Boston Symphony Orchestra

The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Boston. It is the second-oldest orchestra in the United States and one of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, the BSO performs most of its concerts at Boston's Symphony Hall and in the summer performs at Tanglewood. It has an offshoot organization, The Boston Pops, founded in 1885 also by Higginson to perform "concerts of a lighter kind of music." The Pops has its own schedule and musical director, and consists mostly of musicians from the ranks of the BSO.