As an opening act for Nora Polinia’s art collective, Free of Propaganda, The Astra Collective premieres two new commissions by composers Bruno Robles-Rendón and Leah Jane written for Flute, Violin, Viola and Double Bass.

Bruno Robles-Rendón (b. 2004) is a first generation Mexican-American composer, performer, and organizer based and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He has written music for various ensembles including Mantra Percussion, JACK Quartet, the Bergamot String Quartet, MACE, and the Mannes Orchestra. He is currently serving as the founder and artistic director of the concert series Notes After which features the voices of many young emerging composers.

“One Internal Clock, written for Flute, Violin, Viola and Double Bass, is about my erratic experience of time. The time blindness that comes with ADHD, is often disorienting and even crippling. When engrossed in a task it goes by in an instant allowing a small tangent to end up lasting a whole day while repulsive tasks become overly fatiguing in minutes. This piece explores the idea of time with an ostinato-motif that carries with it a tilted pulse. The sense of time undergoes many flips and turns often with an explosive intensity of overlapping, slightly asynchronous elements. Heterophony splits melodies into two simultaneous variant rhythms. This piece is not about the struggle of time blindness, but about the whiplash of the experience itself.”

Leah Jane (b. 1998) is an artist, multi-instrumentalist and event producer based in Brooklyn, New York. Born in the UK and raised in Aotearoa (New Zealand), Leah’s family tree and creative practice spans continents. Leah has recently graduated from the New School with a Masters of Arts Management and Entrepreneurship. In April 2025, Leah self-published her first book Meditations for Musicians, a musical guidebook that centres creative confidence and joy in musical practice. Leah is inspired by the natural world, the space she finds in silence and her friends.

“moon, earth and back is a meditation on the life and work of Hildegard von Bingen and women who study the stars. This work has been a joyful experiment in blending plainsong chant notation into instrumental music and leaving room for players to sing in their own voice.”

The Astra Collective presents the world premiere of Re: Visit for alto flute, viola, and double bass by composer Yifeng Xie.

The Astra Collective presents works by J.S. Bach, Haydn, Schulhoff, and more at The Frick Collection.

The Astra Collective presents works by J.S. Bach, Haydn, Schulhoff, and more at The Frick Collection.

The Astra Collective presents works by J.S. Bach, Haydn, Schulhoff, and more at The Frick Collection.

The Astra Collective presents works by J.S. Bach, Telemann, Marais, and more in Van Cleef & Arpels’ Fifth Avenue Blooms installation.

The Astra Collective presents works by J.S. Bach, Haydn, Schulhoff, and more at The Frick Collection.

The Astra Collective presents works by J.S. Bach, Haydn, Schulhoff, and more at The Frick Collection.

The Astra Collective presents works by J.S. Bach, Haydn, Schulhoff, and more at The Frick Collection.