Vision: To provide Ojai Music Festival patrons a splendid concert going experience.
Mission: By proactive, hospitable action, assure patrons satisfaction in safe, comfortable and accommodating surroundings while providing exemplary and enthusiastic customer service for all.
Our Festival volunteers are the heart and soul of the Festival community. Thanks to our combined team efforts, we provide an exceptional setting for all to enjoy the immersive Ojai experience.
Volunteer opportunities include: ushering at concerts, assisting at special events and receptions, office support, working the retail and concessions booth, load-in and load-out for front of house and back of house, and housing artists and production team!
As a volunteer, there are perks for dedicating time and talent! These include Festival commemorative t-shirt, complimentary tickets based on number of shifts, invites to special receptions, and being a part of a warm and wonderful community!
Recently, we celebrated our longtime Ojai Music Festival attendees with a beautiful performance by violinist Alexi Kenney at a scenic Ojai home.
This event launched the first of many public Future Forward Campaign events, which intend to nurture and grow our relationships with our dedicated Festival attendees as well as new faces at the Festival. The Future Forward campaign aims to secure the long-term existence of the Ojai Music Festival by bolstering the Festival’s endowment and increasing capacity for new creative projects.
As Artistic and Executive Director Ara Guzelimian expressed, “our shared experiences together have not only shaped the Festival, but our Festival community which is the at the center of everything we do. This special event with Alexi was a moment to honor the Festival’s community and celebrate our shared legacy. You are a part of our story!”
In celebration of the incredible spring Ojai weather and our OjaiNEXT Festival attendees, we teamed up with the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy to host our second iteration of the Hike and Hear with Theodosia Roussos, acclaimed Soprano and English Horn/Oboe player.
After an educational jaunt along the Ventura River with OVLC guides, guests settled into Theodosia’s interactive performance where audience members became the accompaniment to her dynamic outdoor performance.
To learn more about events such as these, sign up for updates for our OjaiNEXT audience members, specifically for our younger Festival enjoyers who are eligible to participate fully in all the Festival activities with special discounts, private events, and community building opportunities!
As Ojai begins the blooms in the start of spring, Ojai Music Festival and the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy came together for an enchanted afternoon to hear Theodosia Roussos, acclaimed soprano and english horn/oboe player, and Shelley Burgon – harpist, composer, and, sound artist.
To celebrate our closest friends and supporters, we shared signature OVLC palomas on the rocks with fresh squeezed grapefruit juice from the garden, and views of the snow capped Topas before settling in to hear Theodosia and Shelley perform (with a surprise new work debut from Shelley!)
Thank you to our Festival Family and to the OVLC for celebrating music in Ojai, see you in June!
This past Sunday The Zelter String Quartet joined us for music and conversation about the Emigré Legacy in Los Angeles at a beautiful Richard Neutra home in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles.
The Zelter String Quartet performed a special musical performance celebrating the legacy of Neutra’s contemporaries among the emgiré composers who settled in Los Angeles.
Thank you very much to our donors who are able to make events like this possible. The Ojai Music Festival relies on the charitable contributions of our family of patrons, and events like this are a beautiful reminder of how our community comes together to support the music we love.
Thank you very much to our hosts and the guests – both new and familiar for spending a glorious afternoon with us. We were happy to gather before the upcoming 2023 Festival, June 8 to 11, 2023.
Start your musical exploration before the 2023 Ojai Music Festival, slated for June 8-11, featuring Music Director Rhiannon Giddens!
Join us for a 2023 Festival Preview featuring Artistic and Executive Director Ara Guzelimian who will share program and artist insights for an inside look!
Special thanks to our friends at Bart’s Books for co-hosting this free community offering.
Welcome to OJAICAST, where we pull back the curtain to take a sneak-peek at the upcoming Ojai Music Festival, June 8 to 11, in beautiful Ojai Valley, California. All are welcome here, from newcomers to long-time music fans. In-depth insights and special guests will help introduce this year’s programming and whet your musical appetites for what’s to come with host Emily Praetorius.
Episode 1
Our first episode gives an in-depth look into the 77th Ojai Music Festival (June 8 – 11, 2023), curated by Music Director Rhiannon Giddens. Special guest Artistic and Executive Director Ara Guzelimian will give us some insights into the creation of this year’s festival programming and background on some of pieces being played.
Emily Praetorius, host and producer
Louis Ng, recording engineer
OJAICAST theme by Thomas Kotcheff and Louis Weeks
Music Excerpts in this Episode: mi sueño: afro-flamenco – Shawn Okpebholo
Performed by Clare Longendyke
The Willows are New – Chou Wen-Chung
Performed by Gloria Cheng
Veiled – Niloufar Nourbakhsh
Performed by Amanda Gookin
Between Worlds – Carlos Simon
Performed by Julia Mirzoev
Episode 3
Our final episode welcomes kamancheh player Niloufar Shiri, pipa player Wu Man, and multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi to the podcast, where they discuss the history of their instruments, how they are played in contemporary music today, and what we can look forward to in this year’s Festival programming.
ABOUT OUR OJAICAST HOST EmilyPraetorius, former Ojai Music Festival intern and Rothenberg Intern Fellow, is a current Composition DMA candidate at Columbia University. She previously studied composition and clarinet performance at the University of Redlands (BM) and composition at Manhattan School of Music (MM). She has studied with Kathryn Nevin (clarinet), Susan Botti, Georg Friedrich Haas, George Lewis, and Anthony Suter. Emily is from Ojai, CA and lives in New York City where she is a proud co-owner of Kuro Kirin Espresso & Coffee.
The 77th Ojai Music Festival, June 8 to 11, 2023, welcomes as Music Director acclaimed musician and composer Rhiannon Giddens. Seven of the more than 20 music events scheduled throughout the beautiful setting of the Ojai Valley will be available at no cost via live streaming. Since 2012, the Festival has expanded its global footprint building a worldwide audience, and has deepened connections with patrons throughout the year.
For more context, listen to the Ojai Music Festival Podcast:
Rhiannon Giddens vocals | Kayhan Kalhor kamancheh | Attacca Quartet | Steven Schick percussion/director| red fish blue fish percussion
Kaija SAARIAHO Movement V from Six Japanese Gardens Gabriela ORTIZ Liquid Borders Franz Joseph HAYDN String Quartet in F major, Op. 77 No. 2 Hob. III:82 Zakir HUSSAIN Pallavi (arr. Reena Esmail) Philip GLASS First Movement from String Quartet No. 3 (“Mishima”) Colin JACOBSEN Beloved do not let me be discouraged Geeshie WILEY Last Kind Words (arr. by Jacob Garchik) Rhiannon GIDDENS Lullaby David CROSBY/Nathan SCHRAM Where We Are Not (arr. Nathan Schram) Caroline SHAW Stem and Root from The Evergreen John ADAMS Judah to Ocean, Rag the Bone from John’s Book of Alleged Dances SQUAREPUSHER Xetaka 1
Due to injury, pianist Leonard Hayes has had to reduce his playing commitments and has withdrawn from this concert. We are deeply grateful to Lara Downes for agreeing to step in on short notice. Please note the revised program:
Shawn OKPEBHOLO Amazing Grace H.T. BURLEIGH On Bended Knees Margaret BONDS Troubled Water(Wade in the Water) Michael ABELS Iconoclasm Jessie MONTGOMERY Rhapsody No. 2 Nasim KHORASSANI Growth Nina BARZEGARInexorable Passage Lei LIANG vis-à-vis
8:00PM – Evening with Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi
An intimate concert with Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi with music ranging from the Baroque to Appalachian ballads and traditional Black American songs.
SAT June 10, 2023
10:00AM – The Willows Are New
Gloria Cheng piano | Kayhan Kalhor kamancheh | Karen Ouzounian cello | Nathan Schram viola | Wu Man pipa
Niloufar NOURBAKHSH Veiled Lei LIANG Mother’s Songs GE Gan-Ru Gong (from Gu Yue) CHOU Wen-Chung The Willows are New Kayhan KALHOR Solo Improvisation
8:00PM – Omar’s Journey
Watch for highlights of Omar’s Journey in the coming weeks.
Limmie Pulliam tenor (Omar) | Rhiannon Giddens soprano (Julie) | Cheryse McLeod Lewis mezzo-soprano (Fatima) | Michael Preacely bass-baritone (Abdul/Abe) | Andy Papas bass-baritone (Owen/Johnson) | Emi Ferguson flute | Joshua Rubin clarinet | Mazz Swift, Michi Wiancko violins | Mario Gotoh viola | Karen Ouzounian cello | Shawn Conley bass | Leonard Hayes piano | Ross Karre, Francesco Turrisi percussion | Justin Robinson fiddle | Seckou Keita kora
Omar’s Journey World Premiere Music by Rhiannon GIDDENS and Michael ABELS and Libretto by Rhiannon Giddens and music from Senegal and the Carolinas
An Ojai-commissioned work for voices and chamber ensemble drawn from the opera Omar, by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels, framed by traditional music that traces the journey of the real-life Omar Ibn Said from Senegal to the Carolinas.
SUN June 11, 2023
10:00AM – Early Music
Francesco Turrisi curator and keyboards | Attacca Quartet |Rhiannon Giddens vocals | Kayhan Kalhor kamancheh | Karen Ouzounian cello | Wu Man pipa |Joshua Stauffer theorbo
This concert challenges the idea of late Renaissance and early Baroque music and reinterprets it as a universal language that can connect the 17th century to today through an imagined historical and geographical journey.
A musical summit of Festival artists and a jam session featuring solos and collaborations bringing together bowed and plucked string instruments from the Americas, Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. An exuberant finale celebrating the many musical stories featured at this year’s Festival!
2:30PM OJAI TALKS – SOLD OUT
Greenberg Center, Ojai Valley School lower campus
2:30-3:15pm Ara Guzelimian with Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels 3:30-4:30pm WQXR’s New Sounds John Schaefer with Festival artists and composers
6:00PM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with composers Gabriela Ortiz and Aida Shirazi with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds.
6:30PM MOON VIEWING MUSIC – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
Join Steven Schick in this solo performance of Peter Garland’s Moon Viewing Music (Inscrutable Stillness Studies #1) described as a quiet and introspective six-movement work for three large Thai-style gongs and large tam-tam.
Gabriela ORTIZ Liquid Borders Franz Joseph HAYDN String Quartet in F major, Op. 77 No. 2 Hob. III:82 Zakir HUSSAIN Pallavi (arr. Reena Esmail) Philip GLASS First Movement from String Quartet No. 3 (“Mishima”) Colin JACOBSEN Beloved do not let me be discouraged Geeshie WILEY Last Kind Words (arr. Jacob Garchik) Rhiannon GIDDENS Lullaby David CROSBY/Nathan SCHRAM Where We Are Not (arr. Nathan Schram) Caroline SHAW Stem and Root from The Evergreen John ADAMS Judah to Ocean, Rag the Bone from John’s Book of Alleged Dances SQUAREPUSHER Xetaka 1
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
FRI, June 9
8:00AM OJAI DAWNS
Zalk Theater, Besant Hill School
The Ojai Dawns is a benefit for Festival Family Donor Circles. Learn more here>
Subscribers receive priority to purchase single tickets before going on sale to the general public beginning March 31.
Due to injury, pianist Leonard Hayes has had to reduce his playing commitments and has withdrawn from this concert. We are deeply grateful to Lara Downes for agreeing to step in on short notice. Please note the revised program:
Shawn OKPEBHOLO Amazing Grace H.T. BURLEIGH On Bended Knees Margaret BONDS Troubled Water(Wade in the Water) Michael ABELS Iconoclasm Jessie MONTGOMERY Rhapsody No. 2 Nasim KHORASSANI Growth Nina BARZEGARInexorable Passage Lei LIANG vis-à-vis
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
11:30AM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with composers Nina Barzegar and Nasim Khorassani with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds
3:30PM GHOST OPERA – SOLD OUT
Greenberg Center, Ojai Valley School lower campus
TAN Dun Ghost Opera Tan Dun’s Ghost Opera evokes the spirits of Bach and Shakespeare, standing with the ancient folk traditions of traditional shamanistic Chinese music. A new production, created especially for the Ojai Music Festival, brings dance into the work and re-imagines it for a new generation.
Ghost Opera is an add-on event, not included in the Libbey Bowl Series Pass. Purchase here >
6:00PM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with Lei Liang and Wu Man with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds
8:00PM AN EVENING WITH RHIANNON GIDDENS AND FRANCESCO TURRISI – SOLD OUT
Libbey Bowl
An intimate concert with Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi with music ranging from the Baroque to Appalachian balladsand traditional Black American songs.
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
Tan Dun’s Ghost Opera evokes the spirits of Bach and Shakespeare, standing with the ancient folk traditions of traditional shamanistic Chinese music. A new production, created especially for the Ojai Music Festival, brings dance into the work and re-imagines it for a new generation.
This is a repeat performance. Ghost Opera is an add-on event, not included in the Libbey Bowl Series Pass. Purchase here >
6:00PM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with composer Michael Abels with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds.
An Ojai-commissioned work for voices and chamber ensemble drawn from the Pulitzer-Prize winning opera Omar, by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels, framed by traditional music that traces the journey of the real-life Omar Ibn Said from Senegal to the Carolinas.
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
A program imagined specifically for the magical atmosphere of Sunday morning in Libbey Bowl, playing on the two ideas of very old music and music for the first hours of the day. Francesco Turrisi curates and introduces music ranging from thousand-year-old works for solo pipa, to Renaissance consort music, from ancient Persian melodies to modal jazz improvisations.
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
11:30AM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with Francesco Turrisi with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds.
1:00PM STONES AND STARS: LISTENING TO (AND BEYOND) THE WORLD – FREE
Libbey Park
A complete performance of Carlos Simon’s cycle Between Worlds, four solo string works placed in visual context by their source of inspiration: the remarkable paintings of Bill Traylor (ca. 1853-1949), chronicling nearly a century of Black American life. Text related to Bill Traylor and the project title “Between Worlds” are borrowed from, and organized in relation to,Between Worlds: The Art of Bill Traylor, by Leslie Umberger for the Smithsonian American Art Museum, (book and exhibition), 2018.
Festival Family Donor Circle Members receive first priority seats. Learn more here>
Subscribers receive priority to purchase single tickets before going on sale to the general public beginning March 31.
4:00PM BUILD A HOUSE – FREE FAMILY EVENT
Libbey Park
A special free family event – Rhiannon Giddens does a reading and special musical performance based on her new children’s book, Build A House.
Michael ABELS Isolation Variation
Duo Improvisation with Kayhan Kalhor and Seckou Keita
Nassim KHORASSANI Lullaby Followed by a selection of music announced from the stage — an exuberant finale celebrating the many musical stories featured at this year’s Festival!
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
THU, June 8
2:30PM OJAI TALKS – SOLD OUT
Greenberg Center, Ojai Valley School lower campus
2:30-3:15pm Ara Guzelimian with Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels 3:30-4:30pm WQXR’s New Sounds John Schaefer with Festival artists and composers
6:00PM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with composers Gabriela Ortiz and Aida Shirazi with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds.
6:30PM MOON VIEWING MUSIC – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
Join Steven Schick in this solo performance of Peter Garland’s Moon Viewing Music (Inscrutable Stillness Studies #1) described as a quiet and introspective six-movement work for three large Thai-style gongs and large tam-tam.
Gabriela ORTIZ Liquid Borders Franz Joseph HAYDN String Quartet in F major, Op. 77 No. 2 Hob. III:82 Zakir HUSSAIN Pallavi (arr. Reena Esmail) Philip GLASS First Movement from String Quartet No. 3 (“Mishima”) Colin JACOBSEN Beloved do not let me be discouraged Geeshie WILEY Last Kind Words (arr. Jacob Garchik) Rhiannon GIDDENS Lullaby David CROSBY/Nathan SCHRAM Where We Are Not (arr. Nathan Schram) Caroline SHAW Stem and Root from The Evergreen John ADAMS Judah to Ocean, Rag the Bone from John’s Book of Alleged Dances SQUAREPUSHER Xetaka 1
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
FRI, June 9
8:00AM OJAI DAWNS
Zalk Theater, Besant Hill School
Due to injury, pianist Leonard Hayes has had to reduce his playing commitments and has withdrawn from this concert. We are deeply grateful to Lara Downes for agreeing to step in on short notice. Please note the revised program:
Shawn OKPEBHOLO Amazing Grace H.T. BURLEIGH On Bended Knees Margaret BONDS Troubled Water(Wade in the Water) Michael ABELS Iconoclasm Jessie MONTGOMERY Rhapsody No. 2 Nasim KHORASSANI Growth Nina BARZEGAR Inexorable Passage Lei LIANG vis-à-vis
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
11:30AM OJAI CHATS – FREE
LIBBEY PARK GAZEBO
In-depth conversation with composers Nina Barzegar and Nasim Khorassani with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds. FREE. Open to the public.
3:30PM GHOST OPERA – SOLD OUT
Greenberg Center, Ojai Valley School lower campus
TAN DunGhost Opera
Tan Dun’s Ghost Opera evokes the spirits of Bach and Shakespeare, standing with the ancient folk traditions of traditional shamanistic Chinese music. A new production, created especially for the Ojai Music Festival, brings dance into the work and re-imagines it for a new generation.
Ghost Opera is an add-on event, not included in the Libbey Bowl Series Pass. Purchase here >
8:00PM AN EVENING WITH RHIANNON GIDDENS AND FRANCESCO TURRISI – SOLD OUT
Libbey Bowl
An intimate concert with Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi with music ranging from the Baroque to Appalachian balladsand traditional Black American songs as well as excerpts from Songs of Flight by Shawn Okpebholo.
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
TAN DunGhost Opera Tan Dun’s Ghost Opera evokes the spirits of Bach and Shakespeare, standing with the ancient folk traditions of traditional shamanistic Chinese music. This new production, created especially for Ojai, introduces dance into the work and re-imagines this landmark piece for a new generation.
Repeat performance. Ghost Opera is an add-on event, not included in the Libbey Bowl Series Pass. Purchase here >
6:00PM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with composer Michael Abels with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds.
An Ojai-commissioned work for voices and chamber ensemble drawn from the opera Omar, by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels, framed by traditional music that traces the journey of the real-life Omar Ibn Said from Senegal to the Carolinas.
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
A program imagined specifically for the magical atmosphere of Sunday morning in Libbey Bowl, playing on the two ideas of very old music and music for the first hours of the day. Francesco Turrisi curates and introduces music ranging from thousand-year-old works for solo pipa, to Renaissance consort music, from ancient Persian melodies to modal jazz improvisations.
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
11:30AM OJAI CHATS – FREE
Libbey Park Gazebo
In-depth conversation with Francesco Turrisi with host John Schaefer of WQXR’s New Sounds.
1:00PM STONES AND STARS: LISTENING TO (AND BEYOND) THE WORLD – FREE
Libbey Park
A complete performance of Carlos Simon’s cycle Between Worlds, four solo string works placed in visual context by their source of inspiration: the remarkable paintings of Bill Traylor (ca. 1853-1949), chronicling nearly a century of Black American life.
Michael ABELS Isolation Variation
Duo Improvisation with Kayhan Kalhor and Seckou Keita
Nassim KHORASSANI Lullaby
Followed by a selection of music announced from the stage — an exuberant finale celebrating the many musical stories featured at this year’s Festival!
Free live stream of this concert will be available.
Get an inside look at the creative process with our free Virtual Ojai Talks, where we celebrate the intersection of music and ideas with the 2023 Festival artists, composers, innovators, and thinkers. Virtual Talks are free and open to the musically curious!
Free and Open to the Public Virtual Ojai Talks with Michael Abels May 3, 2023, 5:30-6:30pm
Zoom
Enjoy a conversation between Ara Guzelimian and featured Festival composer Michael Abels as they talk about creating the world premiere of Omar’s Journey, an Ojai-commissioned work for voices and chamber ensemble drawn from the opera Omar by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels, and his continuing work as both a film and concert composer.
Watch Virtual Ojai Talks with Steven Schick and Lei Liang
Ara Guzelimian and percussionist/conductor Steven Schick are joined by composer Lei Liang, whose works are featured at this year’s 77th Ojai Music Festival – including vis-à-vis, written specifically for Steven Schick and Wu Man. In addition. they consider the legacy of Chou Wen-chung, the composer and legendary mentor to both, whose centennial is celebrated this year.
About Steven Schick, conductor and percussionist
Percussionist, conductor, and author Steven Schick was born in Iowa and raised in a farming family. Hailed by Alex Ross in the New Yorker as, “one of our supreme living virtuosos, not just of percussion but of any instrument,” he has championed contemporary percussion music by commissioning or premiering more than one hundred-fifty new works. The most important of these have become core repertory for solo percussion. Schick was inducted into the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame in 2014.
Steven Schick is artistic director of the La Jolla Symphony and Chorus and the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players. As a conductor, he has appeared with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Milwaukee Symphony, Ensemble Modern, the International Contemporary Ensemble, and the Asko/Schönberg Ensemble.
Schick’s publications include a book, “The Percussionist’s Art: Same Bed, Different Dreams,” and many articles. He has released numerous recordings including the 2010 “Percussion Works of Iannis Xenakis,” and its companion, “The Complete Early Percussion Works of Karlheinz Stockhausen” in 2014 (both on Mode). He received the “Diapason d’Or” as conductor (Xenakis Ensemble Music with ICE) and the Deutscheschallplattenkritikpreis, as percussionist (Stockhausen), each for the best new music release of 2015.
Steven Schick is Distinguished Professor of Music and holds the Reed Family Presidential Chair at the University of California, San Diego. He was music director of the 2015 Ojai Festival, and starting in 2017, will be co-artistic director, with Claire Chase, of the Summer Music Program at the Banff Centre.
About Lei Liang, composer
Chinese-born American composer Lei Liang is the winner of the Rome Prize, the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Koussevitzky Foundation Commission, a Creative Capital Award, and the Goddard Lieberson Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His concerto for saxophone and orchestra, Xiaoxiang, was named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Music in 2015. His orchestral work, A Thousand Mountains, A Million Streams, won the prestigious 2021 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition.
Lei Liang was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic and Alan Gilbert for the inaugural concert of the CONTACT! new music series. His ten portrait discs are released on Naxos, New World, Mode, BMOP/sound, Encounter, Albany and Bridge Records. As a scholar and conservationist of cultural traditions, he has edited and co-edited five books and editions, and published more than forty articles.
From 2013-2016, Lei Liang served as Composer-in-Residence at the Qualcomm Institute/Calit2 where his multimedia works preserve and reimagine cultural heritage through combining scientific research and advanced technology. He returned to the Institute as its first Research Artist-in-Residence in 2018.
Lei Liang’s recent works address issues of sex trafficking across the US-Mexican border (Cuatro Corridos), America’s complex relationship with gun and violence (Inheritance), and environmental awareness through the sonification of coral reefs.
Lei Liang is Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of California, San Diego where he served as chair of the composition area, acting chair of the Music Department, as well as chair of campus-wide committee on committees. His catalogue of more than a hundred works is published exclusively by Schott Music Corporation (New York).
Watch Virtual Ojai Talks with Wu Man
Artistic and Executive Director Ara Guzelimian was joined by Wu Man to talk about her career as the world’s premier pipa virtuoso and a leading ambassador of Chinese music. She has carved out a distinguished career as a soloist, educator, and composer giving her instrument—which has a history of over 2,000 years in China—a new role in both traditional and contemporary music.
About Wu Man, pipa player and 2023 Festival artist
Recognized as the world’s premier pipa virtuoso and leading ambassador of Chinese music, Wu Man has carved out a career as a soloist, educator, and composer giving her lute-like instrument—which has a history of over 2,000 years in China—a new role in both traditional and contemporary music. Through numerous concert tours she has premiered hundreds of new works for the pipa, while spearheading multimedia projects to both preserve and create awareness of China’s ancient musical traditions. Her adventurous spirit and virtuosity have led to collaborations across artistic disciplines, allowing her to reach wider audiences as she works to cross cultural and musical borders. Her efforts were recognized when she was named Musical America’s 2013 “Instrumentalist of the Year,” marking the first time this prestigious award has been bestowed on a player of a non-Western instrument, and in 2021 when she received an honorary Doctorate of Music from the New England Conservatory of Music.
Having been brought up in the Pudong School of pipa playing, one of the most prestigious classical styles of Imperial China, Ms. Wu is now recognized as an outstanding exponent of the traditional repertoire as well as a leading interpreter of contemporary pipa music by today’s most prominent composers such as Tan Dun, Philip Glass, the late Lou Harrison, Terry Riley, Bright Sheng, Chen Yi, and many others. She was the recipient of The Bunting Fellowship at Harvard University in 1998, and was the first Chinese traditional musician to receive The United States Artist Fellowship in 2008. She is also the first artist from China to perform at the White House. Wu Man is a Visiting Professor at her alma mater the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and a Distinguished Professor at the Zhejiang and the Xi’an Conservatories. She has also served as Artistic Director of the Xi’an Silk Road Music Festival at the Xi’an Conservatory. Read Wu Man full bio here
Watch Virtual Ojai Talks with Francesco Turrisi
About Francesco Turrisi, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and 2023 Festival artist
Grammy award winning multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi has been defined a “musical alchemist” and a “musical polyglot” by the press. He left his native Italy in 1997 to study jazz piano and early music at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, where he obtained a Bachelor and a Master’s degree. Since 2004 he has been working successfully as a freelance musician.
He has released five critically acclaimed albums as a leader and two as co-leader (“Tarab” a cross boundary innovative ensemble that blends Irish and Mediterranean traditional music, and “Zahr” a project that looks at connections between southern Italian traditional music and Arabic music).His latest piano solo album “Northern Migrations” was described as “delicate, wistful and wholly engrossing” by the Irish Times. Francesco is also a member of the celebrated early music ensemble L’Arpeggiata. With l’Arpeggiata he has performed at the most important classical music festivals in Europe and around the world (Turkey, Russia, China, Australia, New Zealand, Brasil, Colombia) and has recorded for Warner, Virgin, Naive and Alpha.
Since 2018 he collaborates with American grammy award winning singer and multi-instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens, on a duo project that seamlessly combines music from the Mediterranean with music from the African diaspora in the Americas. In 2019 Giddens and Turrisi released their critically acclaimed duo album “there is no Other”. The album single “I’m on my way” was nominated for a 2020 Grammy Award. Their 2021 second duo album “They’re calling me home” was nominated for two Grammy awards and won as best folk album at the 2022 Grammy awards. Francesco currently performs on piano, accordion, harpsichord, organ, various lutes, cello banjo, frame and goblet drums.
He is equally at home playing with jazz veterans Dave Liebman and Gianluigi Trovesi as he is with Irish traditional sean-nós singer Roisin El Safty and with tarantella specialist Lucilla Galeazzi. Turrisi has toured with Bobby McFerrin, interpreted the music of Steve Reich with Bang on a Can All Stars, accompanied flamenco star Pepe El Habichuela and Greek singer Savina Yannatou.
Watch Virtual Ojai Talks with Rhiannon Giddens
About Rhiannon Giddens
The acclaimed musician Rhiannon Giddens uses her art to excavate the past and reveal bold truths about our present. A MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient, Giddens co-founded the Grammy Award-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops. She most recently won a Grammy Award for Best Folk Album for They’re Calling Me Home, and was also nominated for Best American Roots Song for “Avalon” from They’re Calling Me Home, which she made with multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi. Giddens is now a two-time winner and eight-time Grammy nominee for her work as a soloist and collaborator.
They’re Calling Me Home was released by Nonesuch last April and has been widely celebrated by the NY Times, NPR Music, NPR, Rolling Stone, People, Associated Press and far beyond, with No Depression deeming it “a near perfect album…her finest work to date.” Recorded over six days in the early phase of the pandemic in a small studio outside of Dublin, Ireland – where both Giddens and Turrisi live – They’re Calling Me Home manages to effortlessly blend the music of their native and adoptive countries: America, Italy, and Ireland. The album speaks of the longing for the comfort of home as well as the metaphorical “call home” of death.
Giddens’s lifelong mission is to lift people whose contributions to American musical history have previously been erased, and to work toward a more accurate understanding of the country’s musical origins. Pitchfork has said of her work, “few artists are so fearless and so ravenous in their exploration,” and Smithsonian Magazine calls her “an electrifying artist who brings alive the memories of forgotten predecessors, white and black.”
Among her many diverse career highlights, Giddens has performed for the Obamas at the White House and received an inaugural Legacy of Americana Award from Nashville’s National Museum of African American History in partnership with the Americana Music Association. Her critical acclaim includes in-depth profiles by CBS Sunday Morning, the New York Times, the New Yorker, and NPR’s Fresh Air, among many others.
Giddens was featured in Ken Burns’s Country Music series, which aired on PBS, where she spoke about the African American origins of country music. She is also a member of the band Our Native Daughters with three other black female banjo players, Leyla McCalla, Allison Russell, and Amythyst Kiah, and co-produced their debut album Songs of Our Native Daughters (2019), which tells stories of historic black womanhood and survival.
Giddens is in the midst of a tremendous 2022. She announced the publication of her first book, Build a House (October 2022), Lucy Negro Redux, the ballet Giddens wrote the music for, had its premiere at the Nashville Ballet (premiered in 2019 and toured in 2022), and the libretto and music for Giddens’ original opera, Omar, in collaboration with Michael Abels, based on the autobiography of the enslaved man Omar ibn Said, premiered at the Spoleto USA Festival in May. Giddens is also curating a four-concert Perspectives series as part of Carnegie Hall’s 2022–2023 season. Named Artistic Director of Silkroad Ensemble in 2020, Giddens is developing a number of new programs for that ensemble, including one inspired by the history of the American transcontinental railroad and the cultures and music of its builders.
She made her Ojai debut for the celebratory 75th Ojai Music Festival with Music Director John Adams in September 2021.
As an actor, Giddens had a featured role on the television series Nashville.
The Ojai Music Festival offers the world beyond Ojai’s Libbey Bowl to experience the music and conversations through its free live streaming.
As we wait in anticipation of the 2022 Ojai Music Festival, June 9-12, with Music Director AMOC, enjoy 2021 Libbey Bowl concerts and interviews with featured artists. Also check out the 2021 Program Book and Full Festival Schedule.
2021 Stream Archive
To watch full screen, click in the bottom right of the player.
Full Concerts
Ojai Mix: Prelude to a Festival
THU 9.16 @ 9:00pm
Attacca Quartet with Rhiannon…
FRI 9.17 @ 11:00am
John Adams conducts the Ojai…
FRI 9.17 @ 8:00pm
I Still Play with pianist Timo Andres
SUN 9.19 @ 8:00am
LA Phil New Music Group
SUN 9.19 @ 11:00am
Festival Finale
SUN 9.19 @ 5:30pm
Interviews
Interview with Dustin Donahue
Interview with Carlos Simon
Interview with Gabriela Ortiz
Interview with Ara Guzelimian
Interview with Miranda Cuckson
Interview with John Adams
Selected Pieces from Concerts
Élégie by Igor Stravinsky
Huitzitl by Gabriela Ortiz
Between Worlds by Carlos Simon
Early to Rise by Timo Andres
Magnolia by Dylan Mattingly
Violin Diptych by S. Adams
Maré by Gabriela Smith
Toot Nipple by John Adams
Alligator Escalator by John Adams
Stubble Crotchet by John Adams
Benkei’s Standing Death by Paul Wiancko
Plan and Elevation by Caroline Shaw
Strum by Jessie Montgomery
Factory Girl (traditional) by Rhiannon Giddens
Koromanti Tune # 2 / Build a House by Rhiannon Giddens
At the Purchaser’s Option by
Rhiannon Giddens
Carrot Revolution by Gabriella Smith
Danse sacrée et danse profane by Claude Debussy
Partita No. 3 Preludio by J.S. Bach | Fog by Salonen
Flow by Ingram Marshall
Running Theme by Timo Andres
Río de las Mariposas by Gabriela Ortiz
To Give You Form And Breath by inti figgis-vizueta
Welcome to OJAICAST, where we pull back the curtain to take a sneak-peek at the upcoming Ojai Music Festival, June 9 to 12, in beautiful Ojai Valley, California. All are welcome here, from newcomers to long-time music fans. In-depth insights and special guests will help introduce this year’s programming and whet your musical appetites for what’s to come with host Emily Praetorius.
Episode 1
Our first episode introduces us to our 2022 Music Director AMOC, the multidisciplinary collective which incorporates music, dance, poetry, theatre in all their work and their ambitious programming that begins on Thu June 9. Guests: Ara Guzelimian, Zack Winokur, and Keir Gogwilt
Emily Praetorius, producer and host
Louis Ng, sound engineer (lensonproductions.com)
OJAICAST theme by Thomas Kotcheff and Louis Weeks
Music Excerpts in Episode 1: Craigie Hill, by Keir GoGwilt and Celeste Oram
Performed by Keir GoGwilt
Prelude to the Holy Presence of Joan d’Arc, by Julius Eastman
Performed by Julius Eastman
Rebonds B, by Iannis Xenakis
Performed by Steven Schick
Gretchen am spinnrade, by Eric Wubbels
Performed by Eric Wubbels and Mariel Roberts
Episode 2
From early morning sunrise to evening sunset, AMOC dives into the music of icons George Lewis and Roscoe Mitchell, the life and music of Julius Eastman alongside world premieres of works by Anthony Cheung and new staging of Messian’s Harawi. Guests: AMOC member and flutist Emi Ferguson and composer Anthony Cheung.
Emily Praetorius, producer and host
Louis Ng, sound engineer (lensonproductions.com)
OJAICAST theme by Thomas Kotcheff and Louis Weeks
Music Excerpts in Episode 2: Gay Guerilla, by Julius Eastman
Performed by Julius Eastman
Stay on It, by Julius Eastman
Performed by Julius Eastman, Doug Gaston, Amrom Chodos, Dennis Kahle, Benjamin Hudson, Joseph Ford, George Mitkoff, Jan Williams, Peter Kotik
Harawi, mvts. 2, 6, 10, by Olivier Messiaen
Performed by Hetna Regitze Bruun and Kristoffer Hyldig
Episode 3
Let Festival weekend begin! In this episode we look at the Saturday program which is quintessential Ojai Music Festival — music of Bach and Bach re-imagined and three premieres of some of today’s most exciting composers Matthew Aucoin, Carolyn Chen, and Andrew McIntosh. Guests: AMOC co-founder/composer Matthew Aucoin and AMOC member and violinist Miranda Cuckson.
Emily Praetorius, producer and host
Louis Ng, sound engineer (lensonproductions.com)
OJAICAST theme by Thomas Kotcheff and Louis Weeks
Music Excerpts in Episode 3: cross/collapse, by Catherine Lamb
About Bach, by Cassandra Miller
Performed by Quatuor Bozzini
Tanz Tanz, by Reiko Füting
Performed by Olivia de Prato
Prelude in G Minor, by Bach
Performed by Emi Ferguson and Ruckus
Little Jimmy, by Andrew McIntosh
Performed by Yarn/Wire
Episode 4
More music, meditation, and dance plus community events end the four-day Festival starting with Meditation with the music of Julius Eastman, followed by Hans Otte’s The Book of Sounds, and two world premieres Dance in the Park and Rome is Falling. To end this jam-packed Fesrival, the Sunday Finale will display the virtuosity of all 17 AMOC members as a collective. Guests: Ara Guzelimian, Julia Eichten, and Doug Balliett.
Emily Praetorius, producer and host
Louis Ng, sound engineer (lensonproductions.com)
OJAICAST theme by Thomas Kotcheff and Louis Weeks
Music Excerpts in Episode 4: The Book of Sounds, mvts. 1, 10, by Hans Otte
Performed by Ralph van Raat
ABOUT OUR OJAICAST HOST EmilyPraetorius, former Ojai Music Festival intern and Rothenberg Intern Fellow, is a current Composition DMA candidate at Columbia University. She previously studied composition and clarinet performance at the University of Redlands (BM) and composition at Manhattan School of Music (MM). She has studied with Kathryn Nevin (clarinet), Susan Botti, Georg Friedrich Haas, George Lewis, and Anthony Suter. Emily is from Ojai, CA and lives in New York City where she is a proud co-owner of Kuro Kirin Espresso & Coffee.
With nearly 20 concerts, talks and open rehearsals planned over four days, the 76th Ojai Music Festival from June 9-12 doesn’t leave much time for leisurely dining. That’s where this partial list of Ojai places with order-at-the-counter and/or grab-and-go food service comes in handy: It’s organized according to proximity to Libbey Park, so you can find a spot within walking distance between events, or make plans to park just long enough to pick something up while making your way to the next performance. (Starting Thursday, June 9 you can also visit the Ojai Music Festival Green Room in Libbey Park for sales of pre-made sandwiches and small bites by Ojai Valley Deli Café, Ojai Rôtieand The Vine Ojai plus beer, cider, and wine from Ojai Beverage Co.)
Marché Gourmet Delicatessen, 133 E. Ojai Ave. (half a block from Libbey Park), 805-646-1133, marchegourmetdeli.com. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays; 5:30-7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options are available from a menu that includes soups, salads, quiches and sandwiches, plus gelato and bottles of wine to go. Call ahead to order box lunches that include a sandwich, side salad and cookie.
Don’t let the “cash only” sign put you off: There’s room for an ATM inside this hole in the wall where house-made corn and flour tortillas are turned into tacos, burritos and quesadillas filled with your choice of veggies, steak, chicken or al pastor.
Yume Japanese Burger Cafe, 254 E. Ojai Ave. (about a block from Libbey Park). 805-272-8963, yumejapaneseburger.com. 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays.
Wagyu beef is the specialty of the house, but the café’s riffs on burgers include shrimp katsu, vegetable croquette and – swapping bread for “buns” of rice – vegetable or shrimp tempura. Loaded fries, smoothies, shakes and bubble teas are also served.
Love Social Café, 205 N. Signal St. (about two blocks from Libbey Park), 805-646-1540, lovesocialcafe.com. Daily from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Easy-to-transport dishes range from avocado toast and bagels and lox to tuna, veggie and BLT sandwiches on your choice of croissant, gluten-free bread or Ojai Rôtie sourdough.
Rainbow Bridge Market Deli, 211 E. Matilija St. (inside Rainbow Bridge Market, about two blocks from Libbey Park), 805-646-6623, rainbowbridgeojai.com. Daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Breakfast burritos and specialty juices — like the aptly named Rainbow Wallbanger — are local favorites. Salads include a mix-and-match option and pre-packaged greens with tofu, chicken or salmon. Sandwiches both hot (Brocc on the Wild Side) and cold (Rainbow tuna salad) are available until 5 p.m. and include gluten-free and vegan selections.
Westridge Midtown Market, 131 W. Ojai Ave. (about two blocks from Libbey Park), 805-646-4082, westridgemarket.com. Daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. The service deli has a priced-by-the-pound breakfast bar (open from 7 to 10:30 a.m.), salad bar and hot bar in addition to packaged sushi, grab-and-go burritos and sandwiches, brick-oven pizzas and “famous” Westridge Burgers made with ground beef or turkey. The original Westridge Market (802 E. Ojai Ave., about half a mile from Libbey Park, 805-646-2762) also offers made-to-order burgers, plus a create-your-own taco and burrito bar and, on the weekends, barbecue off the grill in the parking lot.
Hip Vegan, 201 N. Montgomery St. (about three blocks from Libbey Park), 805-669-6363, hipvgn.com. Daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tucked behind a hedge at Montgomery and Matilija streets, Hip Vgn (as the restaurant is styled online) is dedicated to organic, vegan fare that often is also gluten free. Spring rolls are filled with tofu and fresh herbs, while the Tiger Bowl features grilled tempeh with turmeric rice. Smoothies are made with almond, hemp and cashew milks.
Pinyon Ojai,423 E. Ojai Ave., Suite 101(about three blocks from Libbey Park), no phone, pinyonojai.com. 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays. After its debut last winter, the wood-fired pizzeria, bakery and natural wines shop now also offers breakfast. House-made sourdough pastries and bagels are available from 9 a.m. (the latter are sold on their own, as breakfast sandwiches, or with shmear and Mt. Lassen trout lox). Hoagies and sourdough-crust pizza squares join in until around 4 p.m., with small plates, salads, desserts and pizzas available from noon to 9 p.m.
La Fuente Mexican Food, 423 E. Ojai Ave. Suite 108 (about three blocks from Libbey Park), 805-646-7715, lafuenteojai.com. 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Fridays, 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturdays and 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sundays. This homey spot located in the far corner of Fitzgerald Plaza serves tacos, tamales, sopes, burritos, and quesadillas (plus burgers and fries) in near-record time. Be sure to hit the serve-yourself salsa bar before departing.
Ojai Valley Deli Café, 1205 Maricopa Highway, Unit A (about 1.3 miles from Libbey Park), 805-272-8139, ojaivalleydelicafe.com. 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. Since its December 2021 debut next to the Ben Franklin Store, the deli has become a locals’ favorite for its to-go-only service of salads, eggplant Parmesan, hot-off-the-grill panini and house-made desserts, including tiramisu and vegan carrot cake. Italian coffee is a specialty.
LisaMcKinnon is a Ventura-based food writer who has been squeezing in bites between Ojai Music Festival concerts since the 1990s. She’s on Instagram as 805foodie and blogs at 805foodie.com.
The Ojai Music Festival offers
the world beyond Ojai’s Libbey Bowl
to experience the music and
conversations through its
free live streaming
of Libbey Bowl concerts.
First-time visitors to downtown Ojai may be surprised when they go looking for a Starbucks: There isn’t one, thanks to a moratorium on chain businesses with five or more locations. Luckily, Ojai Music Festival audiences in need of a caffeinated pick-me-up between song cycles and dance-theater pieces have plenty of non-corporate options from which to choose.
Beans sourced from small farms in Kenya, Costa Rica and Guatemala are roasted at the café’s sister location in Ventura, then featured in pour overs, flat whites, cappuccinos and seasonal mochas (the festival coincides with Beacon’s annual switch from Ojai Pixie to lavender, the latter from Frog Creek Farm in the Upper Ojai). Magic Hour teas blended in Ojai are available hot or cold. The café’s kitchen is home to SunOven gluten-free vegan bakery, which produces lavender-lemon doughnuts among other treats. Additional baked goods are from Frontside Cafe in Ventura.
Café Boku, 987 W. Ojai Ave., 805-650-2658, cafeboku.com. Daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The menu of organic, plant-based food and drinks infused with ingredients from Ojai-based Boku Superfoods includes coffees and espressos made from locally roasted beans from Bonito Coffee Roaster. Enjoy an invigorating Golden Shroom Latte while juicing up your electric car at the café’s bank of chargers.
Look for the orange patio umbrellas to locate this off-the-beaten path local favorite specializing in organic, fair-trade coffee, espresso and loose-leaf teas. Drinks are available hot or cold. You’ll also find Mexican hot chocolate and baked goods.
Farmer and the Cook, 339 W. El Roblar Drive, Meiners Oaks, 805-640-9608, farmer-and-the-cook.com. 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Wednesdays, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays.
The combination organic bakery, market and Mexican café with vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options also operates as a community gathering place and espresso bar with drip coffee and specialty drinks. “Beneficial” beverages like the Turmeric Toddy and adaptogenic hot chocolate (made with fungi) are available from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Java & Joe, 323 E. Matilija St., Suite 105, 805-646-3138, javajoeojai.com. Daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Nearing its 28th anniversary, the coffeehouse offers an ever-changing lineup of roasts, plus specialty drinks that can be made hot or cold. There’s also a wide selection of whole beans, loose-leaf teas and mugs, carafes and tea pots to take home as gifts.
Dune Coffeefrom Santa Barbara is featured, both freshly brewed and on nitro (cold). The café also serves lattes, cappuccinos and the eye-opening Gibraltar/Cortado – a double espresso topped with an equal amount of micro foam. Fresh-squeezed orange juice and matcha lemonade are also available.
Ojai Coffee Roasting Co., 337 E. Ojai Ave., 805-646-4478, facebook.com/OjaiCoffee. 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
Owner and roaster Stacey Jones is often behind the counter at the café she opened in 1995 (and which served as a filming location for the 2010 movie “Easy A” starring Emma Stone). Arabica beans are roasted on site in small batches for coffees, espressos, red eyes (espresso plus drip coffee) and more. Check the specials board for lattes ranging from lavender to honey cinnamon.
Pinyon, 423 E. Ojai Ave., no phone, pinyonojai.com. 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays.
In a nod to the coffee-served-all-day tradition set by the pre-moratorium Jersey Mike’s that previously occupied its address, Pinyon serves French-press hot and cold-brew versions of Los Angeles-based Canyon Coffee from opening till close.
Sage Cafè, 217 E. Matilija St., 805-646-9204, rainbowbridgeojai.com/sage. 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays; 5-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays.
Keeping track of your caffeine intake? A “none-to-high” scale for teas is spelled out on glass display case at this counter-service restaurant that also serves drip coffee, collagen lattes and herbal tonics.
Named for a vintage bread oven, the Rustic Canyon Family restaurant operates as a coffeehouse from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.-ish, when the focus is on order-at-the-counter service of Bonito Coffee drinks and Magic Hour teas (including a heavy-caffeine black variety dubbed Organic Flower Dutchess) to go with grab-and-go sandwiches, cookies, seasonal-ingredient cakes and artisanal breads by pastry chef/partner Kelsey Brito and bread baker/partner Kate Pepper. The Dutchess switches to sit-down dinner mode at 4:30 p.m., when its California-Burmese menu becomes available.
Fans of Peet’s Coffee will find the brand served at the service deli.
Lisa McKinnon is Ventura-based food writer who drank a LOT of coffee and still managed to fall asleep during a special, four-hour performance at the 2002 Ojai Music Festival — but only because audience members were invited to bring pillows and blankets and told get comfortable on the Ojai Art Center floor for the duration. She’s on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok as 805foodie, and blogs at 805foodie.com.
Thank you for joining us at our 76th Festival, June 9-12, 2022. It was an exhilarating time! The energy and boundless creativity of AMOC* was vividly present across the Ojai Valley, giving all of us an extraordinary artistic adventure. Read review excerpts below.
“The Ojai Music Festival has always been more than the sum of its considerable parts, thanks to its compact duration (little more than a long weekend), eclectic classical programming, embrace of other disciplines (including theater, dance and spoken word), and sustained ability to attract luminaries to its still delightfully rustic outdoor setting—Igor Stravinsky, Aaron Copland and Pierre Boulez remain the most famous of its annually appointed music directors. Yet this year, something else pervaded, too: a feeling that the center of the classical-music universe, at least from June 9 through 12, was right here.” – Wall Street Journal
“Davóne Tines, in a program note describing amoc’s approach to Eastman’s unswervingly radical music, wrote, “What is possible if all members of a performing ensemble are present for every step of the creation of a performance?” Ojai made the possibilities clear.” – The New Yorker
“There is nothing in music quite like Ojai, now three-quarters of a century old, with that packed morning-to-night-schedule, its variety of spaces and the stalwart curiosity of its audience. Led by Ara Guzelimian with a steady hand, the festival is Southern California relaxed — T-shirts and shorts, maybe a hoodie at night — but the repertory tends rigorous and recondite.” – New York Times
“This Utopian collective of 17 extraordinary artists happily reinventing opera was the communal music director last weekend for the 75th anniversary of this ever-quixotic festival.” – Los Angeles Times
“Eastman’s beloved half-hour Gay Guerilla was a standout moment during the program — and the festival. The dizzily ecstatic work came off as a musical statement at once unruly and internally logical, raucous and yet reflective, as was Eastman’s complex musical wont. Among other distinguishing marks at Ojai 2022, Eastman now joins the ranks of the festival’s ever-expanding songbook of 20th- and 21st-century greats whose music left a mark in this dreamy outpost of a town.” – San Francisco Classical Voice
“Open Rehearsal, directed by the choreographer and dancer Bobbi Jene Smith, felt more nuanced. An outgrowth of Smith’s recent work “Broken Theater,” it is a wry, sometimes uproarious and poignant metatheatrical riff on the process of creation.” – New York Times
“For all its worldly trappings, as an annual gathering point for internationally-respected musicians, composers, conductors, plus visitors and press from near and far, the unique power of the Ojai Music Festival (ojaifestival.org) is partly rooted in its “village” concept. As the cliché goes, it “takes one” to pull all the festival pieces together and it is one, a golden west coast destination spot.” – Santa Barbara Independent
“With AMOC’s boundary-pushing tenure at an end, Ojai has once more proved the most elastic of music festivals. And it seems clear that Mr. Guzelimian intends to continue stretching things.” – Wall Street Journal
“Compositional styles ran a wide gamut at the festival, from the ethereal simplicity of Cassandra Miller’s “About Bach” to the riotous, pop-flavored eclecticism of Doug Balliett’s mini-opera Rome Is Falling.” – The New Yorker
“Everything for AMOC is sacred in that it needs to perform at the highest level, but nothing is so sacred that it can’t be rethought musically, socially, racially, sexually, theatrically, physically.” – Los Angeles Times
“Many in the arts these days talk a big game about interdisciplinary collaboration, but few walk the walk like AMOC” – New York Times
The Ojai Music Festival BRAVO program, directed by BRAVO coordinator Laura Walter, provides music education opportunities to students and residents of the Ojai Valley for more than three decades. 2022 marked a safe return to many workshops and activities after close to two years of no in-person programs. As summer wraps up and we head into a new school year, join us in taking a look back at the BRAVO program’s accomplishments.
Highlights
Third graders’ returned to visiting retirement homes.
It was a time of authenticity, as the children experienced the joy, wisdom and humor that was possible while playing and singing with our elders. The staff said they hadn’t seen that many smiles in many months. The next week in class the students and teachers talked about how important that time was for them. The children learned that seniors are really nice, and fun!
Ojai O’Daiko performed Taiko Drumming music at this year’s Imagine concert.
840 children and 70 adults attended the performance at the Libbey Bowl thanks to an on-going partnership with the Ojai Valley School and funding from the Barbara Barnard Smith Worlds Music Foundation. Students were amazed that they could feel the music vibrate in their bodies!
The Instrument Petting Zoo was added to the Memorial Day weekend Art in the Park.
The program reached 700 more community members by giving them opportunities to try instruments and meet our BRAVO committee members.
New this past year – bringing musicians into 4th and 5th grade classes and having a few continuing sessions with Ms. Laura to expand upon all that we learned during our previous years together.
Teachers said they had never seen the children so attentive. Plans are in motion to expand the program for next year. Stay tuned!
Children/groups/classes served
Education Through Music schools:
BRAVO was in residence at Summit, San Antonio, Topa Topa, Meiner’s Oaks, Miramonte, Summit/Rock-Tree-Sky
28 classes; 660 children
Pilot Program: 4th/5th grades at Topa Topa Elementary: 7 sessions, 55 children per session 385 direct experiences
4 components: harp, violin, cello, Education Through Music Artists in Residence: Shelley Burgon, harp Kathleen Robertson, violin Cameron Schubert, cello Julie Tumamait, Chumash storyteller/musician Laura Walter, flute Joann Yabrof, ETM
Music Van:
Thanks to the efforts of our Music Van volunteers, coordinated by Lynne Doherty, Music Van visited 7 schools, 5th graders (455 children)
Bravo Music Camp, June: 5 days, 30 children aged 6-13 Bravo Music Camp, August: 5 days, 30 children aged 5-13
Community Events
Ojai Day Oct. 16, 10am-4pm, 400 people served Art in the Park, May 25-26, 10am-5pm, 700 people served
Music for Holiday Home Marketplace:
Kathryn Carlson, cello
Babette and Bob, acoustic duo
Debby Finley and Friends
Madrigali, vocal
Ruby Skye, acoustic duo
Fire on the Mountain, bluegrass trio
Ray Sullivan, guitar
Ojai Valley Museum First Fridays:
Dec. Laura Walter, flute; June-Laura Walter and Kylie Cloutier, flutes; August-Ray Sullivan, guitar
Storytelling Festival, Oct. 31, Ruby Skye
Imagine Concert:
Ojai O’Daiko, Taiko Drumming
March 25, Libbey Park, 840 children, 70 adults
Senior Living
Upbeat
Sends volunteers into assisted living facilities (traditionally the Continuing Care Center) and helps the residents play hand percussion.
The Artesian (October, June- cello)
The Bridge
All 3rd graders in the district go into assisted living facilities and play and sing with residents.
The Bridge at The Gables of Ojai—75 students, 40 seniors
The Bridge at The Artesian—75 students, 30 seniors
We are delighted to announce a renewed partnership with WQXR Radio and its remarkable New Sounds program, which just celebrated its 40th anniversary with John Schaefer, one of the most adventurous guides to creative and innovative music anywhere.
This week-long series of programs will connect audiences with the many facets of the Festival’s 2022 collaboration with the discipline colliding collective AMOC*, Ojai’s 2022 Music Director. Imagined as a vehicle to connect audiences and artists who engage deeply with the world’s most adventurous, new music, WQXR/New Sounds Presents: Ojai On The Air looks toward ongoing programming leading up to and during the 2023 Festival with Music Director Rhiannon Giddens.
Check out the episodes below along with featured clips:
EPISODE 1>>
Davóne Tines and New Sounds host John Schaefer discuss Julius Eastman’s work, Tines’ connection to Eastman’s lineage, and how the program Tines and AMOC* prepared honors Eastman as a complete human, exploring the breadth and depth of his life and influence.
EPISODE 2>>
Listen to members of AMOC* performing Little Jimmy by violinist and composer Andrew McIntosh (of new music band Wild Up), and songs of drummer/composer Tyshawn Sorey and American composer Margaret Bonds, performed by bass-baritone Davóne Tines.
EPISODE 3>>
AMOC* member and pianist Conor Hanick plays and discusses The Book of Soundsby the late German pianist, composer, and broadcaster, Hans Otte.
EPISODE 4>>
Listen to a program of J.S. Bach which upends expectations, as arranged by AMOC* member, flutist and composerEmi Ferguson and the period instrument band Ruckus. Plus, from the 2022 Festival Finale, a performance of Julius Eastman’s work of resistance as an act of joy, Stay On It.
in the bottom right of the player.
Ojai Tortilla House
Pinyon Ojai
Ojai Valley Deli Café
