Danbury Concert Association
Beautiful music, where you live
Sophie Shao & Friends
Sunday, June 7 at 3 p.m.
Visual & Performing Arts Center
Western Connecticut State University
“...eloquent and powerful...”
(The New York Times)
Cellist Sophie Shao returns to Danbury with (shown here) violinist Carmit Zori (Bargemusic, Brooklyn Chamber Music Society), violist Rebecca Young and bass Max Zeugner (both courtesy of the New York Philharmonic), and pianist Amy I-lin Cheng (a “brilliant and most beguiling pianist").
Their program:
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Elena Ruehr’s Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 2
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A piano trio by Danbury’s Charles Ives, to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding
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Schubert’s joyously lyrical Quintet for Piano and Strings, aka “the Trout"
Admission
2025/26 subscribers, just give your name at the concert hall door.
For single tickets to our June 7, 2026 concert use the Eventbrite link above
or go to the VPAC box office, which opens one hour before curtain time.
Age 18 and under? Admission is FREE, courtesy of the Danbury Cultural Commission.
A meet the artists reception follows the performance, open to all.
Watch for our 2026/27 series announcement, coming soon.
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To subscribe to our next four-concert series use the “subscribe” link that will be on this website OR the order form in our 26/27 series brochure. (To request a brochure, go to Contact us.)
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For tickets to a specific performance use the “single tickets” Eventbrite link in the concert description.
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Age 18 or under? Your admission is free.
All performances are Sunday afternoon at the Veronica Hagman Concert Hall. (For details, see Directions.)
Dates and artists subject to change
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About the DCA
Danbury’s a special city when it comes to the arts!
Well before large-screen TVs, Interstate 84, or the internet came to town, people here made and supported “community music.”
Starting in the 1930s, the Danbury Music Centre was the go-to place to learn an instrument, sing in a chorus, or perform with fellow music lovers. Once some music center members asked “how about bringing professional musicians to town for concerts?” a new idea took shape.
The Danbury Concert Association was officially spun off from the Music Centre in 1957 and has brought internationally renowned talent to southwest Connecticut every year since (with the exception of the “Covid years”).
Our “first home” was the high school auditorium (where DCA concerts often sold out). An arrangement with Western Connecticut State University in the 1990s let us move to Ives Concert Hall (on the school’s main campus). When WCSU’s state-of-the-art Visual & Performing Arts Center opened in 2014, we were thrilled by its striking architecture and excellent acoustics. With open, in-the-round seating for 350 it’s a “pitch-perfect” venue for live music!
Many of our musicians who perform on the world’s foremost stages tell us how fortunate we are to have the use of this state-of-the-art concert hall. We agree, and so do our audiences!
Photos, from the top: 1991 News-Times article; Main Street, Danbury; renowned composer and Danbury resident Charles Ives, (1874-1954)
Danbury Concert Association
2025/26 Officers and Board of Directors
Kathryn Taylor Kloss, President
Deborah Hindin, Treasurer
Andrea Ondak, Secretary
Rick Beckerman
Ellen Dubois
Anne Shields Cartafalsa
Corinne Silvert
Honorary Board Members
Lawrence Huntley
James Pegolotti
We’ve met some amazing musicians!
Some of the (many) artists who have performed for DCA audiences
Pianists Andre Watts / Richard Goode / Frederic Chiu / Leon Bates / Christopher O’Riley / Kevin Kenner / Cecile Licad / Claude Frank / Llewellyn Sánchez-Werner / Michael Brown / Joel Fan / Ilya Yakushev / Andrew Armstrong / Horacio Gutiérrez / Jeewon Park / Anne-Marie McDermott / Robert Blocker / Gary Graffman / Orli Shaham / Vivian Hornik Weilerstein / Gilles Vonsattel / Xiayin Wang / André-Michel Schub
Instrumentalists Isaac Stern, violin / David Shifrin, clarinet / Ransom Wilson, flute / Salvatore Accardo, violin / Tessa Lark, violin / Elena Urioste, violin / Alicia Weilerstein, cello / Donald Weilerstein, violin / Nicholas Canellakis, cello /Jacob Reuven, mandolin / The Romeros, guitar / Pamela Frank, violin / Raman Ramakrishnan, cello / Raphael Bell, cello / Amy Schwartz Moretti, violin / Abigél Králik, violin
Vocalists Alan Held, bass baritone / Marilyn Horne, mezzo soprano / Joan Sutherland, soprano / Lucy Shelton, soprano / Disella Lárusdóttir, soprano / The West Point Glee Club / William Sharpe, baritone / Brian Cheney, tenor / Danielle Talamantes, soprano /Kathryn Lewek, soprano / Zach Borichevsky, tenor
Instrumental ensembles, chamber ensembles, orchestras American Brass Quintet /Spanish Brass / Beaux Arts Trio / Daedalus Quartet / Borealis Wind Quintet / Borodin Trio / Juilliard String Quartet / Neave Trio / Walden Chamber Players / Solisti New York / Kalichstein, Laredo, and Robinson / The Great Necks guitar trio / Essex Septet and Octet (Ani Kavafian, violin; Ida Kavafian, violin; Steven Tenenbom, viola; Peter Wiley, cello; Timothy Cobb, bass; David Shifrin, clarinet; Frank Morelli, bassoon; William Purvis, French horn) / The Weilerstein Trio / Weiss—Kaplan—Newman Trio / The Schumann Trio (clarinetist Anthony McGill, violist Michael Tree, pianist Anna Polonsky) / I Musici de Montréal / Lincoln Center Chamber Orchestra / Orpheus / Philharmonia Virtuosi / Moscow Chamber Orchestra / A Far Cry / Orchestra da Camera Italiana / Buffalo Philharmonic (conducted by Aaron Copland, in 1968) / Zurich Chamber Orchestra
Directions
The Visual & Performing Arts Center is on the west side campus of Western Connecticut State University in Danbury.
There’s free parking adjacent to the VPAC, and accessible parking near its South Arts Entrance, opposite the Campus Center.
For GPS navigation, use:
43 Lake Avenue Extension, Danbury CT 06811
What3words users: ///fact.after.toast
Help us keep the music playing
Donations help sustain the Danbury Concert Association, year after year. All amounts are appreciated, and you can earmark your gift for special purposes, such as honoring your favorite music lovers or celebrating personal milestones.
The DCA is a 501(c)(3) organization.
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To make a personal donation:
Enter the amount on our annual brochure order form, or use this printable donation form.
Mail with your check to the Danbury Concert Association, P.O. Box 432, Danbury, CT 06813
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Angel (up to $249)
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Friend ($250 to $499)
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Sponsor ($500 to $999)
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Patron ($1,000 to $2,499)
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Benefactor ($2,500 to $4,999)
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Supporter ($5,000 or more)
Community and corporate supporters
Danbury Cultural Commission
The Woman’s Club of Danbury / New Fairfield
A Lasting Fitness
BMW of Ridgefield
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
CT Eye Consultants P.C.
Danbury Square Box Co.
Jim Barbaries Restaurants
Regional Hospice CT
Ring’s End
Union Savings Bank
Wine Enthusiast Foundation
Volunteering is another way to support the DCA.
Interested in putting your experience to work with us? We’d love to hear from you!
What they’re saying...
Loyal subscriber: “Each series is better than the last! Thanks for keeping it affordable.”
First-timer: “I’m always looking for ‘experiences.’ This kind of music is new for me... and I like it!”
Recent subscriber: “When we moved here, we found the DCA to be Danbury’s greatest jewel."
Young student: “It was amazing... and afterward I got to meet the musicians.”
Serious music lover: “The repertoire is thoughtfully selected... the program notes are keepers.”
Numerous: “...coming here is so much easier than going to the city!”
Occasional attendees: “I just like enjoying live music with friends.”
“An afternoon like this helps me ’tune out the other noise’!”
Marcia Klebanow, former DCA president: “... subscribe now... you’ll read the reviews and wish you had been there.”
Ilya Yakushev, pianist, in remarks from the stage on March 22: “...go to these concerts! ... You are so blessed to have this concert hall..."