I think the Boston Pops still follows that format to some extent. Anyone out there who plays with them that can tell us?
I play in a smaller ICSOM group, so it's a different story altogether. Although I have to say, I don't see how we make much money off of our pops concerts. I'm sure Glen Campbell wasn't exactly cheap, and we did not have anything close to a full house on either night. Thanks marketing dept!
There are some notable pops conductors though who seem to know how to put together a really spectacular program. Erich Kunzel, of course - but another one is Jack Everly. He's currently the pops director in Indianapolis (and probably some other places, but I'm not sure). He conducts really well, but also is a great arranger and has real artistic appreciation for the music he presents -whether it's Swing era big-band stuff, MGM musical stuff, broadway, whatever.
Anyway, the real point I wanted to make about Pops is that a trumpeter - much moreso than a flutist, violinist, etc. - has to be able to play convincingly in a variety of idioms to make a pops concert sound good.