“Fidelity Futurestage® at the Boston Pops” Competition Winners Announced

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Boston Public School Students Selected to Perform at May 20 Concert

Fidelity Investments® and the Boston Pops today announced the winners of “Fidelity FutureStage at the Boston Pops,” a city-wide competition for Boston Public School student musicians to perform with the Boston Pops on the stage of Symhony Hall on Wednesday, May 20.

The four winners, including both soloists and small ensembles, represent a range of musical styles spanning classical, jazz, blues, and pop. In anticipation of their Symphony Hall debut, the student musicians will work directly with Keith Lockhart and musicians of the Boston Pops, who will help them prepare for their performances on May 20. Fidelity FutureStage was developed by Fidelity Investments in 2006 to support music and other arts education programs in local communities, with school-year programs now underway in five cities throughout the country.

Winners of the “Fidelity FutureStage at the Boston Pops” contest:

  • AnJalique Perry (Dorchester), a 17 year-old soprano from Roland Hayes School of Music will be performing Miss Celie’s Blues from the movie The Color Purple by Quincy Jones, Rod Temperton and Lionel Richie.
  • Chris Middleton (Dorchester), a 17 year-old pianist & vocalist from Boston Latin School will perform his own pop ballad, Can’t be Gone Long
  • The Underground Trio from Boston Arts Academy, featuring:
    • Chris Juris (Boston), 18 year-old senior guitarist
    • Gustavo Hernadez (Roslindale), 17 year-old junior percussionist
    • Max Ridley (Jamaica Plain), 15 year-old sophomore bassist
      The Underground Trio will perform Windows by Chick Corea.
  • Grieg Quartet from Boston Latin School, featuring:
    • B. Kim (Boston), 15 year old freshman violinist
    • Tadesh Inagaki (Jamaica Plain), 17 year-old junior violinist
    • Allyn Hayes McCourt (Jamaica Plain), 17 year-old junior violist
    • Christopher Nguyen (Roslindale), 17 year-old junior violinist
      The Grieg Quartet will be performing Edvard Grieg’s String Quartet No. 1 in G Minor

    • “It’s absolutely inspiring to see these young students from the Boston Public Schools bring such passion and dedication to their music-making, and to witness the powerful effect music has had on their lives,” said Boston Pops Conductor Keith Lockhart. “Whether it is as performers or audience members, we hope their example, and wonderful programs like Fidelity FutureStage, will serve to inspire others to experience the endless pleasures the world of music has to offer.”

    “The Fidelity FutureStage program was created to provide middle and high school students with unique experiences in the arts, including opportunities to learn from leading musicians and to showcase their own talents. This concert brings all of those elements together for one very special evening.” - Jennifer K. Brown, executive vice president at Fidelity.

    To select the four student acts, Fidelity Investments and the Boston Pops conducted a city-wide search for Boston public high school musicians and vocalists. After a review of submitted audition tapes, finalists were called back to audition on stage at Symphony Hall before an expert panel of judges. Led by the Boston Pops and First Night, the judging panel included: Dennis Alves, Director of Artistic Planning, Boston Pops; Lois Roach, First Night, Boston; Joyce Kulhawik, veteran arts and entertainment news anchor; Alex Alvear, IBA Arts and Culture Program Manager; Pat Hollenbeck, musician and arranger, Boston Pops; Susan Davenny Wyner, soprano and conductor.

    In addition to showcasing these talented student musicians, the May 20 “Fidelity FutureStage at the Boston Pops” concert is also a tribute to one of the orchestra’s most beloved conductors and a strong supporter of youth music, the late Harry Ellis Dickson. For 44 years, Mr. Dickson served as assistant and associate conductor of the Boston Pops under Arthur Fiedler and John Williams and associate conductor laureate under Keith Lockhart. Mr. Dickson was also responsible for bringing the tradition of the Youth Concerts back to Symphony Hall in 1959, after their initial introduction in the 1888-89 season; he continued conducting the concerts until 1995, when he was named Youth Concerts Conductor Laureate.

    The May 20 Pops concert features a film tribute to the conductor, as well as many of Mr. Dickson’s favorite music selections, including the beloved overture to Leonard Bernstein’s Candide and Copland’s powerful Lincoln Portrait. Michael Dukakis, former governor of Massachusetts and Mr. Dickson’s son-in law, is the work’s narrator for this concert. Broadway star Ashley Brown contributes a set of popular songs, and the evening’s finale is a lively Sound of Music Sing Along.

    Tickets for “Fidelity FutureStage at the Boston Pops” on May 20 may be purchased online at www.bostonpops.org or by phone through SymphonyCharge at 617-266-1200 or 888-266-1200

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