Peter Nero and the Philly Pops� help beat the summer heat with two cool concerts at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts
04/01/2008Sha Na Na joins Peter and The POPS for Doo-Wop at the Pops on July 30
An Evening of Gershwin on August 13 features
Alyson Cambridge and Leonard Rowe
This summer Peter Nero and the Philly Pops� helps beat the summer heat with two cool concerts at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts. Audience favorite Sha Na Na joins Peter and The POPS for Doo-Wop at The POPS on July 30. An Evening of Gershwin on August 13 features special guest vocalists Alyson Cambridge and Leonard Rowe in selections of the composer�s grand American works.
Doo Wop at The POPS � Sha Na Na
Peter Nero and the Philly Pops presents a night of doo-wop with special guest Sha Na Na. With its beautiful harmonies and heartfelt love songs, doo-wop was the original rock �n� roll music. Join Peter Nero and the Philly Pops with the quintessential doo-wop band, Sha Na Na, for a night of finger-snapping, toe-tapping fun. (Wednesday, July 30, 2008, 8:00 p.m.).
Sha Na Na began as a glee club ensemble at New York�s Columbia University, which performed a cappella versions of 50s rock songs as part of their performances. Eventually rock �n� roll took over, instruments were added, and Sha Na Na was born. The group was in the original Woodstock Festival lineup, starred in the film Grease, hosted the Sha Na Na TV series for four years, and still performs more than 100 concerts a year.
Summertime with The POPS � An Evening of Gershwin
The hottest show of the summer features an evening of all Gershwin performed by the incomparable Peter Nero and the Philly Pops.�No composer has ever captured the spirit of American music like George Gershwin and now, along with singers Alyson Cambridge and Leonard Rowe, audiences will enjoy a full evening of�the composer�s grand music. The performance features excerpts from one of his most compelling works, Porgy and Bess, as well as the enormously popular Rhapsody in Blue. (Wednesday, August 13, 2008, 8:00 p.m.).�
Alyson Cambridge has been noted for her strikingly beautiful stage presence as well as her affecting musical and dramatic interpretation. The young American soprano is a frequent guest of the Metropolitan Opera, having made her debut in 2004 under the baton of James Levine as Frasquita in Bizet�s Carmen. She received a Bachelor of Music degree in voice performance from Oberlin Conservatory, and continued her studies at the Curtis Institute of Music, pursuing a Master of Music degree. Among her numerous awards and prizes, Ms. Cambridge received first prize in the 2003 Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation International Voice Competition and was a 2004 George London Foundation Award recipient.
Baritone Leonard Rowe is a native of Fredericksburg, VA, and a graduate of the North Carolina School of the Arts. He has performed with the Buffalo Philharmonic, the Harrisburg Symphony, the Charleston Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Louisville Orchestra, and the Nashville Symphony. Winner of the Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation and the Bellini international voice competitions, he performed in the winner�s recitals of both competitions at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.
Peter Nero
�If the perfect pops conductor could be conjured, � he might answer to this description,� wrote Philadelphia Inquirer music critic Peter Dobrin. �Huge talent with polymath abilities and catholic tastes. Musician who actually enjoys giving audiences what they want. Plays piano like a dream. �� [H]e might look something like Peter Nero.�
�Nero � plays with the energy of a 20-year-old rock and roll drummer,� noted the Palm Beach Daily News on March 26, 2008. �His Juilliard training shows in the cleanliness of his technique and in his control of the tone of the piano. His technical arsenal includes brilliant passage work, rapid bass lines, arpeggio-like figures ascending and descending, and subtle dynamic variations. His fast playing is thrilling, and his slow playing is marked by a beautiful lyricism.�
A two-time Grammy� Award winner and 10-time nominee, Mr. Nero has built an impressive career as a conductor, arranger, composer, and master pianist. For his ability to pick just the right material, he most recently was dubbed �Dr. Feelgood.� Named �the epitome of the Pops Conductor/Performer� by the Washington Post, Mr. Nero won the Grammy� Award for �Best New Artist� in 1961, another in 1962, and since that time has garnered 10 additional nominations and released 67 albums. His recent guest performances include engagements with the Indianapolis Symphony, the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, the Charlotte Symphony, the Buffalo Philharmonic, and the Baltimore Symphony, among others.� On January 27, 2007, Mr. Nero performed at the Academy of Music 150th Anniversary Concert, joining rock icon Rod Stewart from the piano on �They Can�t Take That Away from Me.� Maestro Nero was a guest soloist on Mr. Stewart�s second of four recordings, As Time Goes By ... The Great American Songbook, Vol. 2. He has made numerous television appearances on national networks as well as PBS. He is the recipient of six honorary doctorates and in 1999 received the Pennsylvania Distinguished Arts Award.
Peter Nero and the Philly Pops
One of America�s premier pops orchestras, Peter Nero and the Philly Pops was founded in 1979 under the musical leadership of Mr. Nero, whose unique talents and innovative programming blending all musical genres have made their concerts widely popular in the pops world. POPS concerts run the gamut from great classics to jazz improvisation, big band to Broadway hits, ragtime to rock �n� roll. Mr. Nero�s participation as piano soloist has been received with boundless enthusiasm and acclaim. Guest artists�both established stars as well as outstanding new vocalists from Broadway and the concert stage�join The POPS each season. The Voices of The POPS, the resident vocal group, has become a member of the Philly Pops family as well.�
Peter Nero and the Philly Pops is the Official Pops Orchestra of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a significant part of Philadelphia�s cultural scene. The POPS has produced continuously growing and loyal audiences and performs to regularly sold-out crowds as a resident company of The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.�
Peter Nero and the Philly Pops has played a role in the City of Philadelphia�s Fourth of July celebration for over 20 years. On July 3, 2007, for the fourth consecutive year, Peter Nero and the Philly Pops performed a free outdoor concert in front of Independence Hall. This immensely popular annual event, which includes a musical tribute to all branches of the armed forces, draws thousands of attendees.� On July 4, 2006, Peter Nero and the Philly Pops performed a free outdoor concert on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Their concert on the Parkway the previous Independence Day, featuring Sir Elton John, Patti LaBelle, and Bryan Adams, reached over a half million people. Other notables who have joined them for past city celebrations include James Earl Jones, Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, Ray Charles, Boyz II Men, and Dionne Warwick.�
Peter Nero and the Philly Pops celebrated its 25th anniversary during the 2003-04 season and is looking forward to celebrating its 30th anniversary during the 2008-09 season. Peter and The POPS had the honor of performing at the opening of the National Constitution Center in 2003, and participating in National Public Radio�s nation-wide radio broadcast on July 4, 2002. Another highlight took place in April 2002, when Astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn made a guest appearance in a special performance of Peter�s original composition Voyage into Space. Peter and The POPS were featured on ABC-TV�s �Independence Day 2001,� a live, star-studded national broadcast, sharing the stage with such luminaries as Michael Douglas, Morgan Freeman, Kevin Spacey, Whoopi Goldberg, and Garth Brooks.�
More information about Peter Nero and the Philly Pops can be found at www.phillypops.org.
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Peter Nero and the Philly Pops�
Doo Wop at The POPS
The Mann Center for the Performing Arts
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July 30 at 8:00 p.m. � Wednesday evening
Peter Nero and the Philly Pops
Peter Nero, conductor and pianist
With special guests Sha Na Na
Tickets: call 215.893.1999 or visit www.manncenter.org�
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Peter Nero and the Philly Pops�
Summertime at the POPS
An Evening of all Gershwin
The Mann Center for the Performing Arts
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August 13 at 8:00 p.m. � Wednesday evening
Peter Nero and the Philly Pops
Peter Nero, conductor and pianist
Starring soprano Alyson Cambridge and baritone Leonard Rowe �
Tickets: call 215.893.1999 or visit www.manncenter.org�
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