Keith Lockhart became the twentieth conductor of the Boston Pops in 1995, adding his artistic vision to the Pops tradition established by his predecessors John Williams and Arthur Fiedler. Now in his fourteenth season, together with the Boston Pops, he has conducted more than 1,000 concerts, made 66 television shows, presented 33 national tours, four overseas tours in Japan and Korea and recorded eight Grammy nominated albums.

Born in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Keith Lockhart began his musical studies with piano lessons at the age of seven. He holds degrees from Furman University in Greenville, S.C., and Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, and served as associate conductor of both the Cincinnati Symphony and Cincinnati Pops orchestras. As music director of the Utah Symphony since 1998, Mr. Lockhart led that orchestra at the 2002 Olympic Games. Presently, Lockhart also holds the titles of artistic advisor and principal conductor of the Brevard Music Center in North Carolina.

During his tenure Lockhart has worked with a wide array of established artists from virtually every corner of the entertainment world from Hollywood to Broadway. He introduced the innovative JazzFest and EdgeFest series, which feature the Pops performing with some of today’s most prominent jazz and indie artists including Chick Corea and Natalie Merchant. He has also spearheaded collaborations with students from the Boston Conservatory and Berklee College of Music. Lockhart recently lead a concert for national broadcast on PBS in March 2009 featuring jazz trumpeter Chris Botti, and special guests Sting, John Mayer, and Steven Tyler. The annual “Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular” at the Hatch Shell is one of Keith’s favorite events! In a city rooted deeply in history, Lockhart has led effectively by not only cultivating tradition, but also encouraging continued creativity to expand the Pops genre into the 21st century.