For more than two decades, the evening of July 3 has drawn the same crowd to the same hillside: families with picnic blankets spread among the headstones at Riverside National Cemetery, a symphony orchestra striking up patriotic standards as the light fades, and fireworks bursting over the lake by the amphitheater. It is, in every sense, a place to reflect, on the holiday, on the country, on the people who served it. The setting adds weight, but it does not take away from the joyful pomp of Independence Day.
This year, the music will come from a new ensemble and a new conductor.
Concert for Heroes returns July 3 at 7 p.m. at the cemetery's amphitheater, with picnicking open in the late afternoon and early evening beforehand. Admission and parking are free. The event has run since 2001.
For the first time, the Riverside Festival Orchestra, formed specifically for this concert, will perform in place of the Riverside Philharmonic, which played the show for years under conductor Tomasz Golka. Producing Director John Collins said a leadership transition at the Philharmonic opened the door for something new this year.
Collins said the event holds a distinction worth protecting regardless of who's on the podium.
"There is no other regular symphonic event at a national cemetery," he said.
Leading the new orchestra is Ruth Noemy Wheeler, a violin instructor and conductor who has spent more than a decade building a career in Inland Empire classical music. Reached by phone, Wheeler talks fast and laughs often, the energy of someone who had just been handed the biggest opportunity of her career and intended to make the most of it. Wheeler said Collins called and asked her to put the concert together, then asked if she'd also build an orchestra from scratch.
"I love challenges. I love new ideas," Wheeler said. "I've been a Riverside resident for many years, and I'm also an Army wife. So this was perfect for me, and it's just so wonderful."
Wheeler was born in El Salvador and raised in Spain before coming to the United States in 2005 to pursue graduate studies at California Baptist University. She has taught there since 2010, won an international conducting competition in Los Angeles in 2021, and currently holds assistant conductor posts with both the CBU orchestra and the Corona Symphony. She is also married to a U.S. Army reservist, a fact, she said, that makes the assignment feel personal. Asked about building an orchestra from nothing in a matter of weeks, she answered without a trace of hesitation.
Her program includes Aaron Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" and an armed forces salute honoring each military branch, alongside Independence Day staples like "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "Stars and Stripes Forever." But the lineup leans further into film and pops repertoire than past years have, with selections from "Star Wars," "Superman" and "Pirates of the Caribbean." Wheeler said the shift is deliberate, aimed at keeping younger audience members engaged at a show that draws families by the thousands.
"I am between 14 and 15 pieces, and every one of them has a good length, and is entertaining," Wheeler said. "I'm choosing music that is attractive for younger people too."
"I respect the Philharmonic very much, and I know Tomasz Golka as well," Wheeler said. "But this is the organization putting together this concert, and they wanted to go a different way."
Wheeler is also navigating a field where women conductors remain rare. She pointed to the Redlands Symphony and the San Francisco Symphony, both of which recently named women to their top conducting posts, as part of a broader shift.
"It's hard for us to have opportunities like this," Wheeler said. "This year there are a lot of women conductors in California rising up and getting positions."
Beyond CBU, Wheeler teaches at the Riverside Arts Academy and coaches strings for Riverside Unified School District students at Poly High School, Gage Middle School and Sierra Middle School. La Sierra University is providing instrument rentals and rehearsal space for the new orchestra, which Wheeler said has come together entirely through community connections.
"I'm a professional in this field, and I have a lot of connections," Wheeler said. "So I knew this wasn't going to be too hard for me."
Wheeler said the orchestra's future beyond this concert depends on donor support. She has ideas if it continues, including holiday concerts and performances for Riverside Unified schools.
For now, the focus is one night by the lake, lineup set, fireworks waiting at the end.
"All the engines are on," Wheeler said. "We are very excited for this opportunity."
More information: Concert for Heroes takes place July 3 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Riverside National Cemetery, 22495 Van Buren Blvd. Admission is free. For more information, visit raincrossgazette.com.
