Arthur, Arthur!

I have just finished reading Harry Ellis Dickson's biography of Boston Pops conductor Arthur Fiedler. Dickson was a first violinist in the Boston orchestra and Fielder's assistant conductor. The author did a good job of balancing the good and the bad sides of the Pops giant. The book can be found on Amazon.com and is available only through used book dealers.

I write this blog today to pay tribute to Maestro Fiedler. He really was a trailblazer. My own approach to programming really is based in Fiedler's example. I owe him all the credit that I can give to whatever success I may have had.

If my memory is correct, the Pops was founded in 1885, four years after the Boston Symphony itself. There were more than a dozen conductors before Fiedler took the helm. What Fiedler brought to the podium was his unique way of programming. His concerts were divided into three parts: the first part contained movements of, or entire, symphonies, light classical works, etc; the second part usually featured a full concerto of some type; the last section was made up of Broadway tunes, medleys of current popular groups (e.g., Beatles), Strauss waltzes, and, almost always, Sousa's Stars and Stripes Forever. So, Fiedler introduced to audiences "serious" music and popular music on the same concerts.

Needless to say, Fiedler's programming methods were extremely popular. He was, and is, a household name. He, alone, is responsible for bringing millions of people to classical music. He also brought a lot of smiles to people's faces. If one asks a person on the street to name an orchestra conductor, it is very likely they would name Fiedler (or Bernstein who, by the way, was also a cross-over artist).

Unfortunately, Fiedler caught a lot of flack for his approach to orchestra concerts. Boston orchestra musicians tended to hate him, some critics thought he was a musical lightweight, Koussevitsky was jealous of his popularity (K was conductor of the BSO at the time), and, finally, he was pigeon-holed as a "pops" conductor. In other words, although he traveled constantly to conduct pops concerts, he could not get jobs conducting "serious" programs. This bothered him all of his life.

The prejudice against pops conductors and programs continues until today. Although Keith Lockhart (the Boston Pops' current conductor) also conducts the Utah Symphony in serious programs, most conductors are either considered capable of conducting Beethoven or only good enough to do the Beatles. (Actually, pops arrangements are often harder to conduct than Beethoven symphonies!) All of this is really a shame, given the current finances of most orchestras.

If orchestras today followed Fielders' model, most would be in excellent financial condition. It is hard to believe that we are still following a 19th century approach to the orchestra. The prejudice against programs that feature classical and popular music together is still so strong, most "artists" would rather see orchestras fail than "stoop to such low-level music-making."

For me, I will continue to emulate Fiedler. And I will do it with or without the kudos of my peers.