THE DES MOINES SYMPHONY’S 26Th ANNUAL YANKEE DOODLE POPS

Music Director and Conductor Joseph Giunta and the musicians of the Des Moines Symphony will once again perform The Des Moines Symphony’ Yankee Doodle Pops, Iowa’s largest single-day concert event. This FREE, outdoor concert takes place Wednesday, July 3 at 8:30 p.m. on the West Terrace of the Iowa State Capitol. A concert prelude featuring the Turner Center Jazz Orchestra with Tina Haase Findlay begins at 6:30 p.m., and the Des Moines Symphony performs at 8:30 p.m. The evening culminates with the Des Moines Symphony’s premier fireworks display over the Des Moines skyline. This year’s concert, The Dream of America, celebrates the rich history and vivid dreams of our great country. Reprising a much-lauded performance from the 2018-2019 Masterworks season, the Symphony will perform a suite from Ellis Island: The Dream of America, an ambitious new work by Peter Boyer which blends theater, narration, historical images, and music to portray immigrants in search of the American dream. Our nation’s vibrant heritage is brought to life in music as a cast of five actors perform short monologues from the Ellis Island Oral History Project. As always, the Des Moines Symphony will perform time-honored, patriotic favorites including the Armed Forces Salute, The Stars and Stripes Forever, and the 1812 Overture with live Howitzer cannons and fireworks.

The winner of the Des Moines Symphony’s 10th annual “Oh Say, Can You Sing?” Competition, Andy Oakden, will open Yankee Doodle Pops with The Star-Spangled Banner. Andy was chosen from a field of 20 competitors on Saturday, June 29 during the Symphony’s annual national anthem competition.

For the seventeenth consecutive year, Iowa Public Radio will broadcast the Orchestra’s performance live, and Mediacom will rebroadcast the concert statewide on its MC22 Channel at 8 p.m. on Thursday, July 4 and again at 7 p.m. Friday, July 5.

An estimated 100,000 concert-goers attended the 2018 Yankee Doodle Pops. With the generous support of its sponsors, the Des Moines Symphony takes great pleasure in producing this FREE concert to celebrate our American Independence and thank the community for its support. The Des Moines Symphony’s Yankee Doodle Pops is supported by Bank of the West, Casey’s General Stores and Hy-Vee, with additional support from BRAVO Greater Des Moines and the Polk County Board of Supervisors. KCCI is the concert event’s media sponsor.

Food and drink vendors (including Roadside Tacos, The Outside Scoop, Willie’s BBQ, Hy-Vee, Brandmeyer Popcorn, The Big Red Food Truck and more) selling a variety of foods and drinks will be stationed on Finkbine Drive. The Orchestra will perform on a stage facing the Capitol (off of E. Locust and E. 7th/Penn). At the conclusion of the concert, fireworks will be launched from the Grand Avenue Bridge over the downtown skyline.

Families are encouraged to arrive early and bring blankets and lawn chairs onto the Capitol lawn. Fireworks, sparklers, alcohol, weapons of any kind and smoking are not permitted on State Capitol grounds.

TRANSPORTATION

The Des Moines Symphony is providing a FREE bike valet starting at 5:30 pm. The bike valet will be located on the corner of E 9th and Grand, and is operated by the Street Collective.

DART will detour its FREE D-Line and extend the shuttle’s hours to 11 p.m. to accommodate Des Moines Symphony’s Yankee Doodle Pops attendees. A drop off for those with physical disabilities is located at the corner of Grand Avenue and East 9th Street.

For information on ADA accessibility, street closures and more, view complete concert details at dmsymphony.org.

ELEVENTH ANNUAL YANKEE DOODLE DRIVE AGAINST HUNGER

Once again, the Symphony has partnered with Bank of the West, Hy-Vee, Casey’s General Stores, the Polk County Board of Supervisors, and KCCI to help fill the Food Bank of Iowa with the eleventh annual Yankee Doodle Drive Against Hunger: A Symphony of Caring. During the concert, any attendee who donates at least two non-perishable food items will receive a discount to a Des Moines Symphony 2019-2020 Season Masterworks Concert. The food drop-off location during the event is on Finkbine Drive (located between the stage and the Capitol). Donations are also accepted through July 7 at foodbankiowa.org/yankeedoodlepops and at area Bank of the West and Hy-Vee locations.

Please visit dmsymphony.org for full program details or for more information on the Des Moines Symphony’s 2019-2020 season.