Pops trims orchestra at five holiday shows
Struggling to fill seats for some Holiday Pops concerts, the Boston Pops have cut the size of the orchestra in half for five of the performances, including the Pops' pricey New Year's Eve show.
The move to a 40-person ensemble has angered Boston Symphony Orchestra players, who sent a petition to BSO management raising concerns about whether ticket buyers for the concerts, which take place Dec. 28 through Dec. 31, will feel misled when they show up at Symphony Hall.
"The orchestra spoke rather clearly that they felt it was not a good thing and it was misrepresented," said Ron Barron, principal trombonist for the BSO and a member of its Players' Committee. "In the future, we'll be talking about accurate representation."
The full Pops orchestra, with about 80 players, will open the Holiday Pops season on Monday and will play two dozen Symphony Hall concerts through Dec. 27. The smaller, 40-member group, billed as "Members of the Boston Pops," will play with Lockhart and special guests New York Voices Dec. 28 through Dec. 30 and with guest conductor Robert Bernhardt on New Year's Eve. Tickets are slightly cheaper ($25-$83) for the first four small-group concerts than for most of the earlier holiday-season shows ($32-$115), with the exception of children's concerts, which have the lower ticket costs. The Dec. 31 concert is the most expensive of the Holiday Pops season, with a top ticket price of $167.
The BSO has occasionally organized smaller groups of Pops players in recent years, but for private parties and corporate fund-raisers. Typically, that group performs under the moniker "Keith Lockhart and Friends." The post-Christmas concerts represent the first time a Symphony Hall Pops performance offered to the public will feature a smaller lineup.
BSO managing director Mark Volpe says that he doesn't believe ticket buyers will be upset .
"The public wants a great show," Volpe said yesterday. "They want great, festive music and great energy."
Volpe said the BSO made the decision in August to use fewer musicians as part of a cost-cutting effort to keep the budget in check. He said competition from other holiday shows has made it tougher, in recent years, to sell tickets to the post-Christmas Holiday Pops concerts.
BSO players say they are concerned because they want to protect the artistic integrity of the Pops and would like to retain the option of earning extra money for playing the concerts. But the cuts are particularly difficult for the more than 100 freelance musicians who fill out the ranks in Symphony Hall performances, mostly with the Pops, and tour with Lockhart. Earlier this fall, the BSO approved a new contract that reduced freelancers' pay. A smaller Pops ensemble -- whether it's called "Keith Lockhart and Friends" or "Members of the Boston Pops" -- means fewer slots for freelancers, they say.
"The standard joke among the players now is, 'Are you a friend, or just one of the others ?' " said one freelancer, who asked not to be named because he feared he would not be hired for future dates.
The BSO wouldn't say how much it saves by presenting the smaller group. But Chris Spinazzola, who hired the Pops in 2005 and the smaller group in 2006 for a fund-raiser for the Anthony Spinazzola Foundation, said that the first cost him about $100,000, and the second half that.
Bruce Hangen, recently fired as the BSO's principal guest conductor, said of the cuts, "It makes me think of the stories about the management experts who come into an orchestra and advise the administration on how you can cut costs. 'You have 15 violins playing the same thing. You could save money by having only one.' Somewhere in the middle is the right solution.' "
Geoff Edgers can be reached at gedgers@globe.com. For more arts news, go to boston.com /ae/theater_arts/exhibitionist. 
