Description
THE ART OF LISTENING with Javor Bracic, piano
featuring FRANZ SCHUBERT Piano Sonata in A minor, D. 784 I. Allegro giusto II. Andante III. Allegro vivace
The Valley Music Series is proud to present award-winning pianist Javor Bracic in The Art of Listening, an interactive “conversation-concert,” on Sunday, October 18, 2026 at 3:00 PM at Valley Presbyterian Church, 21 W. Whisconier Rd, Brookfield, CT.
In an age of speed, distraction, and almost constant demands upon our attention, the Valley Music Series offers something increasingly rare: an invitation to stop and listen.
On Sunday, October 18, 2026 at 3:00 PM, acclaimed Croatian-American pianist Javor Bracic comes to Valley Presbyterian Church in Brookfield for The Art of Listening, an intimate encounter with the music of Franz Schubert centered upon the composer’s haunting Piano Sonata in A minor, D. 784.
Bracic has built a distinctive artistic life around a compelling idea: that great performance can do more than move the listener, it can change the way we hear. His acclaimed conversation-recital series, The Art of Listening, has encompassed more than one hundred programs exploring the ideas, structures, imagery, and expressive worlds within the classical repertoire.
Rather than separating explanation from performance, Bracic draws audiences into the architecture of the music and then allows the work itself to speak. For his Brookfield appearance, he turns to one of Schubert’s most concentrated and psychologically compelling works for the piano. Composed in 1823, the Sonata in A minor, D. 784 stands at the threshold of Schubert’s mature instrumental style.
Its language can be startlingly spare: a solitary line, stretches of silence, sudden eruptions of sound, unexpected harmonic distances. Here, virtuosity is placed in the service of something deeper—the ability to sustain attention and discover meaning in what is sounded and what is withheld. Nearly two centuries later, that quality feels remarkably contemporary.
In D. 784, those qualities are distilled with exceptional economy. Silence becomes part of the drama. A repeated note acquires psychological weight. A sudden modulation can seem to open an entirely different world. Beneath its Classical three-movement design lies a strikingly modern understanding of musical time and the expressive possibilities of the piano.
Bracic brings formidable credentials to this inward musical landscape. New York Concert Review has praised him as “a pianist who possesses a deep, genuine musicianship and an outstanding technique,” recognizing interpretations distinguished by intelligence, commitment, elegance, and humility.
A first-prize winner of international piano competitions in Italy, Belgium, and Croatia, Bracic has appeared in recital and chamber music performances across five continents. His New York appearances include Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Lincoln Center’s Bruno Walter Auditorium, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Steinway Hall, and Merkin Hall, and he has performed at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage in Washington, D.C. His performances have been broadcast by Croatian RadioTelevision and New York’s WQXR.
Bracic is also deeply committed to music education. He teaches piano at the Aaron Copland School of Music and the University of Connecticut and presents music-appreciation courses incorporating live performance at 92NY. He holds degrees from the Mozarteum University Salzburg, Mannes College, and the CUNY Graduate Center.
The Art of Listening reaches beyond the conventions of either recital or lecture. It is an encounter with music designed for the experienced concertgoer and the curious newcomer alike, an opportunity to hear melody, harmony, rhythm, resonance, and even silence with renewed attention.
That premise gives this Valley Music Series presentation a resonance extending well beyond Schubert.
At a moment when so much of contemporary life competes to be heard, The Art of Listening proposes something quietly powerful: that attention has value; that listening can deepen understanding; and that people gathered together in the presence of great music can still discover something that cannot be hurried.
The Valley Music Series at Valley Presbyterian Church is dedicated to empowering goodwill and understanding within our communities by offering free concerts featuring artists from near and far.
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