AUGUSTA – The Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra will appear in Maine Friday, Dec. 17, in a holiday concert at 8 p.m. at the Augusta Civic Center.

Tickets go on sale Monday, Oct. 4. Call 626-2400 or Ticketmaster, (207) 775-3331; or go online to www.ticketmaster.com.

The Boston Pops is returning to Central Maine after a seven-year absence.

This will be the orchestra’s fourth appearance in the capital city; the first two performances were conducted by Arthur Fiedler, the orchestra’s conductor from 1930 to 1979.

The Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra, consistently selling out holiday performances, is comprised of the members from the Boston Symphony Orchestra, minus 12 of the principals who tour as the Boston Symphony Chamber Players.

The Boston Pops was founded in 1885 to offer “light music of the best class.” The holiday concert is best known for its rousing singalongs and renditions of great Christmas classics.

The Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra’s holiday concerts also traditionally involve local celebrities’ narration of familiar holiday stories.

Pops Conductor Keith Lockhart is in his 10th year with the organization.

He was named to succeed John Williams in February 1995. Lockhart began his musical studies with piano lessons at age 7.

He holds degrees from Furman University and the Carnegie-Mellon Institute.

He was 35 when he came to the Boston Pops from Cincinnati where he was associate conductor of both the Cincinnati Symphony and Cincinnati Pops orchestras.

Since 1998, he has also been music director of the Utah Symphony.

He led the Utah Symphony as part of the opening exercises of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.

Lockhart has conducted more than 750 concerts and 60 television shows, including PBS’ “Evening at Pops,” the annual July Fourth spectacular, shown nationally on CBS Television and an annual holiday special aired in Boston. During his tenure, the Boston Pops has released eight albums.

The Pops’ 2002 July Fourth broadcast was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Classical Music/Dance Program. In addition, the 2002 broadcast of “Fiddlers Three” on “Evening at Pops,” won the 2002 ASCAP Deems Taylor Award in the television broadcast category.

That same year, the Boston Pops became the first orchestra to be featured entertainment at a Super Bowl, performing patriotic favorites, with guest vocalist Mariah Carey, during the Super Bowl XXXVI Pregame Show.