About Santa Fe New Music

Mission: Through concerts, commissions, and educational events, Santa Fe New Music promotes understanding of, enthusiasm for, and participation in the music of our time, serving as an advocate for new classical music and its future.

History

SFNM serves as a community pillar institution for Santa Fe and the region, advancing new classical music as a living art form. Founded in 2000, SFNM presents rarely performed classics by 20th and 21st century composers, along with new and recent music by living composers spanning a broad and diverse stylistic range. Presented at the highest artistic level, SFNM’s concerts are multifaceted, compelling and highly engaging, with a thoughtful, curatorial approach to programming, contextual guideposts, and multidisciplinary collaborations that help audiences experience the new in exciting and accessible ways.

The visionary leadership and international stature of founding Artistic Director John Kennedy is a key component of SFNM’s significance within the national and international new music community. One of today’s leading advocates of new music, Mr. Kennedy, former President of the Board of the American Music Center, has over 25 years of international experience leading premieres and performances by many of today’s leading composers. He is Resident Conductor of Spoleto Festival, USA, founder of New York’s Essential Music, and has had his music featured in programs and festivals worldwide.

Programs

In addition to its self-produced concerts for ensembles as large as chamber orchestra, SFNM presents leading performers of new music, often not heard outside the two coasts. These have included Meredith Monk, So Percussion, Terry Riley, the Bowed Piano Ensemble, and Imani Winds, among many others—with several artists and a great many works experiencing their regional or New Mexico premiere through SFNM concerts. Over SFNM’s first ten seasons, SFNM presented over 330 different works by 179 composers. This included 9 commissions, 39 World Premieres, and 5 American Premieres.

To assert the role of post-classical music with excitement and relevance for all, SFNM often works across disciplines and with other arts organizations. Collaborations have included “Living Composer Portraits” presented with the Santa Fe Opera, a well as musical and educational events presented in collaboration with SITE Santa Fe, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, and others.

Education and Outreach

Fostering familiarity and appreciation of the music of our time is an important component of SFNM’s work with adults and youth alike. SFNM has led a variety of project-specific youth programs including youth concerts, the New Mexico Young Composers’ Project, a youth opera program, and a Youth ensemble. Adult education programs have included lectures presented in conjunction with the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, film screenings, and reading circles.