Philly Pops
American orchestra based in Philadelphia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Philly Pops is an American orchestra that is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[1]
| The Philly Pops | |
|---|---|
| Orchestra | |
| Founded | 1979 |
| Principal conductor | David Charles Abell |
| Music director | David Charles Abell |
| Website | www |
History
Founded by presenter and producer, Moe Septee, and conducted from 1979 to 2013 by two-time Grammy Award-winning pianist Peter Nero, the Philly Pops plays orchestral versions of popular jazz, swing, Broadway songs and blues. David Charles Abell took over the positions of principal conductor and music director in 2020.[2]
On October 4, 1999, the Philly Pops was designated as the official pops orchestra of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.[3]
The Philly Pops will cease operations after the 2022-2023 season.[4] In 2023, former financial controller for the Philly Pops, Cheryl Lutts, was convicted of embezzling more than $280,000 from the organization, starting when she was hired in 2019.[5]
The musicians of the Philly Pops have organized into the recently formed No Name Pops to continue the musical tradition of the Philly Pops.
In the fall of 2024, the musicians performing under the entity name Liberty Bell Pops, doing business as No Name Pops, announced that the Nero Family Estate had agreed to gift the historic Philly Pops trademark to the organization in perpetuity.[6] The gift also included Peter Nero’s musical library, preserving an important part of the ensemble’s artistic legacy and reconnecting the musicians with the name that had long been associated with pops orchestral music in Philadelphia.
On July 1, 2025, Liberty Bell Pops, dba No Name Pops, formally adopted the name once again, restoring the ensemble’s identity as the Philly Pops and marking a new chapter for the orchestra and its musicians.[7]
The current organization, Liberty Bell Pops, has no legal or artistic connection with the former management company, Encore Series, Inc. [8]