Sage:

Rebecca Jackson-Picht, concert director and violin
Jessica Chang, viola
Katie Youn, cello
Steven Lin, guitar

The opening concert of our 47th season explores the vibrant contrasts and conversations that emerge through music – between instruments, cultures, and eras! Join us for this exciting program featuring SAGE with acclaimed guitarist, Steven Lin: “Our mission is to use the power of music to connect with our audience, to express our shared experiences and emotions, and to offer a source of solace and joy in uncertain times. We use our art as a force for positivity and progress to promote inclusivity and mutual respect and to foster a sense of belonging and community through the universal language of music.”

Ben Dorfan, concert director and piano
William Winant, vibraphone
Stephen Zielinski, clarinet
Samantha Bounkeua, violin
Shannon Delaney D’Antonio, viola
Kristin Garbeff, cello

Our concert Adaptation highlights the many ways artists respond to shifting personal circumstances, changing cultural landscapes, and evolving musical traditions. From the fiery virtuosity of Joan Tower’s Wings for solo clarinet to the playful intimacy of Jessie Montgomery’s Duo for Violin and Cello, each work reflects resilience through masterful creative expression. The program features a world premiere by Ben Dorfan, alongside the youthful brilliance of Lili Boulanger’s D’un matin de printemps and the passionate romanticism of Robert Schumann’s landmark Piano Quartet. Join us for an unparalleled and vibrant evening of chamber music that celebrates adaptation as a timeless artistic force!

The Marea Ensemble:

Shannon Delaney D’Antonio, concert director and violin
Samantha Bounkeua, violin
Rebecca Dulatre Corbin, viola
Kristin Garbeff, cello
Lori Schulman, soprano

Throughout history music has been used to communicate the deep and varied emotions of our shared human experience. In this program, we address the current emotional state of our world starting in the depths of despair with Shostakovich’s eighth string quartet from Communist Russia, and ending with a message of hope and gratitude delivered by a late-Beethoven string quartet. We feature works by contemporary composers Caroline Shaw, Jessie Montgomery, and Eliza Brown that address this theme of political protest, resistance to the status quo, and hope for a better future. It also features the world premiere of a new work by Santa Cruz composer Chris Pratorius Gómez, in collaboration with queer poet Kristen Nelson, written specifically for this program.

Verve Trio

Chia-Lin Yang, concert director & piano
Elbert Tsai, violin
Brady Anderson, cello

Verve Trio returns this season with an evocative program exploring the powerful dualities of emotional depth and delicate nuance in chamber music! We open with Rebecca Clarke’s Piano Trio, a work of striking intensity and lyricism that reveals the composer’s bold harmonic language and expressive range. The program continues with a newly commissioned work by UC Santa Cruz Composition Assistant Professor Matthew Schumaker, inspired by the life of Bessie Coleman–the pioneering aviator who in 1921 became the first Black American woman to earn a pilot’s license. Schumaker’s music traces the sweeping arcs of her barnstorming flights as if seen from the ground at dusk, unfolding as a luminous slow chaconne built on intersecting melodic and harmonic trajectories. We conclude our program with Johannes Brahms’ radiant Piano Trio in B Major, Op. 8—a masterwork that balances sweeping Romantic warmth with moments of quiet introspection. Together, these works invite listeners into a sound world where passion meets poise, and where every gesture speaks with intention.

Bruce Foster, concert director & clarinet
Ayaka Isono, piano
Maki Ishii Sowash, violin
Michael Long, violin
Emily Liu, viola
Sung Choi, cello

Ensemble Humanité brings together musicians who love the joy of making music—and making friends—through shared performance. On this program, the ensemble explores the graceful dialogue of Bach’s violin and piano sonata BWV 1017, the bold contrasts of Bartók, and the lush warmth of Schumann’s Piano Quintet. Each piece offers its own story, inviting performers and audiences alike into moments of connection, conversation, and camaraderie. Through chamber music’s intimacy, Ensemble Humanité celebrates the bonds that grow when people come together in curiosity, friendship, and shared listening.