Cincinnati Pops’ Riverbend concert series kicks off with Orchestral Spectacular on June 7

Cincinnati Pops Orchestra
Cincinnati Pops Orchestra

Cincinnati Pops Orchestra
Presented by PNC
John Morris Russell, conductor
Riverbend Music Center, Saturday, June 7, 8 p.m.
Tickets start at $20 and are available by calling: (513) 381-3300 or visiting www.cincinnatipops.org
Kids 17 and under free on the lawn with purchase of adult ticket.

The Cincinnati Pops Orchestra begins its annual summer series at Riverbend Music Center on Saturday, June 7 at 8 p.m. with a salute to the blockbuster hits of orchestral music. Pops Conductor John Morris Russell leads the Pops! Orchestral Spectacular program, which brings the best of composers such as Tchaikovsky, Copland, Stravinsky and many more who bring big sound to a big stage. Familiar works including Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, Respighi’s Pines of Rome and Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals together on the same program provide a “best of” concert for music fans. A Rozzi’s fireworks display follows the concert.

“Our big, bad Pops Orchestra is known worldwide as one of the great powerhouses of brass playing, and we are doubling down on the brass for this concert: 13 additional players, nine French horns, two tubens, nine trumpets, two bass trumpets, three trombones, two tubas,” said Mr. Russell.

“This is huge! All of the biggest sections of everyone’s favorite pieces and real surround sound!” he said.

Many of the works also invoke references from popular culture. For instance, fans of Ocean’s 11 (2001) will recognize Debussy’s Clair de lune from the final scene of the gang watching the Las Vegas fountains at night. Likewise, Mascagni’s Intermezzo from Cavalleria rusticana was featured in The Godfather: Part III. Several of the program’s works are also featured in Disney’s Fantasia.

Tickets for this concert start at $20, are still available and can be purchased via the Pops Box Office by calling (513) 381-3300 or visiting www.cincinnatipops.org. Kids 17 and under sit free on the lawn with purchase of adult ticket. Buy all four Pops at Riverbend concerts and get a free Pops picnic blanket (a $28 value).

The Cincinnati Pops is grateful to Pops Series Presenting Sponsor PNC. The Performance Sponsors are Adleta Group and Ernst & Young. Kids under 17 sit on the lawn for free, courtesy of Toyota.