Dr. Chris Shepard
Dr. Stephen Bruce, Music Director Emeritus
Appointment of Dr. Chris Shepard, Music Director
Con Brio is excited to announce the appointment of Dr. Chris Shepard of Clinton as its new Music Director, commencing in July 2025.
Dr. Shepard is a renowned choral conductor, voice coach, arts ambassador, pianist, organist, and distinguished Bach scholar.
In addition to this new position, Chris continues, now in his tenth year, as Artistic Director of Connecticut Choral Artists (CONCORA), the state’s oldest professional choir and as Director of THE COMPLETE BACH, a project which will be America’s first presentation of all of Bach’s works. Based in Worcester, Massachusetts, the project’s performances will occur over the next 11 years. Chris is also in his sixteenth year as Music Director of the Worcester Chorus in Massachusetts.
Chris holds degrees from the Hartt School, the Yale School of Music and the University of Sydney. He researched the performance history of Bach Mass in B Minor for his PhD; his dissertation won the American Choral Directors Association’s 2012 Julius Herford Prize for outstanding doctoral thesis in choral music.
Con Brio warmly welcomes Chris Shepard.
Appointment of Dr. Stephen Bruce, Music Director Emeritus
On the occasion of Dr. Bruce’s retirement, the Board of Con Brio has honored Dr. Bruce as Con Brio’s Music Director Emeritus, in recognition of his long and distinguished service as Founding Music Director, from 1997 to 2025.
Silver Baton Award
Dr. Stephen D. Bruce
Music Director Emeritus
Music Director, 1997-2025
Con Brio Choral Society
Dr. Bruce was the founding Music Director of Con Brio. His conducting experience includes a wide variety of choirs and ensembles. At the college level, he has directed concert choirs, vocal jazz groups, and madrigal ensembles at Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio, the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon, and Hartt College in West Hartford, Connecticut. He has directed church choirs in Mooresville, North Carolina, Torrington, and Old Greenwich, Connecticut, Eugene, Oregon, and Wapakoneta, Ohio. He has taught in the public schools of Hartford, Connecticut and Eugene, Oregon.
Dr. Bruce received a B.A. in Music from Davidson College, Masters in Music Education from Hartt College, and his Doctorate in Music from the University of Oregon. He has studied conducting with Gerald Mack, Donald Plott, Royce Saltzman, and Helmuth Rilling. He has participated in recent master classes with Robert Page, Edward Bolkovac, Dennis Keene and Tesfa Wondemegegnehu.
Dr. Bruce lives in Groton, Connecticut, with his wife Abby and their two cats Allegro and Vivace.