Herb Smith

Herb Smith conducts pops programs, including a holiday jazz concert with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra and an Elvis Presley tribute program with the Long Beach Symphony. These are crowd-friendly concerts that pair a symphony orchestra with popular music styles rather than the standard classical repertoire.

Both listed programs sit in the pops tradition, where a full orchestra backs up familiar tunes instead of, say, a symphony by Beethoven. "Jazz Up the Holidays" suggests a mix of well-known holiday songs rearranged with jazz harmonies, swing rhythms, and likely a small combo or big-band-style horn section layered into the orchestra. "Elvis Rocks Vegas" points to a tribute-style show built around Elvis Presley's hits, arranged for orchestra and probably featuring a vocalist or tribute performer out front, with the orchestra providing the lush string and brass backing that turns a rock-and-roll setlist into a concert-hall event. Listeners should expect a conductor whose job here is less about interpretive depth and more about pacing an entertaining, audience-facing evening, cueing singers or soloists, and keeping the orchestra tight through pop and jazz arrangements rather than traditional symphonic structure.