TubaSummer celebrating 11th anniversary with free concert July 18
Here, Tucker Jolly directs area musicians performing on a variety of brass instruments as audience members listen and dance to the music at a TubaSummer concert.
TubaSummer — a summertime version of Akron’s popular TubaChristmas — is celebrating its 11th anniversary with a concert on Sunday, July 18, at 7 p.m., on Buchtel Common at The University of Akron.
Free and open to the public, the concert will feature summer favorites performed by tuba, sousaphone, baritone and euphonium musicians from throughout the region. The steel drum band from Miller South School for the Visual and Performing Arts, directed by Matt Dudack, will provide pre-concert music, beginning at 6 p.m.
The concert will be on the grass amphitheatre adjacent to Guzzetta Hall and near the renowned artist Dale Chihuly’s towering blue polymer sculpture. Guzzetta Hall is at 139 E. Buchtel Ave., across from E.J. Thomas Performing Arts Hall and the Goodyear Polymer Center on the UA campus. The rain location is Guzzetta Recital Hall, 139 E. Buchtel Ave.
Free and convenient parking will be available in the parking deck and surface lot on East Buchtel Avenue, across from Guzzetta Hall. Audience members are invited to bring picnics, blankets and lawn chairs. Free parking will be available in campus lots and decks.
Tucker Jolly, the founder of Akron’s TubaChristmas and a professor of music at The University of Akron, will conduct. Musicians are invited to perform. The only rehearsal is the afternoon of the performance. To register to play, contact Jolly at 330-972-6641 or trjolly@uakron.edu.
The University of Akron School of Music is the sponsor of TubaSummer, which began on Cascade Plaza in downtown Akron.
Jolly joined UA’s music faculty in 1980 and began Akron’s TubaChristmas that same year. The first performance was held outside on the Cascade Plaza with 55 musicians. TubaChristmas has grown into a popular community tradition that draws capacity audiences and hundreds of musicians for two yearly performances. This year’s 30th anniversary event will be Saturday, Dec. 19, with free performances at noon and 2:30 p.m. at Thomas Hall at The University of Akron.
For more information about TubaSummer, contact 330-972-8301 or concerts@uakron.edu.
Media contact: Cyndee Snider, 330-972-5196 or cyndee@uakron.edu.