DANBURY, CONN. — From featured marimba and saxophone solos with the WCSU Wind Ensemble to the annual holiday performance by faculty and student jazz musicians, Western Connecticut State University will offer a potpourri of instrumental and choral music in a concert series presented by the WestConn music department through mid-December.

All five concerts scheduled during the holiday season will be in Ives Concert Hall in White Hall on the university’s Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury. Admission to all concerts will be free and open to the public, except where noted. Donations to support programs of the music department will be accepted.

The WCSU Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble will perform works by Paul Hindemith, John Williams, William Schuman and David J. Long at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008. Brett Berardi, of Plantsville, a senior majoring in music education, will be the soloist in a performance of Long’s “Concerto for Marimba and Wind Ensemble.” The concert also will feature soloist Anthony LaBruno, of Kenilworth, N.J., a junior majoring in music education, in “Catch Me If You Can for Saxophone and Wind Ensemble” by Williams, Academy Award-winning composer and retired conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra.

At 8 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 24, 2008, the WCSU Concert Choir and Chamber Singers will present a program of 20 choral compositions spanning the world, conducted by Professor of Music Dr. Kevin Jay Isaacs with piano accompaniment by Adjunct Professor of Music Patricia Lutnes. WestConn students will sing lyrics written in nine languages, in a concert featuring texts, melodies and composers representing 15 countries. The evening’s program will conclude with a spirited rendition of the USA for Africa theme song, “We Are the World.”

The WCSU Jazz Combos concert at 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 5, 2008, will present WestConn student and faculty musicians in a performance of original compositions and arrangements of jazz standards. They will be joined by internationally acclaimed bassist and composer Rufus Reid, who will conduct a master class with WestConn music students from 1 to 4 p.m. and talk about composition and performance from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. in Room 127 of White Hall. The Friday afternoon events are free and the public is invited. Tickets for the evening concert will be $10 for adults and $5 for senior citizens and non-WestConn students. Tickets can be purchased at www.wcsu.edu/tickets or by calling (203) 837-8499.

WestConn Adjunct Professors of Music Patrick Smith, on timpani, and Jeff Siegel, on drums, will be the featured soloists in the WCSU Percussion Ensemble concert at 8 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 8, 2008. Smith and Siegel will perform their solos in David Mancini’s “Concerto for Drumset, Timpani and Percussion Ensemble.” The program will include additional works for percussion instruments by Alexander Lepak, Raymond Helble, David Gillingham and other composers.

The seasonal bounty of music at WestConn will be capped off with the return of a popular annual tradition as faculty and student artists present the WCSU Holiday Jazz concert at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 14, 2008. Performers will include the award-winning group Frankensax, conducted by Adjunct Professor of Music Andrew Beals; the WCSU Jazz Ensemble, conducted by Adjunct Professor of Music Dave Scott; and the WCSU Jazz Orchestra, conducted by Assistant Professor of Music Jamie Begian. Featured music will range from big-band jazz standards to familiar holiday classics including “Sleigh Bells” and “Walking in a Winter Wonderland.”

For more information about these concerts, contact the WCSU music department at (203) 837-8350 or the Office of University Relations at (203) 837-8486.

Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York.
Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics
of New England’s best small private universities.