• Ticket Price
    Free
  • Duration
    1hr 30min

Yankee Doodle Pops

Join us for the Des Moines Symphony’s 29th annual Yankee Doodle Pops! 

Join us for the Des Moines Symphony’s 29th annual Yankee Doodle Pops, Iowa’s largest single-day concert event! This family-friendly, patriotic concert concludes with the area’s premier fireworks display over the downtown Des Moines skyline, and best of all, it’s free. Bring your picnic baskets, blankets and lawn chairs, or purchase food from an array of vendors at the concert.

The music begins at 6:30 pm with a concert prelude featuring the Turner Center Jazz Orchestra and the Des Moines Symphony Academy Youth Jazz Orchestra. At 8:30 pm, the winner of the Des Moines Symphony’s annual "Oh Say, Can You Sing?" competition will open Yankee Doodle Pops with The Star-Spangled Banner. Then, American Idol finalist LaKisha Jones will join the Orchestra. As always, the Des Moines Symphony will perform time-honored patriotic classics, including the 1812 Overture and Stars & Stripes Forever.  

Yankee Doodle Pops will be broadcast live across Iowa in partnership with Iowa PBS.

Download the full program here. 

How to Get There

Free Shuttle

  • Park and ride to Yankee Doodle Pops! DART will detour its FREE D-Line shuttle and extend its hours to 11PM on July 3 to accommodate Des Moines Symphony’s Yankee Doodle Pops attendees. Just park anywhere along the D-Line route and catch the bus to the Capitol.

Bike Parking

  • Free bicycle valet: Starting at 3pm on the Capitol grounds, a free bicycle valet (provided by Des Moines Street Collective) will be available on the corner of E. 9th and Grand. Please provide your own lock. 

Parking/Street Closures

  • Due to street closures and limited parking around the Capitol, we recommend using the FREE D-Line Shuttle or Bike Parking services.
  • Limited parking is available in designated downtown lots around the Capitol. The public is welcome to park in all lots with the exception of 13 and 21 – click here to see map
  • The following roads will be closed during the following times:
    • Penn/East 7thStreet – Locust Street to Grand Avenue (8:30AM Sun Jul 2 –  3:00AM Tues July 4)
    • Grand Avenue Bridge – Robert Ray Drive to 2nd Avenue (12:00PM Mon Jul 3 – 12:00AM Tues July 4)

ADA accessibility

  • Capitol lots 9 & 10 (near the intersection of Grand and Finkbine) will be available for handicapped parking. Only those with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) parking tags or plates will be allowed in these lots. Click here to see map
  • A drop off for those with physical disabilities is located at the corner of Grand Avenue and East 9th (Finkbine) Street.
  • Additional handicapped parking spots may be available in Capitol lots 1, 2, 8, 11, 15, 19, 24, PS1.

Plan your evening

Food vendors (on Finkbine)

  • Lachele's Battle Bus: Lachele's signature smash burgers, including a special burger made just for Yankee Doodle Pops
  • Kona Ice: Tropical shaved Ice
  • Hotsy Totsy: Crispy tater tots with a variety of toppings
  • Wahlburgers: Hy-Vee is bringing some of your favorite Wahlburgers bites to Yankee Doodle Pops
  • Over the Top Ice Cream: Homemade ice cream with unique, delicious flavors to help you beat the heat!
  • DonutNV: Hot and fresh mini donuts with a ton of topping options
  • Fair Food Fridays: Classic fair favorites like pork tenderloin sandwiches and funnel cakes
  • Roadside Tacos: Tex-mex staples like tacos, nachos, burritos, and rice bowls
  • Vintage Road Coffee Company: Stay cool with cold brew, smoothies, flavored lemonades, and frappes
  • Pie Mates Australian Bakehouse: Delicious savory pies featuring house-made braised meats
  • Chick-fil-A: Chicken sandwiches, nuggets, fries, and salads

Medical

  • For on-site medical needs, please visit the medical unit on Finkbine or a uniformed on-site police officer.

Safety

  • For safety and security needs or concerns, please visit the Iowa State Patrol Command Center on Finkbine or notify a uniformed on-site police officer.
  • Members of the Iowa National Guard will set off four howitzer cannons, as designated in the musical score, during Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. The cannons will be located in the west corner of the triangle bounded by the Public Safety Parking lot, Walnut Street and Finkbine.

Broadcast Details

  • Yankee Doodle Pops will be broadcast live on Iowa PBS and IPR at 8:30PM on Monday, July 3. To learn more about streaming and online viewing options, visit iowapbs.org/watch/stream.

Event Sponsors

Supporting Sponsors

Media Partner

Viewing Party Presenting Sponsors

Viewing Party Supporting Sponsors

Viewing Party Table Sponsors

  • Bankers Trust
  • Homesteaders Life Company
  • Hubbell Realty Company
  • Principal

Program

  • KEY/Arr. Damrosch The Star Spangled Banner
  • Traditional/Arr. Holcombe Armed Forces Salute
  • TCHAIKOVSKY 1812 Overture
  • SOUSA Stars and Stripes Forever

Performers

  • Joseph Giunta Conductor Bio
  • LaKisha Jones Vocalist Bio
Joseph Giunta

Joseph Giunta Conductor

One of America’s most distinguished, versatile and dynamic conductors, Joseph Giunta is a musician of international acclaim. He is recognized as an important American conductor for his innovative programming and for his compelling interpretations of traditional and new music. His musical depth combined with his boundless energy and contagious enthusiasm makes him one of the most respected and successful orchestra leaders in the United States.

Learn More About Maestro Giunta

LaKisha Jones

LaKisha Jones Vocalist

Best known to millions of TV viewers as a top four finalist during the 2007 season of “American Idol,” LaKisha Jones is ready to reclaim center stage in music, theatre and television.

Her last album, “So Glad I’m Me” was full of Jones’ expressive, full-bodied and arresting vocals, the same voice that electrified “American Idol” viewers with the Dreamgirls showstopper “And I Am Telling You” and later the Broadway stage in the Oprah Winfrey produced, Tony Award-winning musical, The Color Purple.

Having worked with hit-making songwriters and producers including Tony Nicholas (Patti LaBelle, Luther Vandross), Ro & Sauce (Brandy, Ne-Yo) and Greg Curtis (Keyshia Cole, Yolanda Adams), Jones’ album featured a spirited mix of R&B and soul. A few noteworthy songs included the single “Same Song,” penned by award-winning songwriter Dianne Warren, Whitney Houston’s “You Give Good Love,” the gospel song “Just As I Am,” and Jones soaring ballad to her daughter, “Beautiful Girl.”

Her drive and motivation dates back to her childhood in Flint, Michigan. Raised by her mother and grandmother, Jones was exposed to music by legendary singers such as Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin and Patti LaBelle, with her grandmother urging the young girl to “let your voice shine” thereby prompting Jones to sing in church choirs and music programs. Joining various chorale groups and a cappella choruses throughout high school, Jones entered and won the top prize at Flint’s local talent contest, The Super Show in 1997.

A two-year stint studying vocal performance at the University of Michigan left the high school graduate craving to sing more. She relocated to various cities (Dallas, Houston and Virginia Beach) to pursue her dream as a singer.  Jones then went to New York to audition for “American Idol” and made it to the 2007 season, where she became the fourth finalist. She segued from “Idol” to the Broadway stage for The Color Purple where she played two roles: that of a “church lady” and of the pivotal character “Sophia.” The latter role she alternated with R&B icon Chaka Khan, who became her mentor. Jones participated in Khan’s 35th Anniversary Tour. Following her Broadway stint, Jones provided vocal coaching on MTV’s reality competition “Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods,” a show designed to find and hone Broadway’s next star.

A frequent soloist with symphony around the world, Ms. Jones has performed as a guest soloist with the National Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Utah Symphony and Opera, Winnipeg Symphony, Evansville Philharmonic, Jacksonville Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Winnipeg Symphony, Windham Chamber Singers, Grand Rapids Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Symphony, Battle Creek Symphony, Reno Philharmonic, Oregon Symphony, Long Bay Symphony and the Festival Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic.