© Chicago Sun Times. All rights reserved 13th April 2004 Irish Tenors concert heralds beginning of Chicago's resident pops orchestra BY MIRIAM DI NUNZIO Staff Reporter When the curtain goes up on Wednesday night's Irish Tenors concert at the Rosemont Theatre, it will usher in a new era in entertainment for the venue and the Chicago area. The concert not only showcases a beloved musical trio, but it also heralds the arrival of the Chicagoland Pops Orchestra, perhaps the first true resident pops orchestra in Chicago history. "They attempted a pops orchestra here last year at the theater, and with that venture they were really looking at it in terms of a more locally based forum of entertainers," said Arnie Roth, conductor and music director of the ensemble. "Now we're looking at it on a much grander scale, bringing in international stars to complement the stellar orchestra that has been assembled." Roth is no stranger to the international music scene. The native Chicagoan grew up in the Peterson Park area, moving to Wilmette with his family when he entered high school. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees in violin performance from the Northwestern School of Music. He also studied conducting and composition. All of that set him on a path that has led him around the world and back again, conducting and/or arranging for the likes of Andrea Bocelli, Charlotte Church, the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago, Art Garfunkel and Diana Ross, as well as the Irish Tenors. He has composed and/or arranged movie scores, including one for Robert Altman's "The Company." He has recorded extensively with the London Symphony Orchestra, and his conductor credits also boast work with the National Symphony, the Houston Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony and the Hollywood Bowl Philharmonic. He has conducted concert orchestras for Tony Bennett, Harry Connick Jr., Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez and Frank Sinatra. And the Chicago-based company he founded, AWR Music, is one of the nation's leading contractors for professional orchestras. "Basically, if a singer or group is heading out on tour across the country [or even across Europe] and needs an orchestra, or a string section and such, my company will contract that for them," Roth said. "We have an extensive data base that features a pool of world-class musicians that we draw from depending on the needs of the performer. We've worked extensively with Bocelli and [Luciano] Pavarotti, for example. We currently have Sarah Brightman on tour nationally with an orchestra, as well as Rod Stewart. If they need 'pickup' musicians, they invariably come to us." For now, though, much of Roth's time is focused on the Chicagoland Pops, something he calls a great labor of love. "We're going to have between 60 and 80 pieces depending on the music program we're featuring at any given concert, and that will be just an amazing presence for people to experience at the Rosemont Theatre," he said. The CPO will present four seasonal concerts in its upcoming series. Special added concerts are also being considered, Roth said. There will be guest artists, too, but Roth was not at liberty to discuss his "superstar lineup." His professional experience with A-list entertainers is part of the reason Roth said he was approached to take on the Chicagoland Pops. "I've worked with so many world-class artists through the years, and Chicago was truly ripe for this type of pops orchestra-superstar singer arrangement," Roth said. "Los Angeles does this all the time with David Foster, for example. But it's the first time Chicago is approaching this kind of synergy on a full-time basis." That synergy, Roth said, will translate into a world-class orchestra specializing in pops concerts (much like the famed Boston Pops) but also having the ability to take on a classical program if called upon. "The biggest difference between a pops orchestra and a symphony is really in the level of training, and interestingly for a pops orchestra, the musicians often require even more training than those in a symphony simply because you have to be able as a musician to cross over between musical theater, big-band swing, jazz, blues, classical jazz, rock 'n' roll and pop," Roth said. "And yes [laughing], if the program calls for it, a pops orchestra can play Beethoven, too. "And I really think this orchestra will make a huge cultural contribution to the area. Everyone always thinks of Boston or New York or Cincinnati when they think pops. Chicago is no less of a city than any of those others, so there's no reason why it can't support a full pops orchestra and season." Return to Articles menu Back to top Home page