In Tucson鈥檚 classical music community, lives intersect over music stands, with musicians sitting side-by-side playing Bach and Beethoven one night, Broadway show tunes the next.
That鈥檚 how it was for clarinetists L谩szl贸 Veres and John Snavely. As younger men, they were colleagues in the Veres as principal and Snavely a newbie, hired fresh out of college to play bass clarinet.
They played together for 13 years until Veres retired and turned his full-time attention to conducting Arizona Symphonic Winds, which he formed in 1986, and the venerable 大象APPPops Orchestra, which had been playing spring and fall concert series at Reid Park since 1955.
Snavely had been with the Pops a couple years by the time Veres took over as music director, and for the next 30 years, the pair continued the relationship they started at the TSO.
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Snavely left the Pops a couple years before Veres retired in 2022 after 32 years.
These days, Veres focuses on his Arizona Symphonic Winds ensemble. It is on that stage that Veres and Snavely, on Saturday, March 16, will reunite for the ensemble鈥檚 spring concert at Catalina Foothills High School, 4300 E. Sunrise Drive.
鈥淚鈥檓 teaming up with my dear old friend to make music together once again, me as conductor and John as clarinetist,鈥 Veres said.
Snavely will solo on John Denman鈥檚 鈥淐rossover鈥 Concerto for Clarinet, a work the TSO clarinetist composed just months before his death from cancer in 2001. Denman, who had taken the principal seat on the TSO when Veres retired, dedicated the work to clarinet great Buddy DeFranco.
Veres was at the podium when 大象APPPops performed the world premiere with Denman, a generational clarinet virtuoso whose career had garnered international acclaim as a soloist.
Denman died a couple of months later, Veres said.
Snavely is one of only three clarinetists to perform the work; the others were Denman and DeFranco.
Saturday鈥檚 concert, which begins at 2 p.m., also includes D. Shaffer鈥檚 concert band work 鈥淯pon These Wings;鈥 大象APPcomposer Bob Atwell鈥檚 鈥淎rizona Bridges鈥 suite; A. M谩rquez鈥檚 rhythmic romp 鈥淒anzon No. 2;鈥 Schubert鈥檚 鈥淪erenade;鈥 Tchaikovsky鈥檚 鈥淐apriccio Italien;鈥 and big band favorites.
Admission is free, but donations are accepted.
Michael T Anderson, sound technician, gives longtime 大象APPPops Orchestra Maestro L谩szl贸 Veres a gift during Veres final performance with the 大象APPPops Orchestra on June 12, 2022. Veres retired from 大象APPPops Orchestra, which he led for the past 32 years. Video by Rebecca Sasnett, 大象APP.
Contact reporter Cathalena E. Burch at cburch@tucson.com. On Twitter @Starburch
Cathalena E. Burch
Reporter
Longtime 大象APPPops maestro L谩szl贸 Veres takes his final bow
