Elizabeth “Ma” Sonier, Laurel Music Camp’s Founder
Elizabeth C. Sonier began teaching in Winsted in 1932. In October of 1944, She had an idea to bring a nationally respected conductor together with music students for a week of rehearsal during the summer. Music educators from across Connecticut agreed on the benefits it would provide to the students, but colleagues told her over and over “There’s no way, Betty. There’s a war on!”
1945 staff member Mary Lane would write:
“Having accomplished that little bit, we sat there on our last morning together, storing up in our memories the beauty of the scene before us. The lapping of the lake seemed to say, “All is well.” A cool breeze tossed the waves, which gurgled under the abandoned raft near the pink laurel bushes. Across the lake, pine trees stretched skyward from a rocky cliff. On our own shore birds echoed back and forth in the gently rustling birches. Then and there we decided that, look where we might, we could not find a more beautiful spot … in which to establish an annual summer music camp. Nor could we find a more appropriate name than the “Laurel Music Camp.”
A local resident, Walter Davey, had heard the students rehearsing, and would row his boat across the lake to listen – Davey was an active Scout leader. In March of 1946, Davey and Sonier gathered with lead Scout Council members Prosper Lavieri and Merle Hildreth, along with Connecticut Music Educator Association officers G. Albert Pearson and Doris Raynor at the Workcoeman Boy Scout Reservation. This would be the new home for Sonier’s dream.
Camp Workcoeman has graciously hosted Laurel Music Camp for most of its existence, but the past six years of camp have been held at Camp Mattatuck in Prospect, CT. Together, the Scouts of Camp Mattatuck and the Laurel Music Camp Staff of today have proven to all alumni of LMC that regardless of location or circumstances of the world, Laurel Music Camp continue in its same spirit for many years to come!
OUR CONDUCTORS
James Antonucci, Jazz Band Conductor
JAMES ANTONUCCI has performed all across the country alongside some of the most renowned jazz artists past and present. For 20 years, he has also been an educator in public, private, non-profit and community music sectors across the tri-state area. When not playing saxophone or teaching improvisation, Mr. Antonucci is a committed music & art district supervisor for public school systems in lower Fairfield County and Greater Farmington Valley, CT.
Mr. Antonucci’s instrumental and choral groups have received first place, national finalist recognition, numerous soloist and outstanding section awards at many regional and national competitions including Downbeat Magazine Student Music Awards, Essentially Ellington Competition at Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Mingus Competition, National Jazz Festival, Heritage Music Festivals, Disney Festival, and the Berklee College of Music High School Jazz Festival.
Besides an extensive breadth of K-12 general, instrumental and choral classroom experience across different districts, Mr. Antonucci has experience in the non-profit sector as Manager of Educational Programs, K-12 at Jazz at Lincoln Center in NYC. During this time he traveled around the country and was an advocate for public school music education and jazz education programs.
Mr. Antonucci spent 10 years as the Director of Bands at Hall High School in West Hartford, CT. During this time he was Producer and Director of the 65+ year tradition, Pops N Jazz. He commissioned works for the dancers, singers and bands. Mr. Antonucci co-founded the Summer Jazz Jam & Shoreline Jazz Collective with his wife, Rachel, which served thousands of students for over 14 years. Mr. Antonucci has an undergraduate degree from the University of Miami (FL) as a saxophone, jazz and studio music performance major, and has a Master of Arts in music education from New York University. He has his sixth year degree in Educational Leadership from SCSU.
As a professional saxophonist and woodwindist, Mr. Antonucci has performed with Wynton Marsalis, Sherman Irby, Nicole Zuratis, Slide Hampton, Marcus Printup, Alexa Tarantino, Wycliffe Gordon, John Daversa, Hank Jones, Chris Crenshaw, Ted Nash, Arturo O’Farrill, Alita Moses, Elliott Mason, Lakecia Benjamin, Lenny Pickett, Alex Sipiagin, the New York Voices, Teo Macero, Kenny Werner, Tatum Greenblatt, Matt Wilson, George Garzone, Jim McNeely, Dick Oatts, and John Mosca. Locally he has performed with the Hartford, New Haven, and Waterbury Symphonies, and at the Goodspeed Opera House.
Karla McClain, Choir Conductor
Karla McClain (she/her) is a National Board Certified Teacher in Early Adolescent/Young Adulthood Music in her 27th year of teaching. Currently, she is the Choral Director at Manchester High School in Manchester, CT. Prior to teaching in Manchester, Karla taught at Irving A. Robbins Middle School and East Farms Elementary in Farmington, CT, in West Hartford, CT and Hilliard, OH. Karla previously served as the Assistant Director of Laurel Music Camp.
Karla is an active presenter and clinician and has presented for state, regional, and national conferences. She served as conductor for the RI All-State Jr. High Mixed Choir in 2023, and the CMEA Southern Region Treble Choir in 2020. Her choirs have been Featured Showcase Ensembles for the CMEA State Conference, most recently in 2024. In 2023, her choir students collaborated with CONCORA to perform “A Passion for the Planet” by Geoffrey Hudson, and with Manchester Chorale to perform Britten’s “Ceremony of Carols.” Karla has served on the Diversity Initiatives Committee of CT-ACDA and is currently the Middle School Repertoire and Resources Chair for ACDA Eastern Division. She is a past member of the Professional Development Committee for CMEA, and co-chaired the vocal committee for aligning audition repertoire for the middle school regional festivals. She is also a frequent adjudicator for Regionals and All-State. As a performer, she has remained active by singing as a soloist and section leader, currently with the South Church Chancel Choir in New Britain. She is also a member of the professional choir, CONCORA.
Karla received her Bachelor of Music in education from Ohio Wesleyan University, and her Master of Science in Music Education from Central Connecticut State University. In 2021, she was selected as the CT- ACDA Choral Director of the Year. She has a passion for using music technology and global music to engage students. She lives in Cromwell, CT with her husband and 2 children.
Dr. David Hagy, Orchestra Conductor
David Hagy was Music Director of the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra for 36 years through 2024 and is now titled Music Director Emeritus. He retired in 2022 from Wake Forest University following 27 years as the Orchestra Director there. During his time there he taught three semesters at Wake Forest’s Casa Artom in Venice, Italy. He also conducted youth orchestras in Omaha, Springfield (MA), Greensboro, and Winston-Salem and has music-directed over fifty musical theater productions.
Dr. Hagy grew up in Indianapolis and credits that city’s public school system with enabling him to become a classical musician. He went to Indiana University as a violinist and Yale as a conductor, and attributes his conducting abilities to study with Thomas Briccetti and Otto-Werner Mueller.
Dr. Hagy graduated magna cum laude as a Violin Performance major from Indiana University and holds master’s and doctor’s degrees in Orchestral Conducting from Yale University. He currently lives in Long Island City, NY with his cat Dario and is pleased to be not only working with the students at Laurel Music Camp for his fifteenth time but also one of its newest senior staff members!
Dr. Justin McManus, Concert Band Conductor
Justin McManus (he/him) is the associate director of bands, director of athletic bands, and assistant professor of music at the University of California, Los Angeles. At UCLA, Dr. McManus directs the “Solid Gold Sound” Bruin Marching Band, Varsity Band, and Symphonic Band. Additionally, Dr. McManus teaches undergraduate conducting and other music education courses in the Herb Alpert School of Music.
Previously, Dr. McManus served as director of athletic bands and assistant professor of music at the University of Connecticut where he directed the 315-member Pride of Connecticut Marching Band, Pep Bands, and conducted the university concert band. While at UConn, the UConn Marching Band was invited to perform for its first NFL halftime in 30 years and was later selected by the Sudler Trophy Trust Foundation to represent collegiate marching bands at the 2024 Sudler Trophy Legends celebration in New York City. Dr. McManus has presented at several professional development sessions, including the 2025 National Association for Music Education Eastern Division Conference and the Boston University (BU) Professional Development series. An active researcher, Dr. McManus has been published in two music education handbooks published by Oxford University Press and was recently awarded a research grant for a study on factors influencing participation in performing arts activities.
Dr. McManus also served as Assistant Director of University Bands at the University of Notre Dame and as adjudicator of the New Zealand National Concert Band Association Festival. He received a doctorate in music education from the BU School of Music and graduate/undergraduate degrees in bassoon performance and music education from the University of Connecticut. Originally from Torrington, CT, Dr. McManus attended LMC as a camper and later as a JC. He has been thrilled to return as conductor of the 2026 LMC Concert Band.
Michael Alderman, Accompanist
Michael Alderman is a keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist residing in New Haven, Connecticut. After graduating Summa Cum Laude from the University of Bridgeport with a degree in Music Education, focus in Pipe Organ, his career has taken him around the state to work with a diverse array of ensembles as an accompanist and liturgical musician. Michael has served as the music director of Our Lady Star of the Sea Church in Stamford, Connecticut for the past 6 years, and has recently taken on the position of Glee Club Accompanist at Fairfield University. Previously, he has worked as the collaborative pianist for Old Saybrook Public Schools and the Fairfield County Chorale. On the side, Michael enjoys frequent collaborations as an organist/harpsichordist with the Fairfield County Chorale, as well as his perennial summer appearance as Laurel Music Camp’s choral accompanist. Recent festival appearances include accompanying the 2025 Shorelines festival and 2026 Eastern Regional Treble Choir. In his free time, Michael enjoys writing music and building musical community within his city, and is an active member of the American Guild of Organists, where he helps to plan concert and educational programs in Southern Connecticut.
Jazz Band Performers:
ALTO SAXOPHONE
Madden Holcomb
Paul Westerberg
TENOR SAXOPHONE
Julian Prytko
Jane Riley
Scott Spinner
BARITONE SAXOPHONE
Maher Abunasra
TRUMPET
Ben Buyniski
Kaleb Foster
Ian Hills
Andrew Quito
Kylie Tinnirella
TROMBONE
Brandon Harley
Beq Lendvay †
Vinny Leone
Annamarie Mueller *
Lucas Whitehouse
TUBA
Vinny Leone
GUITAR
Caleb Perry
PIANO
Emily Kropo †
BASS
Davud Mammadov
PERCUSSION
Ethan Cavajani
Julia Lavernoich †
Atticus Lowe
Jack Mandingo
Chorus Performers
SOPRANO
Naya Bilodeau
Molly Crossley
Heidi Farnum
Eliana Holerca *
Lillian LaCaprucia-Hull *
Lori McClain *
Maya McCue
Chloe Nixdorf
Emily Renauld
Sieanna Ricketts
Amaya Santos
Lilia Weissenberger
Clara Wurst
ALTO
Naomi Belin
Emmaline Davis
Amelie Driscoll
Charlotte Gonzalez
Maggie Kovacs
Lilla Kovacs
Bailey Madore *
Kaitlyn Metcalfe
Irie Pfaffle
Amelia Sears
Lina Staley
Inga Weissenberger
River White
Lauren Zimmerman
TENOR
Geoffrey Evans
William Finn
Sionna Houser
Soren LaCaprucia-Hull
Liam McGrath
Lio Owen
Jazmin Santiago *
Areannah Erazo
BASS
Jacob Fox *
Zachary Fox *
Joel Glenister †
Jonathan Kulinski †
Bella LaRose
Patrick Minnerly *
Ryan Pothier *
Brandon Zenevitch †
Orchestra Performers
VIOLIN I
Flynn Amodio
Richard Bierut
Selena Antwi
Aury Millan
JJ Sun *
VIOLIN II
Rachel Gohla
Emma Daggett *
Jocelyn Piechowski
Kiley Molina
Leah Belin †
Camy Groff †
VIOLA
Sophia Macris
Ann Sengchanthong
Princessilla Peprah *
Wyatt Bosma †
CELLO
Shanaya Singh
Isabella Martino
Rory Levine
Adeline Germaine
Lay Espinal *
Matthew Miskin †
STRING BASS
Austin Benson
Tessa Vinjamuri
Nicole Mitchell
McKenna Semeraro *
Matthew Rolfe †
FLUTE AND PICCOLO
Emma Bednarz
Amelia Athay
Brianna Wood *
OBOE
Rowyn Ferreira
Oslo Van Brandt †
CLARINET
Emmy LaPlante
Ryan Szarkowicz
BASS CLARINET
Bennett Grummons
BASSOON
Isabella Oakley
Luke Ashworth †
TRUMPET
Lemon Dickens
Aneila Govoni-Mlyniec
Andrew Teator *
Will Valenti †
FRENCH HORN
Frankie Pfaffle
Maria Avendaño Cabra
Lilly Pascino
Maya Teator *
TROMBONE
Layne Gordon
Nate Wilcox
Kayla Engelhardt
TUBA
Asher Sims
PERCUSSION
Genevieve Levine
Natalie Singleton
Jude Smith
Soren Westerberg
Grace Reid *
Heidi de Leon †
PIANO
Teresa Waldron †
Concert Band Performers
PICCOLO
Amelia Athay
FLUTE
Emma Bednarz
Izzy Dimmock
Cailyn Gorman *
Keyla Gordillo Hernandez
Kate Hudak
Alina Kaiser
Tyda Kin
Grâce Velardi
Lydia Whelton
Brianna Wood *
OBOE
Rowyn Ferreira
Oslo Van Brandt †
CLARINET
Sophia Cirok-Norton
Lillian Cloutier
Addy Devine
Emmy LaPlante
Eric Pelletier *
Ryan Szarkowicz
BASS CLARINET
Bennett Grummons
Kai Vardon
Elianna Vega
BASSOON
Isabella Oakley
ALTO SAXOPHONE
Megan Bernegger
Kelby Hooper
Xavier Miska
Donald Polk III
TENOR SAXOPHONE
Derek Friend †
Cole Orlowski
BARITONE SAXOPHONE
Lucas Dombkowski
Natalie Pear
TRUMPET
Brodie Cameron
Lemon Dickens
Tori Felicito
Allison Giampietro
Aneila Govoni-Mlyniec
Jonathan Grant
Madigan Krauss
Jason Matot
Andrew Teator *
FRENCH HORN
Maria Avendaño Cabra
Lilly Pascino
Frankie Pfaffle
Maya Teator *
TROMBONE
Calvin Bareiss *
Rachel Collins
Kayla Engelhardt
Layne Gordon
Nate Wilcox
EUPHONIUM
Dean Gonzalez
Kairi Grant
Mackenzie Hale
TUBA
Persy Dravis
Asher Sims
PERCUSSION
Eli Chang
Kai Hendler
Genevieve Levine
Jack Mandigo
Kalina Orlowski
Sophie Peters
Grace Reid *
Natalie Singleton
Jude Smith
Soren Westerberg
* Junior Counselors are performers as well as being staff members; they are noted with their performing groups by an asterisk next to their names.
† Senior Staff that are performing are shown noted with this symbol.
Laurel Music Camp Senior Staff 2026
| Grant Abelson Michael Alderman Don Amodio Luke Ashworth Eric Barakat Jamie Barber Alex Belden Leah Belin Paul Bilodeau Sarah Bochain Wyatt Bosma Emily Cashin Sophia Ciraldo Heidi de Leon Caitlin Daly-Gonzales Livia Fallon Logan Foster Kim Friend Derek Friend Scott Friend | Jenn Galasso Maddie Gay Jessica Giampietro Phil Giampietro Joel Glenister Katherine Grabowski Courtney Graham Camy Groff David Hagy Megan Hendler Kyle Hogan Kenneth Jacques Andrew Kaufman Hailee Knapik Mark Kolb Emily Kropo Jonathan Kulinski Casey Kulinski Jordan Lasko Julia Lavernoich Beq Lendvay | Joshua Levine Karla McClain Lyric McVoy Scott Minnerly Tara Minnerly Matt Miskin Carrie Peters Dan Rehberg Matt Rolfe Kyle Saulnier Lauren Sleath Kaira Springer Rex Sturdevant Melissa Teator Lyn Tracy Will Valenti Oslo Van Brandt Teresa Waldron Nikki Whitehill Brandon Zenevitch |
A Special Thanks to:
Connecticut Rivers Council
Jeromy Nelson and the staff of Camp Mattatuck
Pomperaug High School
Derek Waldron, Waldron’s Studio 88
The Gilbert School: Winsted, CT
Torrington High School
D’Addario & Co
Hometown Pizza of Southbury
Market 32, Bristol
Northeastern Communications
Big Y of Naugatuck
Mateusz Zechowski, STUDIOTEO Recording Services