NewMusicWorks
Upcoming 2026-27 SEASON
Heartfelt gratitude for the Endowments of Gabrielle Stocker and Rowland Rebele
Season Sponsors: Larry & Shelly Pearson
Concert I: The Art Lande Trio
Sunday, September 27, 2026 | 3 pm
Sampler Recital Hall, Cabrillo College
Art Lande (piano) — Günter Wehinger (flute) — Tim Wendel (guitar)
Tickets: GENERAL ADMISSION: $30, Advance — $35 At the Door
STUDENTS: $10, Advance — $15 At the Door
From Switzerland and Colorado this trio of creative virtuosi
converge in Santa Cruz for an afternoon of sublime improvisations.
A rare pairing of three longtime collaborators, playing together as a trio for the first time!
“Beauty, mystery, and surprises are in store for the trio and the audience.”
—Art Lande
Trailblazers:
50 Santa Cruzans Who Shaped Our County
Trailblazer Philip Collins
At the heart of the only-in-Santa-Cruz music scene is musical maverick Philip Collins, a brilliant artistic director with an uncompromising sense of musical play.
New Music Works was started in 1979 by Tim Bell, Philip Collins, Ron Elfving, Richard Freeman-Toole and Gene Lewis as a way to perform their own new music in public venues. Collins has served as artistic director since 1982. A protégé and student of West Coast musical giant Lou Harrison, Collins studied conducting with Nicole Paiement at UCSC where he took his master’s degree in music.
The ’80s were golden years for Collins and his innovative cohorts hosting an annual summer Avant Garden Party, with catering by Jozseph Schultz, and loaded with performative frolic up at his Westside compound. The tradition—al fresco experimental music, playful ambience, and inventive wine and foods—was yet another showcase for Collins’ unflinching programming and rumpled genius. In 1988 the award-winning maestro and company launched the infamous Night of the Living Composers, originally showcasing Collins’ adventurous soundtrack whilst screening classic horror films. Now armed with its 11-piece New Music Works Ensemble, the adventurous group hosts a concert series that over the years has hosted such guest artists as Terry Riley, Steve Reich, Philip Glass, Jon Scoville, Tandy Beal and countless others. An inventive composer and fearless conductor, Collins invites original works by Bay Area musical stars such as Michael McGushin, Sheila Willey, Sarah Cahill, Steed Cowart, Chris Pratorius, William Winant and Stan Poplin, whose performances invariably surprise and amaze.
Creating ingenious, edgy and oft difficult programs featuring courageous choral ensembles, soloists, and his gifted in-house ensemble to power through musical scores still fresh from the printer, Collins continues to keep time to a different drummer. A gifted and tireless music educator, he has taught at every educational institution in the region. Somehow he’s found time to compose dreamy and intricate music for voice, guitar and orchestra. Santa Cruz’s cultural hearth would be impossible without him. (Christina Waters)
