Hatch Shell
Encyclopedia
Charles River
The Charles River is an long river that flows in an overall northeasterly direction in eastern Massachusetts, USA. From its source in Hopkinton, the river travels through 22 cities and towns until reaching the Atlantic Ocean at Boston...
Esplanade near downtown Boston.
The Hatch Shell is best known for hosting the Boston Pops Orchestra
Boston Pops Orchestra
The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, that specializes in playing light classical and popular music....
annually for the Boston Fourth of July
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
celebration, but is also used for free concerts most weekends and many weeknights during the summer months. The grass pavilion in front of the stage has no permanent seating. There is a memorial to Arthur Fiedler
Arthur Fiedler
Arthur Fiedler was a long-time conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, a symphony orchestra that specializes in popular and light classical music. With a combination of musicianship and showmanship, he made the Boston Pops one of the best-known orchestras in the country...
, first permanent conductor of the Pops, nearby.
The original, wooden shell was built in 1928 as a temporary venue for the Pops with expectations of construction of a permanent structure in the near future. It was first used for a concert on July 4, 1929, with Arthur Fiedler
Arthur Fiedler
Arthur Fiedler was a long-time conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, a symphony orchestra that specializes in popular and light classical music. With a combination of musicianship and showmanship, he made the Boston Pops one of the best-known orchestras in the country...
conducting the Boston Pops Orchestra
Boston Pops Orchestra
The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, that specializes in playing light classical and popular music....
. A second, temporary shell, made of metal, was built in 1934, but owing to sparse funding throughout the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, construction of a permanent Hatch Shell was delayed until 1939-1940. Today's permanent shell was designed by architect Richard J. Shaw
Richard J. Shaw
Richard J. Shaw, AIA, was an American architect active in mid-twentieth-century Boston, Massachusetts and partner in the architectural firm of O’Connell and Shaw and founding principal in the eponymous architectural firm that specialized in ecclesiastical design.-Early life and education:Shaw...
, given by Maria Hatch in memory of her brother, and dedicated on July 2, 1940. In preparation for its 50th anniversary in 1991, it underwent significant renovation and repair along with modernization of its acoustics
Acoustics
Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals with the study of all mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician while someone working in the field of acoustics...
. Bostonian Howard Brickman, a master craftsman specializing in wood floors, re-created the intricate interior paneling of the shell by hand.
One of the most memorable shows at the venue was on September 9th, 1994 when Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
held a free concert. The event was touted as the Welcome Back Weekend show for college students, and was sponsored by WFNX Radio. Tens of thousands of people showed up, and during the song, "Longview
Longview (song)
"Longview" is a song and the first major-label single by the American punk rock band Green Day. It is the fourth track on the band's third album, Dookie . The song was the band's first single to top the Modern Rock chart in the U.S...
", Green Day's frontman, Billie Joe Amstrong, began ripping up a flowerbed and the crowd began violently rioting. Police formed a human chain, and eventually pushed the remaining fans off the Esplanade. Calm was restored after about two hours.
The Hatch Shell was the venue for what has been claimed to be the largest concert in Independent Music Industry history, when Dispatch
Dispatch (band)
Dispatch is an American indie/roots band. The band consists of Brad Corrigan , Pete Francis Heimbold , and Chad Urmston ....
held The Last Dispatch concert there and 110,000 people attended. Other uses of the Hatch Shell include movie showings and political speeches, and it is used as a meeting place for large events, such as AIDS Walk Boston
AIDS Walk Boston
AIDS Walk Boston is a walkathon fundraiser hosted annually in Boston, Massachusetts to benefit AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts , New England's oldest and largest not-for-profit AIDS service organization....
and the Larry Kessler 5K Run. The grass pavilion is used for picnics, casual sports, and sunbathing in a manner typical of urban parks.