This April, Steven Reineke will take the podium conducting the National Symphony Orchestra Pops. Some in the audience will know a big secret about the man, others will not. Reineke, himself, was in the dark until very recently. His is clearly a story he enjoys telling. “I was busy dealing with the New York Pops,” Reineke, whose contract there as principal conductor was recently extended through the 2015-2016 season, said. “I was also going along with my business with the other two orchestras, [positions with the Modesto Symphony and the Long Beach, Calif. Symphony] and quite literally, I got a call from my manager who said, ‘Well, you’re not going to believe this, but I just got off the phone with the National Symphony Orchestra and they would like you to be their next principal pops conductor.’ It took me by surprise. Of course, I was thrilled; my jaw hit the ground and I said, ‘What? That’s wonderful news!'”
| Editors Note |
| For more information about the NSO Pops, please visit kennedy-center.org |
Marvin Hamlisch, the NSO’s esteemed principal pops conductor, is leaving after 11 years there to head up the Pasadena Pops.
“I honestly did not know that I was in the running,” Reineke continued. “I had been there last April and had a wonderful time with the orchestra, but I was just there as a guest conductor.”
Still, the powers that be at National Symphony Orchestra knew exactly what, and who, they wanted.
“It is with great pleasure that we announce Steven Reineke as principal pops conductor,” said Executive Director Rita Shapiro. “He brings a broad range of expertise, as well as energy and excitement to all he does. We eagerly look forward to welcoming him to the National Symphony Orchestra.”
In addition to conducting, Reineke is a noted composer and arranger in his own right. The NSO has performed his “Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” and “Casey at the Bat.”
“I find that I’m the kind of guy who gets put in these situations where I’m taking over for some legendary composer,” he mused. “Of course I studied with the great Erich Kunzel, and then, when I got the New York Pops job, I was filling the shoes of the great Skitch Henderson, and now I have to follow such an act as Marvin Hamlisch! It’s a little daunting but I’m getting used to it.”
Reineke plans on bringing in new guest artists with a lot of youthful energy and combining that with more standard pop repertoire.
“My first season will be letting the audiences and the orchestra know who I am,” he said. “The ‘Reineke Energy’ will be a shot in the arm.”
