The Classical Pops Festival is an annual outdoor festival held each December at the Apes Hill Club in

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate) ...

. It draws inspiration from events such as

Tanglewood Tanglewood is a music venue in the towns of Lenox and Stockbridge in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. It has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1937. Tanglewood is also home to three music schools: the ...

in Massachusetts and the

BBC Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

in the UK. The festival showcases a unique orchestra composed of principal players and members from various well-known symphonies. In 2014, the festival orchestra was led by Thomas Wilkins, who serves as the Principal Conductor of the

Hollywood Bowl Orchestra The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra (HBO) is a symphony orchestra which is managed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association and plays the vast majority of its performances at the Hollywood Bowl. John Mauceri led the orchestra from its founding in 1990 ...

and Music Director of the Omaha Symphony. Wilkins also holds the Germeshausen Family and Youth Concert Conductor chair with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO). The orchestra featured four concertmasters performing together with Jonathon Crow, the Concertmaster of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, holding the official festival concertmaster position. The festival's orchestra is recognized for its diverse composition, including accomplished African American classical musicians

Ann Hobson Pilot Ann Hobson Pilot (born November 6, 1943) is an American musician and the former principal harpist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Pops. She has performed with the National Symphony Orchestra, the Pittsburgh Symphony, and as a soloi ...

, the principal harpist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra; Owen Young, also from the BSO and Terrance Patterson, the Artistic Director of the Ritz Chamber Players. The festival programming encompasses a range of genres including classical music, contemporary works, jazz, opera, film scores as well as Broadway tunes. These are performed by popular artists accompanied by the orchestra. Guest ensembles also contribute to the festival's lineup. In 2014, the festival opened with

Irvin Mayfield Irvin Mayfield Jr. (born December 23, 1977) is an American trumpeter, composer, bandleader and educator. On November 3, 2021, Mayfield was sentenced to 18 months in prison for defrauding the New Orleans public library system from over one mill ...

& the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra featuring special guest

Alison Hinds Alison Amanda Hinds (born 1 June 1970) is a British-born Bajan soca artist based in Barbados. She is one of the most popular soca singers in the world. Biography Alison Hinds was born in London on 1 June 1970 and grew up in Plaistow.Batey, A ...

, followed by the orchestra's performance of ''Film Night'', a showcase of music by John Williams,

Hans Zimmer Hans Florian Zimmer (; born 12 September 1957) is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Oscars and four Grammys, and has been nominated for two Emmys and a Tony. Zimmer was also named on the list of Top 100 Living G ...

Henry Mancini Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini, ; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flautist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Award ...

Jerry Goldsmith Jerrald King Goldsmith (February 10, 1929July 21, 2004) was an American composer and conductor known for his work in film and television scoring. He composed scores for five films in the ''Star Trek'' franchise and three in the ''Rambo'' franch ...

and

Erich Wolfgang Korngold Erich Wolfgang Korngold (May 29, 1897November 29, 1957) was an Austrian-born American composer and conductor. A child prodigy, he became one of the most important and influential composers in Hollywood history. He was a noted pianist and compo ...

, featuring acclaimed violinist

Tai Murray Tai Murray (born ) is an American violinist. According to Murray, she became interested in the violin when her parents "put a pencil case with a toy violin in my hand when I was five". Born in Chicago, Illinois, Murray made her concert debut with t ...

as a soloist. The second day of the festival featured the Piazzolla Trio with dancer Lil Buck, followed by the orchestra's rendition of "Holiday Pops!" with soprano Alison Buchanan, the St. Leonard's Boy's Choir, and the Gospelfest Choir.

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

also covered the festival, including a segment on Lil Buck.

References

Music festivals in Barbados Classical music festivals in Barbados Music festivals established in 2014 Winter events in Barbados {{Barbados-stub