New West Symphony Retail Partners –
Vons/Pavilions, Gelson’s Markets, Whole Foods

     Vons/Pavilions, Gelson’s Markets, and Whole Foods Markets each have a program that results in a donation by the grocery chain to the New West Symphony at NO COST TO YOU every time you purchase groceries.   Each program operates differently, and I would appreciate the opportunity to explain how you can participate and support the orchestra!

Von’s/Pavilions shoppers – Please click here to sign up for the Vons/Pavillion Card and mail  or fax the form to me.

Gelson’s and Whole Foods shoppers – please phone or email me:
Marney Janss, Retail Partners Chair
New West Symphony League
1115 El Monte Drive
Thousand Oaks, CA   91362
PH: 805 496-9751
EM: conejor@earthlink.net

Meet the Artist

     Before each Masterpiece Series concert, Meet the Artist offers a rare opportunity to get up-close and personal with the guest artist for that week's concert. Maestro Boris Brott leads these engaging conversations with the guest artists, exploring their musical backgrounds and their careers while uncovering the stories that influenced their decisions to become professional musicians. The audience is given the opportunity to participate.

     Free and open to the public, Meet the Artist programs take place in two venues during the week preceding each concert:

• 9:30 am Thursday in the Scherr Forum of the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza,
  sponsored by the New West Symphony League
• 11:00 am Friday at the Universalist Unitarian Church located at 5654 Ralston Street in Ventura, sponsored by Dot & Jerry Levy.

Complimentary refreshments are served in Thousand Oaks.

Please click on Meet the Artist to view this season's schedule.

Major Event Fundraisers

     Our annual, traditional Poinsettia Ball - the holiday season's most elegant affair -
is held each year at the Hyatt Westlake Plaza in early December. Guests enjoyed an outstanding evening dining on fine food, dancing to a 17-piece band, and shopping at exciting live and silent auctions and a sophisticated boutique.

     Another major fundraiser is Pleasure of Your Company, held during the summer months, consisting of some 30 individual events hosted by League members at their homes or other venues. Among the 2008 events were a wine blending party at the home of Westlake’s mayor, a progressive dinner at three homes on Westlake Lake accessed by boat, a luncheon and talk on growing orchids presented by the past president of the Conejo Orchid Society, a lecture on bioethics by a local physical followed by a lakeside brunch, a fun afternoon at the Improv in Ventura, and several elegant, intimate dinner parties.

     Other exciting events are being planned. Details will appear on this web site and in the League’s monthly newsletter.

     The public is invited to attend all League fundraisers. Members receive mailed invitations to all major events. Non-members may ask to be added to the League’s invitation list by contacting Ways and Means Alda Donohue at (818) 706-8960.

Please click on Major Events for more details.

Pre-concert Dinners

     A great way to start your Symphony evenings and beat the traffic! Prior to each Masterpiece Series performance, concertgoers are invited to take advantage of the pre-concert dinners offered at each venue. These convivial dinners provide an opportunity to meet and mingle with other music lovers while enjoying a delicious meal before the concert. Activities begin at 5:15 pm in Thousand Oaks and at 5:45 pm in Oxnard.

     Reservations for these popular dinners are a must. Cost is $50 per person at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center and $55 per person at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza. For Oxnard dinners, call Patti Thompson at (805) 642-5540; for Thousand Oaks, call Pat Croner at (818) 889-7712

Trips and Tours

     A group of over 40 League members and other Symphony supporters visited Moscow and St. Petersburg in the fall of 2008. Another exciting and fun overseas trip planned by our resourceful Stan Sutton!

     Annual trips planned by the League have become a Symphony tradition that has raised significant funds for the orchestra while providing pleasure for hundreds.  In past years groups have visited China, Canada, Japan, Spain and Portugal, cruised the Mediterranean and the Danube, and attended the Salzburg Music Festival.

     The League also sponsors bus trips to sites of cultural interest in California. Past destinations have included the San Luis Mozart Festival, the Getty Museum and Villa, the Bowers Museum, the Huntington Library and Gardens, the Weisman Art Museum, Descanso Gardens, the Music Academy of the West and other interesting sites in Santa Barbara, Pasadena, Los Angeles and Ventura County.

     Please click on Trips/Tours to find out more about upcoming activities. All are open to the general public. Trips are not limited to League members – everyone is invited to participate.

Photograph Gallery

Photographs of League events taken by the League’s fine photographer, Gisele Friedman, are available for viewing by clicking here: Gisele and Len Friedman’s Photo Album.