For nearly three decades, guitarist Bob Sneider ’93 has been a constant presence at the Eastman School of Music—teaching, performing, and quietly threading Rochester’s jazz lineage forward. On February 22, Sneider, associate professor of jazz studies and contemporary media, brings that lineage into sharp focus with a Faculty Artist Series concert celebrating the life and music of Charles “Chuck” Mangione ’63E, ’85 (Honorary), the Eastman alum whose sound, spirit, and swagger left an indelible mark on the school and the city.

Sneider didn’t set out on a path toward jazz stardom. As an undergraduate at the University of Rochester, he majored in political science and had law school on the horizon. That plan changed abruptly in 1993, when he auditioned for Mangione’s band. “I didn’t think I stood a chance,” Sneider recalls. “Because I knew Chuck was auditioning some pretty heavy players as well.”

THE MAN WITH THE HAT: Mangione’s style and flugelhorn playing were known around the world.

Sneider got the gig—and with it, a front-row seat to a musical world that felt less like a job and more like a family. Touring with Mangione opened doors and reshaped his future, staving off law school applications and launching a career that has remained both rooted and remarkably flexible. His tenure at Eastman began not long after.

Though grounded in traditional jazz, Sneider’s playing life has always defied easy categories. He has performed with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, drifted into disco and classic rock, and even shared the stage with Stewart Copeland, the drummer for English rock band The Police. That stylistic openness is central to how he approaches Mangione’s music—not as museum pieces, but as living, breathing compositions.

For this concert, Sneider is joined by his longtime duet partner, pianist Paul Hofmann, a faculty member at Eastman Community Music School. For more than 25 years, the pair have performed and recorded together, including appearances at the Rochester Jazz Festival. Their duo concerts often revolve around a unifying idea, with past programs exploring the music of artists as varied as Count Basie, Steely Dan, and Marvin Gaye.

THE SNEIDER-HOFMANN DUO: The pair have played together for more than 25 years. Photo credit: Lauren Sageer.

“Serendipitously, we both said, ‘You know whose music we should play…,’” Sneider says. The answer, for both, was Mangione. With a Faculty Artists Series concert on the horizon, the timing was perfect.

Before moving forward, Sneider contacted Mangione—just a few months before his death on July 21, 2025—asking for his blessing. “The message was returned to me that he was totally cool with whatever we wanted to do,” Sneider says.

Mangione’s music has been covered in many ways over the years—by jazz ensembles, tribute bands, high school and college groups, and even marching bands. Sneider and Hofmann wanted their approach to be different. They had no interest in attempting to recreate Mangione’s flugelhorn sound or his familiar stage presence.

In the Sneider–Hofmann duo, melody duties are shared, and roles shift constantly. Hofmann might cover bass lines with his left hand at the piano, while Sneider drops into the guitar’s lower register, or vice versa. Their hallmark is intricate, harmonized melodies delivered with tight precision and flashes of fast-fingered virtuosity. “One thing that Paul and I always try to do that’s magical about our duet is we trade off roles all the time,” Sneider says.

The upcoming concert program traces Mangione’s evolution as a composer and bandleader. It begins with his early bebop period, featuring pieces such as “Spring Fever,” “Recuerdo,” and “Between Races.” “Land of Make Believe,” which Sneider performed live with Mangione in Warsaw, Poland, in 1995, receives an orchestral reimagining tailored to the duo’s sound. From the 1976 album Main Squeeze, “Doin’ Everything With You” showcases Sneider’s intricate fingerwork on a piece he also played during his early tours with Mangione. “Listen to the Wind,” a groove-heavy blend of jazz, rock, and funk, offers wide-open space for improvisation. Sneider never performed the piece with Mangione, making it one of the program’s most exploratory moments. Selections from the soundtrack to Children of Sanchez (1978) include the flamenco-inflected title track and the lush ballad “B’Bye.”

“Theme from Sidestreet,” a deep cut that Sneider calls one “real Chuck fans will know,” takes on new life in the duo’s hands. “Paul said we should do this because nobody plays it anymore,” Sneider says. “He thought we could turn it into a ridiculously cool jazz waltz. And he’s right—he’s always right. He’s a savant with his musical ideas.”

No tribute would be complete without “Feels So Good,” Mangione’s most recognizable composition. Rather than reinventing the melody, Sneider and Hofmann keep it intact while reshaping the rhythmic and harmonic landscape. “Hopefully the old boss doesn’t beat me up for doing something different with his tune,” Sneider jokes. He credits Mangione with giving him the confidence to trust his own musical voice early in his career. “He pulled me aside one night and said, ‘I want you to play like you… If you play like you, and you still get all the important stuff in there, you’re gonna play your best, and the music will sound the best.’”

The program likely concludes with “Hill Where the Lord Hides,” the opening track from Friends & Love…A Chuck Mangione Concert, recorded live at Eastman with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in 1970. The album earned Mangione one of his many Grammy nominations and marked his first major venture into orchestral writing. Put simply, “It’s iconic,” Sneider says.

CHUCK MANGIONE 1940-2025: From his earliest years as an Eastman student through the end of his life, Chuck Mangione remained a proud Rochester native.

For Sneider, the concert on February 22 is both tribute and thanksgiving. “So much of my professional music life is enmeshed in Chuck’s world,” he says. “And I’m forever grateful for that.” At the same time, Sneider is clear that the performance is not meant as a memorial. Instead, it is an invitation—to hear Mangione’s music freshly, through new textures, unexpected turns, and the intimate dialogue of guitar and piano. “We hope people come, listen, and enjoy hearing Chuck’s music brought to life in a new way,” he says.

Faculty Artist Series: Bob Sneider, guitar, with guest Paul Hofmann, ECMS Faculty
“The Music of Chuck Mangione”
Sunday, February 22, 2026
3:30 p.m. | Hatch Recital Hall