The New West Symphony officially took up residence at Santa Monica High School’s beautifully refurbished Barnum Hall performing its first Santa Monica concert to a packed house this past rainy Sunday.
Mayor Pro Tempore Richard Bloom welcomed over 1,000 patrons to the inaugural concert on behalf of the Santa Monica City Council and Mayor Herb Katz “who is on a boat somewhere.” Added Bloom, “Santa Monica believes in music and art, and we’re thrilled that the New West Symphony is the resident company of Santa Monica High.”
Under the able baton of conductor Boris Brott, the afternoon’s program included Bach’s Concerto in D Minor for Flute and String Orchestra, with flute soloist Paul Fried, and a very tightly executed Edward Elgar’s Variations on an Original Theme, “Enigma,” Opus 36. The program closed with Felix Mendelssohn’s Concerto in E Minor for Violin and Orchestra, Opus 64, featuring violin soloist Anne Akiko Meyers.
The New West Symphony is in its 13th season, and in addition to Santa Monica, performs in Thousand Oaks and Oxnard. The next two concerts at Barnum Hall will be held on April 6 and April 27. All performances begin at 4:00 p.m. Ticket information is available at newwestsymphony.org or call Leah Mendelsohn at 310.395.5392.