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RELEASED: Dec. 2, 2004
DANVILLE, KY—A conductor noted for bringing classical music to the people will receive an honorary degree from Centre College on Saturday, Dec. 4.
Keith Lockhart, the vivacious and charismatic conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Humane Letters before leading the Pops in a holiday concert at Centre's Norton Center for the Arts. It will be the third time he has brought the Pops to Centre.
Lockhart was just 35 when he took up the baton for the renowned Boston Pops. Now in his 10th season with the 119-year-old American institution, he has led an ambitious and expansionary program to bring symphonic music to the widest possible audience.
He has conducted the Pops in more than 750 concerts, 60 television shows, 21 national tours and four tours to Japan and Korea. In 2002, he took the Pops to the Super Bowl for the first-ever orchestra performance at that sporting tradition. Under his direction, the Boston Pops Orchestra has released eight recordings, including the Grammy-nominated Celtic Album and The Latin Album, which received a Latin Grammy nomination.
"We have created a church atmosphere in classical music," he once said, "and I think that sanctimony needs to be dispelled. . . . The Pops is the best cultural outreach tool we have for classical music."
It doesn't hurt that his obvious passion for his work and an athletic energy on stage have brought him the kind of celebrity more typically associated with rock stars.
Since 1998, he has also been music director of the Utah Symphony.
Tickets are still available for the Pops performance, which will include special guests Hayley Westenra, the New Zealander who had the fastest-selling debut album in the history of the British classical charts, as well as California's Pacific Chorale. Call the box office at (859) 236 4692 to reserve seats for this festive concert.
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Founded in 1819, Centre College is ranked among the U.S. News top 50 national liberal arts colleges. Centre alumni, known for their nation-leading loyalty in annual financial support, include two U.S. vice presidents and two Supreme Court justices. For more, visit http://www.centre.edu/web/elevatorspeech/
For news archives go to http://www.centre.edu/web/news/newsarchive.html.
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