The Tucson Symphony Orchestra is joining forces with traveling stars from two ends of the spectrum this weekend.
First, Grammy award nominee and piano maestro Terrence Wilson will be performing Franz Lizst’s “”Piano Concerto No. 1″” with TSO in a concert that he’ll miss the Grammys to perform in.
This comes as a particularly interesting concert, since Lizst’s “”Concerto No. 1″” was Wilson’s first professional performance. Now, at this especially significant point in his musical career, things have come full-circle for Wilson.
“”I’m just as excited to play it now as I was when I was fifteen,”” Wilson said. “”Its almost like revisiting an old friend you haven’t seen in a while. You discover little things about it maybe you haven’t before.””
The Tucson Symphony Orchestra will perform with Wilson Friday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.
Between Wilson’s shows, Pops group Jeans ‘n Classics will bring a little bit of rock n’ roll to the orchestral lineup on Saturday. The Canadian outfit will join TSO for a rock-infused classical concert featuring the music of the Eagles.
The symphony orchestra will play with a five piece band, where “”duet duels with guitar players and concert masters”” are as common as the typical violin solo, said Peter Brennan, Jeans ‘n Classics group owner.
Brennan says the idea behind the group came in the early 90s, after he had been dabbling in many areas of the music world, including studying music at university, touring and producing. Brennan came up with the idea as an attempt to attract younger crowds and give “”pops a facelift.””
In Jeans ‘n Classics shows, “”people will hear material that they know, but they’ve never heard it the way that we perform it,”” Brennan said. “”The orchestra is really part of the action,”” Brennan said.
“”It’s kind of been a labor of love for the last sixteen years,”” Brennan said.
Jeans ‘n Classics performs regularly all over the U.S. and Canada.
For the traditionally classic or the classic rockers, this weekend provides a wide-ranging classical set list.
