Ventura Music Gala Serves Up Tea, Trumpets

Nearly 100 music lovers crowded into the courtyard of the Bella Maggiore Inn on Thursday to savor a mix of horns, trumpets and trombones--the makings of Tea and Trumpets, which kicked off the second day of Ventura’s inaugural Chamber Music Festival.

“I thought it was great,” said Hugh Crawford, a retired engineer from Oxnard, after the hourlong concert.

“I really enjoy horns, particularly the more traditional pieces,” he said. “But the way the program is set up, there’s something here for everybody.”

The five-day concert series, the brainchild of a group of artisans and tourism officials, is an attempt to bring a sense of place and culture to downtown, which in recent years has become a hub of activity, organizers said.

Nearly all of the nine concerts running through the weekend have sold out, promoters said.

Inside the small courtyard Thursday, chamber music fans were seated at two dozen tables and lined against the walls. After the performance, they dined on fresh fruit, tea, crumb cakes, cookies and cream.

“They’re very, very talented,” said Marty Weissman, a retired insurance broker who lives in Ventura.

Weissman said that although he liked the open-air atmosphere, it was not well-suited for orchestra music.

“They needed more space than this,” he said, waiting for a turn in the tea room. “Fortunately this was brass, so it was pretty loud.”

Retired drama teacher Eddy Barron said he has waited for years for the city to piece together art and cultural performances in downtown Ventura.

“One reason I stayed here when I retired instead of moving back to Oregon was because of things like this,” said Barron, who taught theater arts at Ventura College for years.

Marlene Reinhaut, who accompanied Barron to the event Thursday, said she appreciated the performance being hosted in the afternoon.

“Things like this haven’t been offered in the right places and the right times,” she said. “Three o’clock in the afternoon is perfect for retired people who don’t usually want to go out at night.”

Nearby, Robert Nauman was snacking on a plate of fresh strawberries and cream after the concert.

“We need more opportunities for people to attend more cultural events,” Nauman said. “In the past, there haven’t been that many.”

Buzz Murray, a retired educator who has lived in Ventura for four decades, said he may buy tickets to some of the other weekend concerts in the series.

“This was beautiful,” he said. “You usually have to travel to Santa Barbara or Los Angeles to hear these kinds of concerts.”

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Ventura Chamber Music Festival Today:

8 p.m.: Glittering Guitars, San Buenaventura Mission, 211 E. Main St. $28.

11 p.m.: Nocturnal Combustion, Top of the Harbor, 450 E. Harbor Blvd. $18.

Saturday:

10 a.m.: Flutes and Fiddles, City Hall. $18.

1 and 2:30 p.m.: Danza Floricanto/USA, Plaza Park. Free.

8 p.m.: Spectacular Spanish Nights, Community Presbyterian Church, 1555 Poli St. $28.

Sunday:

9 a.m.: Sunrise breakfast concert, City Hall Atrium. Master Singers Local Music Ensemble, fruit and pastries, followed by a tour of City Hall led by historian Richard Senate. $12. For tickets, call 653-7282.

2 p.m.: Lawn party, Pierpont Inn, 550 San Jon Road. $28.

For more information, call 648-3146 or 653-7282.