2025 Recap: Convivial Fest, Classico & Charity | Nick Cutroneo
- Nick Cutroneo
- Jan 19
- 4 min read
Updated: 7 days ago
2025 in 30 seconds
A full year on stage: solo + ensemble concerts, festivals, and a standout three-night Convivial Fest run at Infinity Music Hall.
Classico hit 400 and the Classico Megamix captured the arc in one studio artifact.
Participated in Together Wherever Raid Train – Music for Trans Lifeline 2025, and also the NCGS Concert Series 2025 Benefit Concert.
2025 by the numbers
Live performances: 15 (solo 6 · ensemble/collab 6 · festivals 3 — Convivial = 3 nights)
Classico: 435 episodes (hit 400 in 2025)
Teaching/Outreach Events: 1
Charity: $10,168.96 raised event-wide / $110 raised on my channel.
NCGS Concert Series Benefit Concert: $1,000 sponsorship underwriting.
Booking note (presenters): I’m currently booking 2026–2027 dates — Booking inquiries.
Convivial Fest 2025: three nights of live sets
I spent three nights performing at Convivial Fest 2025 at Infinity Music Hall, on a bill with social-media musicians, DJs, and bands. It’s not a typical classical guitar setting—which is exactly why it felt like a “this is the lane” moment for Classical Reimagined: I felt validated by the wider music community, not treated like the “weird classical guy.”
Set Highlights
Choros No. 1
Pokémon – Driftveil City
Chrono Trigger — Frog’s Theme
X-Men Theme
La Folia Variations
Classico
Selected Performance Highlights
March: Solo Concert — Bakersfield, CA
May: Volterra Project Trio masterclass (NCGS students)
July: ConnectiCon / Convivial Fest (Infinity Music Hall) – 3-night run
Oct/Nov/Dec: New England + Mid-Atlantic Tour
2025 Performances (Click to Expand)
March
Solo Concert — Bakersfield, CA
April
Ensemble Concert — Manchester, CT
Solo Concert — Princeton, NJ
Ensemble Concert — Avon, CT
May
Volterra Project Trio masterclass (NCGS students)
Ensemble Concert — Litchfield, CT
June
Ensemble Concert — Cromwell, CT
July
ConnectiCon / Convivial Fest (Infinity Music Hall)
October
Solo Concert — Lancaster, MA
November
Solo Concert — Glastonbury, CT
Faculty Concert — CCSU
Solo Concert — Princeton, NJ
Solo Concert — Hingham, MA
December
Solo Performance — BayPath Winterfest (Longmeadow, MA)
Nick Cutroneo will be returning to Convivial Fest in July 2026.
Classico at 400: the Megamix
The Classico Megamix matters to me because it’s the culmination of a longer arc: countless Groupmuse house concerts showed me that the “classical audience problem” wasn’t real—people show up when the format is human. Classico took that idea to the internet with zero gimmicks, and tens of thousands kept showing up.
If Classical Reimagined is the mission, this Megamix is the proof of concept: three-plus years, 400 days—ending 2025 at 435 videos—and a non-classical audience still leaning in.
Check out the Classico Origin Story if you aren't up to date on all things "Classico".
Together Wherever x Trans Lifeline: Milestones Hit, Chaos Delivered
March 22 was a Together Wherever charity raid train (organized by Irene Peña) supporting Trans Lifeline—and my stream raised $110. We hit milestones so fast that Classico escalated from normal → blindfold → random tuning → both.
Thanks again to Irene Peña and the Together Wherever community!
NCGS Concert Series — Signature Benefit Concert
Each fall, the NCGS Concert Series partners with Buckingham Congregational Church for a Signature Benefit Concert supporting local community needs. I performed on the November 2025 program, and $1,000 in sponsorships covered the concert expenses so ticket sales could go directly to the church.
The 2026 NCGS Concert Series received a grant from the Norma and Natale Sestero Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, helping fund our Glastonbury concerts—more soon.
What Shipped (and What’s Coming Next)
Releases & Publishing (2025)
Classico transcription/edition published — available here: Get the Classico transcription
Classico hit 400 videos (see Classico Megamix above)
In progress (Jan 2026 recording priorities)
Classico single — recording in January
Coming in 2026
January: Classico single recording begins + start the Melika Fitzhugh recording project
April: NCGS Concert Series - Emilio Garcia, solo Classical Guitar
July: Convivial Fest 2026
August: TPA Cohort registration opens
November: NCGS Concert Series - Signature Fall Concert – artist, date, time TBA
On Stage in 2026
Feb 24 (7:00 PM) — Central Connecticut State University — Faculty Concert (Classical Reimagined)
Mar 27–28 — Woman Composers Festival of Hartford (time TBA)
May 16 (3:00 PM) — Performing Concertino for Solo Guitar and Guitar Ensemble by Richard Vaughan
May 22 (7:30 PM) — Marlborough Arts Center (Classical Reimagined)
Jul 17–18 — Convivial Fest 2026 (times TBA)
If you supported, listened, shared, attended, or simply kept an eye on the journey this year — thank you. It genuinely matters.
2025 felt like a year where the Classical Reimagined lane got clearer and clearer, and I’m excited to keep building from here. I’ll keep posting updates as new dates, releases, and projects land.
— Nick
Want the show? Booking Classical Reimagined dates for 2026–2027 — presenters/series welcome.
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