Boston Landmarks Orchestra Begins Its 15th Season With a Bang

The Boston Landmarks Orchestra starts its 15th season of free concerts tonight with an exciting summer performance at the Hatch Memorial Shell in Boston.

The BLO, led by music director Christopher Wilkins and executive director Jo Frances Meyer, has an exciting concert season planned. As reported by BU Today, the orchestra made up entirely of Bostonians aim to top their previous regionally-recognized concerts with this year's series:

"Made up of local professional musicians, the BLO is known for performing a repertoire that is both eclectic and inclusive, and its summer concert series at the Hatch Shell on Boston's Charles River Esplanade now draws thousands each week."

Tonight's season opener will feature BLO's performance of Music for Movies, a film-inspired piece from famed "Appalachian Spring" composer Aaron Copland. The concert will also include renditions of Ottorino Respighi's The Pines of Rome and the Carnegie Hall-commissioned Secrets of Wind and Birds from Chinese musician Tan Dun.

As reported by Classical World, executive director Meyer is enthusiastic about the new BLO concert season, highlighting music director Wilkins' dedication in going above-and-beyond for the summer string of complimentary concerts:

"[O]ur 2015 season was so extraordinary in every way that I confess I was having a hard time imagining how 2016 could possibly be as good or better. My worries, however, were misplaced. Our incomparably creative music director Christopher Wilkins has outdone himself in planning a 2016 season that promises to be every bit as imaginative, inspiring, artistically excellent and inclusive as any season yet."

For a complete listing of this summer's Hatch Shell concerts in Boston, visit www.celebrateboston.com. To find out more about the BLO, visit their website at www.landmarksorchestra.org.

Below, watch the Boston Landmarks Orchestra perform Handel's famous "Hallelujah" chorus with the North End Music and Performing Arts Center singers last year.

We want to hear from you. If you’re local to the Boston area, have you previously attended one of the Boston Landmarks Orchestra’s Hatch Shell concerts? Sound off in the comments section below!

TagsBoston Landmarks Orchestra, Christopher Wilkins, Jo Frances Meyer