Past POPSearch Winners
Tracy Silva, a mother of two from Taunton, Mass., and van driver for special-needs children, won the inaugural POPSearch contest in 2004, wowing judges with her soulful rendition of "Fools Fall in Love" from the hit Broadway musical Smokey Joe's Cafe. She beat out more than 700 contestants from across New England for the chance to perform "Your Daddy's Son" from the musical Ragtime with Mr. Lockhart and the Boston Pops at the orchestra's marquis event: the annual July 4 Extravaganza. Ms. Silva has since sung with the Pops as a guest soloist three times in 2005 and 2006, in addition to performances at Boston Red Sox and New England Patriots games, at the Democratic National Convention, and as the opening act for Broadway star Maureen McGovern.
Frances Botelho-Hoeg, an elementary school principal from Kingston, Mass., was knocked out in the second round of the inaugural POPSearch, but returned in 2005 to sweep the competition by singing "When You're Good to Mama" from the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Chicago. Ms. Botelho-Hoeg performed with the Pops on July 4 and traveled with America's Orchestra that summer on a national tour that included stops in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. Ms. Botelho-Hoeg has since performed with the Plymouth Symphony and at such local events as Bunker Hill Community College's commencement.
Finalists in 2004 and 2005 included Wayne Hobbs, a bank vice-president from Vergennes, Vt. (2004); Ellen O'Brien, a sales representative from Winthrop, Mass. (2005); Kathy Porter, a marketing manager and grandmother from Braintree, Mass. (2004); and Joseph Rucker Jr., a social worker from Brockton, Mass. (2005).
Leonard Bernstein was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first American-born conductor to receive international acclaim. Bernstein was "one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history" according to music critic Donal Henahan. Bernstein's honors and accolades include seven Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, and 16 Grammy Awards as well as an Academy Award nomination. He received the Kennedy Center Honor in 1981.
The Boston Pops is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart.
The Tanglewood Festival Chorus, directed by James Burton, is a chorus which performs with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Pops in major choral works. The Tanglewood Festival Chorus (TFC) was organized in the spring of 1970, when founding conductor John Oliver became director of vocal and choral activities at the Tanglewood Music Center, the summer home of the BSO. Originally formed for performances at the BSO's summer home at the behest of the BSO's conductor designate Seiji Ozawa, the Tanglewood Festival Chorus is the official chorus of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Pops Orchestra year-round, performing in Boston, New York and Tanglewood.
The Utah Symphony is an American orchestra based in Salt Lake City, Utah. The orchestra's principal venue is Abravanel Hall. In addition to its Salt Lake City subscription concerts, the orchestra travels around the Intermountain West serving communities throughout Utah. The orchestra accompanies the Utah Opera in four productions per year at Salt Lake's Capitol Theatre. In addition, the Utah Symphony and Utah Opera have a summer residency at the Deer Valley Music Festival, located in Park City, Utah. The orchestra receives funding from the Utah State Legislature for educational concerts. The Symphony has a division in Utah Valley that is based out of the Noorda Center for the Performing Arts at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.
Sandra Faye "Sandi" Patty is an American Christian music singer, known for her wide soprano vocal range and expressive flexibility.
Lincoln Portrait is a 1942 classical orchestral work written by the American composer Aaron Copland. The work involves a full orchestra, with particular emphasis on the brass section at climactic moments. The work is narrated with the reading of excerpts of Abraham Lincoln's great documents, including the Gettysburg Address. An orchestra usually invites a prominent person to be the narrator.
Wellesley High School is a public high school in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States, educating students on grades 9 through 12. The principal is Jamie Chisum, who took the position in 2014 after the departure of Andrew Keough. As of 2023, the school serves 1420 students. In 2022 it was ranked the 32nd best high school in Massachusetts and the 785th best public high school in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.
The New Philharmonia Orchestra of Massachusetts, or the New Phil for short, is a 75-member mostly non-professional regional orchestra based in Newton, Massachusetts, U.S. It was founded in 1995. The New Phil performs in at the First Baptist Church in Newton, and on occasion at Mission Church in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood, as well as other locations in the region.
Evening at Pops is an American concert television series produced by WGBH-TV. It is one of the longest-running programs on PBS, airing from 1970 to 2004. The program was a public television version of a variety show, featuring performances by the Boston Pops Orchestra. It was taped at Symphony Hall in Boston, Massachusetts.
Fred Barton is an American composer, lyricist, director, actor, singer, arranger, conductor, and pianist. He made his New York debut in 1982 as co-creator-arranger-performer-pianist in the original company of the long-running revue Forbidden Broadway, appearing in the New York, Los Angeles and Boston productions for 2,000 performances, and on the cast album for DRG Records. In 1985 the show won a Drama Desk Award. Forbidden Broadway ran for 27 years off-Broadway, and won a special Tony Award in 2006.
Stjepan Hauser, known professionally as HAUSER, is a Croatian cellist. He was a member of 2CELLOS, along with Luka Šulić, and continues to perform solo.
The Akron Symphony Orchestra is a professional orchestra based in Akron, Ohio. The ASO was founded in 1949. In 2006, the ASO appointed Christopher Wilkins music director. Wilkins has agreed to serve as director through 2021.
Yevgeny Kutik is a Belarusian-American concert violinist whose career debuted in 2003 with an appearance with the Boston Pops and Maestro Keith Lockhart, an honor awarded to him as the 1st prize recipient of the Boston Symphony Orchestra Young Artists Competition Since then, Kutik has appeared worldwide playing solo recitals and concertos with orchestras. He has also won numerous awards including the 2006 Salon de Virtuosi Grant, and the Tanglewood Music Center Jules Reiner Violin Prize. In addition to being a concert violinist, Kutik is also a keynote speaker/representative for the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) Speakers Bureau.
Sampas Pavilion is an outdoor amphitheater located in the Pawtucketville neighborhood of Lowell, Massachusetts along the Pawtucket Boulevard, 25 miles northwest of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and owned by the state of Massachusetts. The pavilion is located on the banks of the Merrimack River and is part of Lowell Heritage State Park. The seating capacity is approximately 1,000, consisting of general admission lawn seats and additional seating in the back. The venue has been in use since the early 1970s and has been used for events such as musical performances, ethnic festivals, and political rallies. The pavilion hosts a summer concert series, motorcycle rallies, and the city of Lowell's Fourth of July fireworks.
The YouTube Symphony Orchestra(YTSO) is an orchestra assembled by open auditions hosted by YouTube, the London Symphony Orchestra and several other worldwide partners. Launched on December 1, 2008, it is the first online collaborative orchestra.
Charlie Albright is an American pianist and composer. He is an official Steinway Artist, 2014 Avery Fisher Career Grant Recipient, 2010 Gilmore Young Artist (2010) and former Young Concert Artist. He graduated from Harvard College (AB) and the New England Conservatory (MM) as the first classical pianist in the schools' five-year AB/MM Joint Program, was named the Leverett House Artist in Residence for 2011–2012, and was one of the 15 Most Interesting Seniors of the Harvard College Class of 2011. He graduated from the Juilliard School of Music with his post-graduate Artist Diploma (AD) in 2014.
Marina Piccinini is an Italian American virtuoso flautist. She is noted for her performances of compositions by Mozart and Bach, and has performed with many of the world's top orchestras and conductors.
George Li is an American concert pianist who was a recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2016 and silver medalist of the 2015 International Tchaikovsky Competition.
Keith Alan Lockhart is an American conductor. He is the Conductor of the Boston Pops orchestra, the Chief Guest Conductor of the BBC Concert Orchestra, and the Artistic Director of the Brevard Music Center in North Carolina.
Sons of Serendip is a classical crossover ensemble consisting of musicians Kendall Ramseur (cellist), Cordaro Rodriguez (pianist), Mason Morton (harpist), and Micah Christian. The quartet met in graduate school at Boston University, while completing degrees in Cello Performance (Ramseur), Law (Rodriguez), Harp Performance (Morton), and Theology (Christian). A year after finishing their graduate education, the group formed in 2014 specifically for the reality competition, America's Got Talent, where they finished in fourth place.
