Pops will be playing the music of John Legend, Ben Folds and your favorite movies

Cincy Pops is returning this fall for an exciting new season featuring huge names in music and your favorite movie scores, including Jurassic Park, Harry Potter and Home Alone. John Morris Russell, Cincinnati Pops conductor, is excited as well.

“What is new this season? Everything!” Morris Russell says. “Each season we create original concert presentations, performed here at Music Hall with the Cincinnati Pops—many of them original, that cannot be experienced anywhere else. We also have renowned guests from the world of pop and Broadway and films with live soundtracks, but much of what we do is to create unique productions featuring the exceptional virtuosity of the musicians of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra.”

Some of the highlights this season include a musical travel log of Europe with Rick Steves; a celebration of the music, dance and artistry of the Harlem Renaissance; La Vida Broadway with Mandy Gonzalez, and of course Holiday Pops—everyone’s seasonal feel-good favorite.

“Each season, Cincy Pops dives deep into the American musical experience, bathed in rich orchestral colors and performed with flair and panache,” Morris Russell says. “Our programs embrace the panoply of the American sound—jazz, rhythm and blues, rock, soul, Broadway, Hollywood and the popular classics—music that everyone knows and loves.”

Grammy Award-winning musician and Dayton native John Legend will be kicking off the Cincy Pops season Sept. 10, which Morris Russell says has been in the works for a while.

“We have been working for years to have John Legend perform with the Pops, but finally his schedule and the orchestra’s aligned,” he says. “This will be an incredible night of songs and stories with John that will feature intimate re-imaginings of his greatest hits and unexpected stories from his life and career. We’re excited to welcome John back to his Ohio roots for his first-ever performances with the Pops.”

In addition to John Legend and other musicians, the Cincy Pops orchestra will be performing live movie scores.

“Films with live orchestra are a relatively new thing—imagine watching your favorite movie with an entire orchestra performing the soundtrack in your living room from start to finish,” Morris Russell says. “It is an absolutely riveting experience, and one that gives everyone who attends a profound appreciation for the power of music in film making.”

Other notable performances include the music of Cole Porter, featuring singer and pianist Tony DeSare, singer-trombonist Aubrey Logan and singer-tap dancer John Manzari; Simply the Best: The Music of Tina Turner; and Beethoven x Beyoncé, featuring 15 of Beyoncé’s chart-topping songs interwoven with Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony.

There is an event for everybody, and Morris Russell hopes the audience will leave each performance feeling different than when they came in.

“The experience of a Pops performance at Music Hall is a mixture of awe, fun, inspiration and wonderment,” he says. “The brilliant musicianship and heart of our orchestra is a joy to behold and being able to share it with folks from down the street, across town and around the world is the best feeling of all.