At the height of his career in the mid-1930s, Leroy Anderson began arranging for Arthur Fiedler's Boston Pops Orchestra. Later, Fiedler encouraged him to write his own tunes for the Pops. His compositions, more than 50 in number, virtually define the sound of the contemporary American pops orchestra. Blue Tango was a #1 hit in 1951, juxtaposing the charismatic melody over a traditional tango pulse. The work captured the spirit of an era.