Pops, Fiedler continued the orchestra's frenetic pace, performing hundreds of concerts, recording several records for RCA Victor, and appearing on television programs for both PBS and A&E. Lockhart proved to be a worthy successor to Williams, as the Boston Pops posted record attendence levels during his first season as conductor. The Pops maintained their phenonmenal popularity into the next century, with recordings like 1998's The Celtic Album and 2000's The Latin Album continuing to reflect changes in mainstream listening tastes. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Melody of Love: The Best of Billy Vaughn is a definitive 18-track collection that contains the great majority of Billy Vaughn's biggest hits, including "Melody of Love," "The Shifting Whispering Sands (Parts 1 & 2)," "Sail Along Silvery Moon," and "Blue Hawaii." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Melody of Love: The Best of Billy Vaughn is a definitive 18-track collection that contains the great majority of Billy Vaughn's biggest hits, including "Melody of Love," "The Shifting Whispering Sands (Parts 1 & 2)," "Sail Along Silvery Moon," and "Blue Hawaii." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

This collects 20 of Leroy Anderson's best-known recordings. Anderson produced little "orchestral miniatures": original compositions that utilized much of the trappings of classical music put in the confines of a pop single. Decca Records signed him in 1950 to conduct his music for a gigantic, 55-piece orchestra (one that Anderson often said... [+] Read More

This collects 20 of Leroy Anderson's best-known recordings. Anderson produced little "orchestral miniatures": original compositions that utilized much of the trappings of classical music put in the confines of a pop single. Decca Records signed him in 1950 to conduct his music for a gigantic, 55-piece orchestra (one that Anderson often said could never be put together in a live situation), producing pieces that were quirky ("The Syncopated Clock"), offbeat ("The Typewriter"), and just plain whimsical and fun ("Fiddle Faddle" and "Plink, Plank, Plunk!"). Best known of all is the title track, composed during a July heat wave in 1948. Though his music is seldom revived today, it was enormously catchy and popular in the pre-rock & roll days of pop music and sounds wonderful collected here. ~ Cub Koda, All Music Guide [-] Hide

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Featuring most of his biggest hits, including "Somewhere, My Love" and "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing," 16 Most Requested Songs offers a good overview of Ray Conniff's career. Though it isn't as comprehensive as some other discs, it is easy to find and has a representative track selection, making it a good introduction to Conniff. ~ Stephen...

Featuring most of his biggest hits, including "Somewhere, My Love" and "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing," 16 Most Requested Songs offers a good overview of Ray Conniff's career. Though it isn't as comprehensive as some other discs, it is easy to find and has a representative track selection, making it a good introduction to Conniff. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

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