L.A. Pops Fills Musical Void, Conductor Says

Like a beer and a ball game, evening pops concerts are a summer tradition, but for the Los Angeles Pops Orchestra, the tradition of performances at Warner Center is just getting started.

The L.A. Pops, founded in 1977 by conductor Carlo Spiga, is making its summer home at the Trillium Events Center at Warner Center in Woodland Hills, where it performed last year.

In 8 p.m. concerts Aug. 12-13 and 19-20, the L.A. Pops will perform Broadway show tunes and a tribute to American music.

The concerts are part of what Spiga calls a commitment to the Valley. “It’s very much needed in the San Fernando Valley because there’s nothing,” said Spiga, who lives in Woodland Hills. The orchestra offers light entertainment to people without forcing them to fight traffic all the way downtown or to the Hollywood Bowl, he said.

In addition, the L.A. Pops offers a different program than what the Los Angeles Philharmonic plays at the Hollywood Bowl. “We do some very light classical music,” Spiga said, “mostly Broadway and what’s happening now. I’m a classical musician myself, but I feel people want to be entertained with very light music like that of the Boston Pops under Arthur Fiedler.”

The first concert, “Pops Americana,” will feature harmonica virtuoso Jerry Adler, who will perform a George M. Cohan medley and Al Jolson tunes. Guitarist Del Casher and violinist Bruce Dukov will be soloists in “The Orange Blossom Special.”

Other selections include a salute to famous Big Bands, arrangements of radio and TV show theme songs, portions of Richard Rodgers’ music for “Victory at Sea,” plus tunes from the movies “La Bamba” and “Dirty Dancin.’ ”

The second concert, “Pops Plays Broadway,” will feature Eileen Barnett and Michael Hawkins in solos and duets from such well-known musicals as “Guys and Dolls,” “West Side Story,” “The King and I” and “Oklahoma!” along with more contemporary works like “Cats” and “Les Miserables.”

Although some of the arrangements will be familiar favorites, others will be the work of the orchestra’s arrangers, particularly the Big Band salute and the music from “Dirty Dancin’ ” and “Phantom of the Opera,” which hasn’t become available in rental libraries yet, he said.

Seating is available at tables in the outdoor theater--which is actually tennis courts in disguise--as well as in chairs on concrete bleachers. The audience is encouraged to bring a picnic basket or buy baskets sold through the L.A. Pops office. Liquor will be available outside the site, but alcoholic beverages are not permitted inside the Trillium.

“We just want to play simple, nice, beautiful music,” Spiga said. The idea of pops orchestras seems to be a popular one, he added. “The funny part of it is that since we started, there’s been the Long Beach Pops and the Pasadena Pops. Everybody went pops.”

Tickets are $35 per person for seats at the tables, which accommodate 10 people, $20 and $15 for the bleacher seats. The Trillium Events Center is at 6320 Canoga Avenue, Woodland Hills. Reservations are available at the L.A. Pops office, (213) 453-7677.