Director of Bands, Department Chair
R. Anderson “Andy” Collinsworth is the Director of Bands at Sonoma State University, where he leads the university Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Concert Band.
Dr. Collinsworth earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Conducting at Arizona State University, where he studied with Gary W. Hill. He holds a Master of Music in Saxophone Performance and Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Nevada at Reno.
Now in his 33rd year of teaching, Dr. Collinsworth brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the ensembles he leads and the courses he teaches in conducting pedagogy and music education. In addition to teaching duties, he serves as Chair of the Department of Music at SSU.
Dr. Collinsworth maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor, adjudicator and rehearsal clinician throughout the western states. He is conductor and artistic director for the Saint Helena Community Band, an ensemble established and sponsored by director Francis Ford Coppola. He is the founder and director of the Sonoma Summer Wind Band Conducting Symposium, an annual weeklong conducting seminar for music educators. He is the artistic director and coordinator of the Sonoma Invitational Wind Band and Orchestra Festival—a signature three-day event that brings over 2,500 high school and community college students to campus each year. He received the Outstanding Music Educator from CMEA Bay Section in 2022 and was previously recognized as the John Swain Outstanding University Music Educator Award for outstanding contributions to music education at the collegiate level by the California Music Educators Association in 2014. He is a nominee for membership in the American Bandmasters Association.