Romance in the Air

Faced with the importance of giving conservative symphonic audiences what they want, there are creative ways for today’s orchestras to play things straight and deploy clever marketing savvy. Case in point: this weekend’s New West Symphony program, which is shamelessly tethered to Valentine’s Day.

In a three-pack of tragic romanticism, we will hear Tchaikovsky’s Fantasy Overture from “Romeo and Juliet” and Prokofiev’s Suite from “Romeo and Juliet.” For a more modern adaptation of the Shakespearean ode to cross-town amour, the Symphonic Dances from Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story” will finish off a program of music for love’s sake.

Looking ahead, there are meatier treats in store in the New West season. Impressive pianist Arnaldo Cohen returns to the area in March to perform Ravel’s resplendent and sensuous Concerto for Piano in G. “The Barber of Seville” will be produced in full operatic regalia in April, and a program called “Magnificent Mahler” includes Mahler’s Fourth, Schubert’s Eighth and living-breathing composer John Adams’ “Lollapalooza.” In the cracks of the season will be the ever-provocative Musics Alive! concerts, yet to be announced.

DETAILS

New West Symphony, https://www.newwestsymphony.com, today at Oxnard Performing Arts Center, 800 Hobson Way; Saturday at Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza’s Fred Kavli Theatre, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd. Both performances are at 8 p.m. Tickets $8 to $55; 497-5880.

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Whale Watching: The Camerata Pacifica, invaluable dispenser of fine chamber music in the area, is in its 10th anniversary season and is looking back at repertoire already undertaken. There is a large list to choose from.

This weekend’s program, at Ventura’s Temple Beth Torah on Saturday and the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza’s Forum Theatre on Sunday, goes for a happy medium, repertoire-wise. Mozart’s Duo in G for Violin and Viola and Schubert’s String Quintet in C frame the unique 1972 piece by George Crumb, “Vox Balanae (Voice of the Whale),” which makes a pleasant link between nature--the leviathan protagonist of its title--and cultural expression.

Some of us remember hearing the Crumb piece performed by the Camerata in the leisurely confines of the Spanish Hills Country Club in Camarillo. As per the score’s directions, the lights went out and the performers donned masks, which rendered the experience more enigmatic.

The timing of the Camerata’s encore of the piece is good, this being Crumb’s 70th birthday year. Crumb himself will be toasted in a special concert by the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s “Green Umbrella” new music series on Feb. 28.

DETAILS

Camerata Pacifica, today at Santa Barbara City College, 721 Cliff Drive; Saturday at Temple Beth Torah, 7620 Foothill Road in Ventura; and Sunday at the Civic Arts Plaza Forum Theatre, 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. in Thousand Oaks. All performances are at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25; (800) 557-BACH.

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Rock Meets Noise Meets Meditation: At SohO in Santa Barbara on Sunday, ardent Los Angeleno new music guitarist G.E. Stinson will bring his special brand of ambient music, playing with bassist Steuart Liebig and a visitor from the East Coast, percussionist Gregg Bendian.

Bendian, an exceptional and broad-minded player whose resume includes stints with names like Cecil Taylor, Derek Bailey and Pat Metheny, has passed through these parts before. Stinson, who played with the quasi-new age group Shadowfax before turning to more abstract fare, has just released a fine new CD, “Vapors,” on Thurston Moore’s Ecstatic Peace label. The album manages to be both noisy and soothing, in an almost sonically painterly way.

Expect a similar paradox from this week’s gig.

DETAILS

G.E. Stinson, Steuart Liebig, and Gregg Bendian, at SohO, 1221 State St. in Santa Barbara; 962-7776.

Josef Woodard, who writes about art and music, can be reached by e-mail at joeinfo@aol.com.