With two bona fide Broadway stars on hand, Maestro Bob Lappin and the Palm Beach Pops returned to the Kravis Monday night to wrap up the final concert series of their 21st season with a program dedicated to the music of the Great White Way. It worked at almost every level and scored big on the sheer strength of the singers.
From the onset, guests Tamra Hayden and David Burnham brought their A-game, raising the bar for the evening. The rousing George M. Cohen medley that opened the show saw the singers playfully trading off each other and wringing every last drop out of the harmonies.
It was Ladies’ Night Wednesday night at the Kravis Center, as Maestro Bob Lappin and the Palm Beach Pops presented Here’s to the Ladies, a near-perfect balance of fine musicianship and top-shelf vocals from guest soloist Christine Andreas.
Entitled “Autumn in New York,” the program featured music by beloved New York artists such as Cole Porter, Andy Williams, Marvin Hamlisch, Billy Joel and others. The Pops was joined by vocalist Michael Andrew, who wowed patrons with his richly styled, Sinatra-like voice.
Andrew, Lappin and The Palm Beach Pops, brought down the house, reaching the concert’s finish line with two quintessential New York melodies, New York, New York, and Stardust.
Bob Lappin and The Palm Beach Pops Bring the Magic of Broadway's Most Memorable Songs & Disney Favorites to South Florida March 29-April 3
Bob Lappin & The Palm Beach Pops
March 6, 2012
A Palm Beach Pops tradition and always a night to remember, audiences will delight in the wondrous songs of musical theatre as our orchestra brings the magic of Broadway’s greatest hits to the South Florida stage. The sixth and final concert series in The Palm Beach Pops’ 20th Anniversary Season, The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites will feature Broadway stars Lea Salonga, Tony and Drama Desk Winner, best known as the singing voice in Disney movies and for her leading roles in Miss Saigon and Les Misérables, and 2007 Helen Hayes Award winner David Burnham of Wicked. Six concerts are scheduled beginning March 29, 30 & 31 at The Carole and Barry Kaye Performing Arts Auditorium at FAU, Boca Raton, April 1 at the Eissey Campus Theatre at Palm Beach State College in Palm Beach Gardens and April 2 & 3 at the Kravis Center, West Palm Beach.
The Palm Beach Pops deliver dazzling tribute to Satchmo
Bob Lappin & The Palm Beach Pops
February 8, 2012
Music reviewer David A. Frye of the Palm Beach Daily News noted today that “The Palm Beach Pops has once again successfully combined some of the best music ever written with some of the finest musicians in the Southeast to create a fun evening in honor of one of the most loved performers of the 20th century.”
Tickets are still available for this exceptional performance that had Kravis Center concert-goers on their feet last night as The Palm Beach Pops closed “an enjoyable evening of true Americana” with a “full-tilt, Dixieland reading of When the Saints Go Marching In…”
Don’t miss your chance to enjoy a fun-filled tribute to the legendary jazz great Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong!
Concerts are scheduled TONIGHT, FRIDAY & SATURDAY, Feb. 8, 10 and 11 at the Kaye Auditorium (FAU) Boca Raton & SUNDAY Feb. 12 at Eissey Theatre (Palm Beach State College) Palm Beach Gardens.
Seats are Still Available — Call 800.564.9539 (FAU) or 561.832.7677 (Eissey) or visit PalmBeachPops.org/armstrong
Palm Beach Pops Guest Artists Lillias White & Longineu Parsons to Visit Area Schools in Honor of Black History Month
Bob Lappin & The Palm Beach Pops
January 30, 2012
In honor of Black History Month, Bob Lappin and The Palm Beach Pops has arranged for guest artists Tony Award Winner Lillias White and renowned trumpeter and vocalist Longineu Parsons to speak to students at two underserved West Palm Beach elementary schools. Ms. White and Mr. Parsons will promote The Great American Songbook in a fun and educational presentation designed to introduce grammar school children to the joys of music, America’s musical heritage and live orchestral performances. The pair will appear at UB Kinsey/Palmview Elementary School and Westgate Elementary School on Thursday, February 9, 2012, in conjunction with The Palm Beach Pops’ ongoing mission to encourage young people to take an active interest in music.
The artists are in town to perform with The Palm Beach Pops in a rousing tribute to legendary jazz great Louis Armstrong. The concert series, entitled Wonderful World: A Salute to Louis Armstrong, will run February 6-12th at area venues.
Whole Foods Market Palm Beach Gardens Creates Music with The Palm Beach Pops
Whole Foods Market Marketing & Comunity Relations Team
January 13, 2012
Whole Foods Market Palm Beach Gardens Community Giving Day to provide funds to The Palm Beach Pops on Wednesday, January 18, 2012. Shop January 18 at Whole Foods Market Palm Beach Gardens and 5% of net sales will benefit The Palm Beach Pops Music & You Education Program. This program provides in-school youth music education helping to expose students to new learning experiences and positive role models while developing creativity, providing tools for communication and enabling students to build a strong sense of self. Palm Beach County students have the opportunity to participate in the Music & You Education Program at NO COST to the students, parents, teachers, schools or county.
Whole Foods Market Palm Beach Gardens, 11701 Lake Victoria Gardens Ave. Suite 6101, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410
(561) 691-8550
Clint Holmes, Palm Beach Pops offer wild ride down memory lane
Palm Beach Daily News
January 7, 2012
Clint Holmes returned to the Kravis Center stage Friday to help Maestro Bob Lappin and the Palm Beach Pops continue the celebration of the group’s 20th season. The evening featured a new show based on what singer/songwriter/entertainer does best: working a crowd with songs, stories and schtick, with a friendly persona and commanding vocals through quiet, introspective ballads and brawling big numbers alike.
The Palm Beach Pops continued the celebration of its 20th season Tuesday night at the Kravis with a tribute to two great songwriters: Burt Bacharach and Cole Porter.
The evening presented an interesting premise: combining of the wit of Porter, so far ahead of his time that his songs ring as true today as ever, with the unforgettable melodies of Bacharach, who in the 1960s (with lyricist Hal David) cornered the market on the Great White Way, Hollywood and the AM radio pop charts.
Featured
Tony DeSare, Lynn Roberts, Pops musicians offer satisfying mix
Palm Beach Daily News
November 5, 2011
This “new and improved” Pops hit the ground running this season, bringing back their many strengths from previous years while improving on things that have gotten in the way of a good time in the past. The focus has always been on the music, but this season it seems to be more so than ever.
The mood was set from the very beginning, as maestro Lappin opened the evening by simply introducing guest Tony DeSare for a rousing rendition of Irving Berlin’s God Bless America. The young singer/songwriter/pianist would come back later in the set for a stunning read of the beautiful Two for the Road by Henry Mancini and Leslie Bricusse, and an upbeat take at the keys on Berlin’s I Love a Piano.
DeSare is the real deal, cut from the same cloth as a Connick or a Bublé, but with a style and approach all his own, a natural knack for phrasing that reflects an admitted Sinatra influence and a polished stage presence that belies his age.
