Pops on the River’s bombastic music, fireworks signal traditional kick off to holiday weekend

Pops on the River attracts thousands of residents to Coolidge Park for picnics, fireworks, classical music by the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera and a bluegrass interlude by The Dismembered Tennesseans.

Even accounting for the lingering haze and aroma of gunpowder, fireworks are, by nature, a pretty fleeting amusement.

Despite financial worries in 2010 that almost saw it fade away like the explosive entertainment with which it concludes, Pops on the River has managed to establish itself as a bonafide, deep-rooted Chattanooga tradition for kicking off the July Fourth weekend.

When the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera strikes up this evening, July 3, in Coolidge Park, it will mark the 39th time Chattanoogans have celebrated America’s independence with an evening of classical music capped off with a pyrotechnic flourish.

That kind of tradition is well worth preserving, says Dan Bowers, president of ArtsBuild, formerly Allied Arts, which in 2010 offered to fund the event after Chattanooga City Council members voted not to provide financial support. ArtsBuild remains a primary sponsor of the event, alongside the city, Alliance Physical Therapy and Integrity car dealerships.