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30 Jan - 6 Feb 2020 Vol 26 Issue 5

The Voice of the Village

S SINCE 1995 S

VILLAGESITE.COM DRE 01206734

MONTECITO’S WHOLE EARTH ARCHITECT

Before he renovated All Saintsby-the-Sea and the Montecito Country Club, Robert Easton helped spark the do-it-yourself revolution (story begins on p. 20)

Debut Debate

Reliving the ’40s

Montecito resident Christie Jenkins produces Mercury Ballroom Supper Club to bring ’40s-era music, dancing, cocktails, and happiness to local residents, p. 40

Das Williams and Laura Capps face off in Montecito Journal Media Group’s inaugural event at Hahn Hall, answering questions from nine prominent community leaders; cannabis, homelessness, resilience, traffic, and water topics of conversation, p. 12

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MONTECITO JOURNAL

30 January – 6 February 2020

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• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE 5 Editorial

Who won the First District Supervisor primary debate at Hahn Hall?

Executive editor Gwyn Lurie weighs in on how Montecito fared.

6

Montecito Miscellany

Chef Michael Hutchings heads south by southeast; Itzhak Perlman celebrates his 75th birthday at the Granada; Meghan Markle gives her first post-Megxit interview; Brad Pitt sells out the Arlington; David Bolton heads to the Superbowl; SB Dance Theater starts its season; Scholarship Foundation of SB celebrates student artists; and more

8 Letters

Readers react to the Montecito Journal Media Group’s inaugural debate between Das Williams and Laura Capps, take on the cannabis industry, and more

10

This Week

12

Tide Chart Village Beat

14

Seen Around Town

20

On the Record

23

Brilliant Thoughts

27

On Entertainment

Ernie’s World

Ennisbrook Birdwatching Walk; Spanish conversation at the library; senior experts sign books at Chaucer’s; Tai Chi EasyTM training; SB Piano Boys in Goleta; Lobero Theatre Chamber Music Project; plus Jack’s weekly forecast

Eat. Sip. Shop. Connect.

First District Supervisor Das Williams and Laura Capps participated in a lively debate at Hahn Hall, where they answered questions from a lineup of Montecito community leaders; Mercury Ballroom Supper Club goes nightly February 11-16 CALM holds a Crab Fest; a scheduling note; SBIFF pays tribute to Brad Pitt; MClub tours Casa del Herrero

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Before he became a successful SB architect and historical renovator, Montecito’s Bob Easton helped spark the DIY homebuilding revolution Ashley Brilliant examines the evolution of hair, that most fleeting of male adornments Steven Libowitz sits down with accordion virtuoso Hanzhi Wang before her Hahn Hall appearance; Santa Barbara-Kotor Sister Cities concert comes to Weinman Hall; catching up with Toad the Wet Sprocket’s Glen Phillips; plus what to catch on SBIFF’s bonus weekend Sometimes it takes retirement to realize that you were really meant to Bonsai

30 The 501c3 Weekly

Fishbon hosts an encore performance of the San Pesci Legends International Film Festival

34

INTRODUCING

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MONTECITO JOURNAL

Spirituality Matters

A new series of Elemental Wellness group circles; Mindful Self-Compassion at Yoga Soup; Nada Yoga Workshop at Santa Barbara Yoga Center Family nurse practitioner Vicky Diaz Pagenkopf is one of SB’s health industry success stories

42

Calendar of Events

Thalia String Quartet at the SB Museum; presidential biographer Jon Meacham at the Granada; Psychedelic Cumbia at UCSB; Danny Millsap and Danny Memphis at the Lobero; poetry at Westmont; harpist Kim Robertson and cellist Virginia Kron at Goleta Presbyterian; Chris Thile and mandolin at UCSB’s Campbell Hall; Lisa Citore brings a roster of artists to Paseo Nuevo; Poet Laureate Joy Harjo at SB Museum of Natural History’s Fleischmann Auditorium

45 Our Town

Catching up with Music Academy of the West grad and renowned cellist, composer, and curator Joshua Roman

46 Classified Advertising

Our own “Craigslist” of classified ads, in which sellers offer everything from summer rentals to estate sales

47

Local Business Directory

“Paris is always a good idea.” - Audrey Hepburn

30 January – 6 February 2020

Editorial

by Gwyn Lurie Gwyn Lurie is the CEO of The Montecito Journal Media Group and the Executive Editor of the Montecito Journal. She served on the Montecito Union School Board for eight years, including five years as Chair. Gwyn is the former Chair of Santa Barbara County Child Welfare Safety Net Task Force. She and her family have been residents of Montecito for more than 10 years.

My Two Cents

B

y all accounts, Monday night’s candidate debate at Hahn Hall was a rousing success. Over 300 of Montecito’s finest showed up and packed the house to hear First District Supervisor Das Williams and challenger Laura Capps respond to questions from community leaders and to hear the candidates make their case why he or she should get our vote in the upcoming election.

We tend to see political debates as a gladiator sport, and want to walk away with a clear winner. In that regard Monday night’s debate may have been less than satisfying. I’m not sure anyone who arrived as a Das or Laura supporter left changed, myself included. If there was any winner last night, it was Montecito.

Having run for political office and participated in political debates (UCLA Student Body President, Montecito Union School Board), I know that candidates have good nights and bad nights. And sometimes, the best campaigners are not the best leaders and vice versa. Laura came off stronger in the first half of the debate, hitting on important issues such as integrity, the need for election reform, and how cannabis – no matter how you feel about the crop – has highjacked the focus of our county government at the expense of other important planning-related issues, such as traffic, public safety, environmental resilience, infrastructure, etc.

On the other hand, Das had a stronger second half, as evidenced by the round of applause he evoked via his strong answer regarding traffic, and his assertion that the southbound freeway entrance at Hot Springs should be reopened. One cannot overstate the impact Montecito’s traffic issues are having on the lives of residents and businesses alike. Das has spent years in public office at the state

EDITORIAL Page 314

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11:40 AMof the Village • • 1/16/20 The Voice

MONTECITO JOURNAL

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Monte ito Miscellany

by Richard Mineards

Richard covered the Royal Family for Britain’s Daily Mirror and Daily Mail, and was an editor on New York Magazine. He was also a national anchor on CBS, a commentator on ABC Network News, gossip on The Joan Rivers Show and Geraldo Rivera, host on E! TV, a correspondent on the syndicated show Extra, a commentator on the KTLA Morning News and Entertainment Tonight. He moved to Montecito 12 years ago.

Michael Hutchings Heads Down South

A

fter nearly half a century in Santa Barbara, culinary wizard Michael Hutchings, 70, and his pastry chef wife, Christine Dahl, are conjuring up a whole new menu for their lives, retiring and relocating to Charleston, South Carolina, I can exclusively reveal.

Michael, who appeared on The Inn Crowd on KEYT-TV for five years, taping more than 100 episodes, and owned Michael’s Waterside for ten years until 1993, has two of his five adult children and six of 14 grandchildren in the area.

“We have purchased a lovely home on a lagoon full of birds and other

MISCELLANY Page 184

Chef Michael Hutchings retiring after nearly half a century in Santa Barbara

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MONTECITO JOURNAL

“America is my country and Paris is my hometown.” – Gertrude Stein

30 January – 6 February 2020

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30 January – 6 February 2020

• The Voice of the Village •

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1 4 7 0 E A S T V A L L E Y R O A D MONTECITO, CA • (805) 695-0220

LETTERS

TO THE EDITOR

If you have something you think Montecito should know about, or wish to respond to something you read in the Journal, we want to hear from you. Please send all such correspondence to: Montecito Journal, Letters to the Editor, 1206 Coast Village Circle, Suite H, Montecito, CA. 93108. You can also FAX such mail to: (805) 969-6654, or E-mail to letters@montecitojournal.net

Inaugural Event a Success

C

ongratulations to the Montecito Journal on a very successful and well attended 1st District Supervisor Debate. The evening was informative, professional, well organized, and even had some humor sprinkled in. Although free to those of us in the audience, I’m confident that even with the support from the Montecito Association, the Santa Barbara Foundation and KCRW, the event was not free for the Montecito Journal to produce. Thank you very much for giving back to the community with this important, relevant presentation, and I look forward to attending more Montecito Journal events in the future!

Mary Kirkhart Montecito

A Vote for Capps

Our 1st District County Supervisorial race is being characterized by certain advocates as one in which an experi-

enced incumbent with a long record of accomplishments is being challenged by a newcomer without experience who might not even be a serious candidate. However, an examination of the factual record, particularly the incumbent’s record since the Cannabis sativa behemoth blew into Santa Barbara County just two years ago, belies this scenario.

Both incumbent Supervisor Das Williams and challenger Laura Capps are experienced public servants who grew up steeped in local politics. One gained experience in the rough-andtumble of city, state, and county offices while the other practically had progressive politics served nightly on her dinner plate, received a top education at Berkeley and at the London School of Economics, and finally spent a decade crafting legislation at the highest levels of the federal government, in both the executive and legislative branches. The

LETTERS Page 384

1 4 7 0 E A S T V A L L E Y R O A D MONTECITO, CA • (805) 695-0220

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30 January – 6 February 2020

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30 January – 6 February 2020

• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

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This Week in and around Montecito

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 4 Senior Experts Book Signing Local authors Marisa Pasquini and Catherine Callahan will be signing their books and speaking about aging, health care and dementia care.

Catherine Callahan is the author of YOU Can Do It: Tools to Better Manage Your Healthcare. Marisa Pasquini is the author of Surviving Dementia Without Losing Your Mind.

When: 7:00-8:00 pm Where: Chaucer’s Bookstore, 3321 State Street

(If you have a Montecito event, or an event that concerns Montecito, please e-mail newseditor@montecitojournal.net or call (805) 565-1860) THURSDAY, JANUARY 30 Tech Help Sessions Reserve a 30-minute session with library staff for help with basic computer skills (email or internet), downloadable library materials, and the Black Gold App When: 10 am to 12 pm Where: Montecito Library, 1469 East Valley Road Appointments: (805) 969-5063 Knit ‘N Needle Fiber art crafts (knitting, crochet, embroidery, and more) drop-in and meetup for all ages at Montecito Library When: 2 pm to 3:30 pm Where: 1469 East Valley Road Info: 969-5063 FRIDAY, JANUARY 31 Ennisbrook Birdwatching Walk Interested parties are welcome to meet at the Montecito Water District utility building on San Leandro at 9 am on Friday, January 31. They ought to wear comfortable walking shoes and bring a pair of binoculars. The walk will be led

by Montecito resident and SB Audubon member Peter Thompson. The walk will last approximately 1 1/2 hrs.

When: 9 am Where: Montecito Water District utility building on San Leandro Lane and Tiburon Bay Lane Info: Geoffrey Slaff at gfslaff@gmail.com Spanish Conversation Group at the Montecito Library The Montecito Library hosts a Spanish Conversation Group. The group is for anyone interested in practicing and improving conversational skills in Spanish. Participants should be familiar with the basics.

When: 1 pm to 2:30 pm Where: Montecito Library, 1469 East Valley Road Info: 969-5063 Tech Help Sessions Reserve a 30-minute session with library staff for help with basic computer skills (email or internet), downloadable library materials, and the Black Gold App When: 3 pm to 5 pm Where: Montecito Library, 1469 East Valley Road Appointments: (805) 969-5063 WEDNESDAY, FEBRARY 5 Growing a Medicinal Herb Garden Join Alena Steen to learn the basics of building a home medicine garden.

Alena will describe how to prepare your garden space and select a diversity of plants to grow for many different uses (anxiety, sleeplessness, wound-healing, digestion, etc.), as well as how to care for your garden through the seasons.

When: 7 pm Where: Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, 909 North La Cumbre Road Info: www.sbchs.org

yourself and others manage stress and pain, reduce anxiety, improve sleep, mood, balance, and stamina.

When: Friday-Sunday, 8:30 am – 5 pm each day Where: Carpinteria Woman’s Club, 1059 Vallecito Road, Carpinteria Info: healerwithinfoundation.org Farmers Market When: 8 to 11:15 am Where: south side of Coast Village Rd Wine & Cheese Tasting Complimentary wine and cheese tasting at Montecito Village Grocery When: 3:30 to 5:30 pm Where: 1482 East Valley Road SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7-9 Tai Chi EasyTM Certification Training This three-day training empowers individuals to learn for themselves – and share with others – compelling, fun, and accessible evidence-based selfcare practices. Tai Chi EasyTM blends a simple medical Qigong technique with carefully chosen Tai Chi exercises that can be done in bed, while seated, in a stationary standing position, or combined with Tai Chi Walking. Help

Navigating the End Expo Kimberly C. Paul, a nationally acclaimed author/speaker and host of ‘Death by Design’ Podcast, is the keynote speaker of the annual Navigating the End Expo. Panel discussions and workshops with local experts answer end-of-life questions from legal, financial and hospice, to funeral options.

When: 10 am-4 pm Where: Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara, 1535 Santa Barbara St. SB Piano Boys This classical piano duo are brothers who have been performing all around Montecito, Santa Barbara, and Goleta since they were nine years old. They’ve played for SB Chamber Orchestra, SB Youth Opera, Music Academy MERIT Program,

M on t e c i to Tid e G u id e Day Low Hgt High Thurs, Jan 30 1:10 AM Fri, Jan 31 1:51 AM Sat, Feb 1 2:39 AM Sun, Feb 2 3:34 AM Mon, Feb 3 4:31 AM Tues, Feb 4 5:24 AM Wed, Feb 5 6:12 AM Thurs, Feb 6 12:38 AM 2.4 6:57 AM Fri, Feb 7 1:25 AM 2.1 7:40 AM

10 MONTECITO JOURNAL

Hgt Low 3.9 6:45 AM 4 8:04 AM 4.1 9:50 AM 4.3 11:22 AM 4.5 12:20 PM 4.9 1:03 PM 5.4 1:41 PM 5.8 2:17 PM 6.3 2:53 PM

Hgt 2.3 2.3 2 1.5 0.7 0.1 -0.5 -1 -1.5

High 12:17 PM 1:16 PM 3:06 PM 5:40 PM 7:06 PM 7:49 PM 8:22 PM 8:53 PM 9:24 PM

Hgt Low 3.6 6:55 PM 3 7:27 PM 2.5 8:09 PM 2.5 9:16 PM 2.6 10:38 PM 3.1 11:45 PM 3.4 3.6 3.4

“France has more need of me than I have need of France.” - Napoleon Bonaparte

Hgt 1.1 1.6 2.1 2.4 2.6 2.6

1st Thursday, SOhO, and more.

When: 6:00pm Where: Cambridge Drive Community Church, 550 Cambridge Drive, Goleta Santa Barbara Music Club This afternoon’s program features several performers and composers from or working in Santa Barbara. Pianist Robert Else features three works by Santa Barbara composer Hal Isbitz: Caterina, Dolores, and Tulsey Town Rag. Next, Leslie Hogan will premiere her own new solo piano work. Finally, flutist Tracy Harris and pianist Svetlana Harris feature a collection of varied pieces, including Ronda Larsen’s Be Still My Soul; the world premiere of Dancing Wings by Todd Harris; and Joachim Andersen’s Scherzino.

When: 3 pm Where: Santa Barbara Public Library’s Faulkner Gallery, 40 East Anapamu Admission: Free The Santa Barbara Republican Club Monthly Luncheon The speaker will be Stephen Frank, a full-time political consultant. Mr. Frank is the publisher of California News & Reviews and is a regular guest on several radio shows each week. His topic is: What Can We Expect in the 2020 Election? Anyone interested in politics and elections (or even just a great lunch) is invited to attend When: 11:30 am Where: La Cumbre Country Club, 4015 Via Laguna Info: call Barbara at 805-684-3858 Sedgwick Reserve Public Hike Our docent guides will lead multiple levels of hikes to accommodate a diversity of abilities while offering insights into the unique geologic history, flora, and fauna of our spectacular Reserve. In addition to our hikes, we will offer a wildlife viewing on Saturday morning. Join some of our legendary “Wednesday Birders” for an easy natural history stroll around the historic Sedgwick ranch headquarters.

When: Check-in at 8:30 am Where: Sedgwick Reserve, 3566 Brinkerhoff Avenue, Santa Ynez Info: sedgwick.nrs.ucsb.edu •MJ 30 January – 6 February 2020

“TO BE OR NOT TO BE” . . . IS NOT THE QUESTION

Hear from one of the world’s most important thinkers

T

his article was to alert you “why big trees fall over because of wind, rain and fungus, and how you can prevent it.” But then I figured, if you have a large stump or roots in your front yard now, you don’t need me to tell you what you should have done.

So I’m going to write about problems coming up. Yes, avocados should be cut back hard to encourage interior growth, but any dead wood left on the tree is detrimental, and of course painting the end of the cut with black tree paint is very harmful.

Eugenia hedges should be sprayed and deep irrigated to fight off the syllid. (A spray license is required by the agriculture commissioner).

Sycamores are in very serious trouble unless they get a leaf system soon. How do you encourage that to happen? Call and we’ll talk.

And last, because of the very cold winter, fruit trees are going to be prolific. You may think that’s good, but do you really want 10,000 plums, apricots, and peaches, etc., etc., on your trees?

What should you do, and when should you do it?

That is the question.

DA N I E L K A HN E MA N

Website is tlctrees.net THE MASTER OF TREE SOLVING PROBLEMS

TLC TREES Gene Tyburn

CE

RTIFIED

Certified Arborist for 40 years

969-4057 genetyburn@yahoo.com

A

RB

ORIS

T

Friday, March 6, 2020, 7-9 a.m.

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THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:

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Lead Sponsor:

Gold Sponsors: Canterbury Consulting | Davies Public Affairs Union Bank | Santa Barbara Capital | HUB International Insurance Services La Arcada | V3 Printing | MATT Construction Lindsay and Laurie Parton | Peter and Monique Thorrington Warren and Mary Lynn Staley | In Memory of Jim Haslem

30 January – 6 February 2020

• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

11

Village Beat

by Kelly Mahan Herrick

Kelly has been editor at large for the Journal since 2007, reporting on news in Montecito and beyond. She is also a licensed realtor with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, and is a member of Montecito and Santa Barbara’s top real estate team, Calcagno & Hamilton.

First District Supervisor Debate

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t was standing room only on Monday, January 27, at Music Academy of the West’s Hahn Hall for the Montecito Journal Media Group’s inaugural event: the First District Supervisor Debate. Incumbent Das Williams and challenger Laura Capps faced off to answer several questions formulated by MJ CEO Gwyn Lurie and KCRW host and reporter Jonathan Bastian, followed by questions from nine leaders from various community organizations.

Supervisor Williams took office in January 2017, after serving in the California State Assembly for the previous six years. He also served for seven years on the Santa Barbara City Council, as well as served as a trustee for Peabody Charter School.

Capps is a current member of the Santa Barbara School Board, and also serves on the board of the Community Environmental Council and Planned Parenthood Action Fund. She was a

senior aide to democratic presidential candidate John Kerry from 20032004, and has been involved with the democratic party for decades.

Her parents, Lois Capps and Walter Capps, both served in the House of Representatives.

Capps said she decided to run against Williams in the upcoming March election because she feels that the County Board of Supervisors is not moving in the right direction, citing issues with cannabis regulation, homelessness, poverty, campaign finance, and lack of action on climate change. “I’m doing this because I believe so strongly that we need a change in leadership,” she said.

Capps accused Williams of underregulating the cannabis industry in Carpinteria, and of taking campaign contributions from cannabis farm operators. “It’s an ethics line,” she

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©2020 Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties (BHHSCP) is a member of the franchise system of BHH Affiliates LLC. BHH Affiliates LLC and BHHSCP do not guarantee accuracy of all data including measurements, conditions, and features of property. Information is obtained from various sources and will not be verified by broker or MLS. Buyer is advised to independently verify the accuracy of that information.

30 January – 6 February 2020

• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

13

Seen Around Town

Crab Fest for CALM

by Lynda Millner

CEO for CALM Alana Walczak, co-chairs of the Crab Fest Jane Metiu and Sharon Curry, and auxiliary president Roberta Collier CALM board chair Liam Murphy, Carolyn Murphy, former CEO Cecilia Rodriguez, trustee Mike Gilson, and previous board chair Nancy Bollay

C

ALM (Child Abuse Listening Mediation) held its inaugural event, a Crab Fest, at the Carriage & Western Art Museum.

Everyone “got crackin’” dressed in casual western attire and ready to attack those crabs.

After wine time the sold-out crowd set down to tables covered with brown paper and bibs and a cracking tool. The crabs had been barbequed outside and brought in on huge platters, looking like a picture from a

gourmet cookbook. The premier sponsor was the Harbor Restaurant and they and their staff had prepared the family-style dinner. There was Caesar salad, pasta salad, and of course the crabs and melted butter. The evening honored the late Meredith Scott whose husband, John, owns the Harbor Restaurant. As Sharon Bifano said, “She was an angel to all of us.”

CEO Alana Walczak told us “Our CALM was the first in the country to try to prevent child abuse. We were

Ms Millner is the author of The Magic Makeover, Tricks for Looking Thinner, Younger and More Confident – Instantly. If you have an event that belongs in this column, you are invited to call Lynda at 969-6164.

trail blazers fifty years ago.” Locally they are now in 12 elementary schools, 32 learning centers and are entering into pediatric clinics.

This was all begun thanks to one woman, Claire Miles, who was a nurse. Her husband was a doctor and

at work she would see cases of child abuse. One in particular caught her attention when the baby died of injuries. The young father didn’t know how to make the baby stop crying and he shook the baby to death.

Claire had a telephone line installed in their home with strict orders to her children not to answer it. She received 40 calls the first month in 1970 and as they say, “The rest is history.”

There is an active auxiliary of 50 ladies who work all year around to raise funds for CALM (Child Abuse Listening Mediation). If you’d like to

SEEN Page 164

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SEEN (Continued from page 14) ,

reif conducts

tchaikovsky & mozart

PR for the Crab Fest D’Arcy Cornwall and emcee Tony Morris

february 15 + 16 | 2020 Christian Reif, C O N D U C T O R Thomas Mesa, C E L L O Michael Gilbertson: Graffiti: Concerto for Chamber Orchestra Tchaikovsky: Rococo Variations, Op. 33 Mozart: Overture to La Clemenza di Tito, K.621 Mozart: Symphony No. 39 in E-flat major, K.543 German-born, wunderkind conductor Christian Reif joins the Symphony after completing a three-year post as Resident Conductor of the San Francisco Symphony.

Reif will lead the orchestra through Michael Gilbertson’s Graffiti, followed by Tchaikovsky’s stunningly brilliant Variations on a Rococo Theme performed by charismatic cellist Thomas Mesa.

Reif and the orchestra return for a final set featuring the fresh elegance of Mozart’s Overture to La Clemenza di Tito and the timeless, captivating Symphony No. 39.

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beethoven’s 250th birthday celebration may 16 + 17, 2020

know more you can contact calmauxiliary @gmail.com. Or consider attending their next fund raiser which is “Courage & Resilience: An Afternoon with Elizabeth Smart” Saturday March 28 at 3 p.m. at the Granada Theatre.

Endangered by AB5

In case you’re wondering why I missed my first column in 25 years last week, it’s because of a new law passed by the state of California. If I’m not a full-time employee of the Montecito Journal, I’m only allowed to write 35 columns a year, not my usual 52. Few small papers can afford to take on additional employees. Even many large dailies are cutting out freelancers. Seems like newspapers are having enough trouble these days without adding another state law. Just saying. I’ll be writing three columns a month instead of four unless things change.

Brad Pitt Tribute

Nir Kabaretti, C O N D U C T O R Alessio Bax, P I A N O Full list of guest artists on our website!

805-899-2222 | thesymphony.org

16 MONTECITO JOURNAL

A jail bird at the Carriage Museum for the Crab Fest

It had to be the biggest night ever for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) and I’ve been to all 34. This was the evening they honored Brad Pitt with the Maltin Modern Master Award. As I approached the

“The French are a logical race.” - Anita Loos

Arlington Theatre the street had been blocked off and there were solid people clear across the street to the opposite sidewalk. They didn’t have tickets but wanted to watch Brad arrive, some in hopes of an autograph and others to see him walk the red carpet.

Other lines were for ticket holders and press passes like mine. I arranged to be there when the doors opened at 7 pm so I could sit in the front row to take photos. The theatre was sold out and excitement palpable. Leonard Maltin returned for his 29th year to moderate the evening. SBIFF executive director Roger Durling welcomed all. I always remember about 20 years ago when Roger had a coffee shop, the French Bulldog, in Summerland and my husband Don and I were some of his first customers. When he volunteered to take over the SBIFF it was the perfect match. He has the biggest passion for film I could imagine and an uncanny eye for what’s going to show up at the Oscars.

Brad’s latest is Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood.

Leonard interviewed Brad in between film clips of his work including Thelma & Louise. I remember gasping in wonder at this hunk in a film that I had never seen before. Brad told us that he was from Missouri and had gone to the University there but dropped out to move to Los Angeles.

“Within a week I was working as an extra. You can’t get into SAG (Screen Actors Guild) unless you have a line and you can’t have a line unless you are in SAG.” He tried a line on his own and the director told him if he did that again he’d be thrown off the set. After about a year and a half he got a part.

Our local Jeff Bridges helped me get into SAG when the director didn’t tell me what to say. That was way back in 1981 when Cutter’s Way was being filmed in Santa Barbara.

The audience was even more with Brad when he confessed, “You guys don’t know this, but I hang out here a lot. I have been in Goleta since 1999.”

Big groans when he admitted he had turned down The Matrix but wouldn’t tell what others.

Director David Fincher who worked with Pitt in the acclaimed films Seven, Fight Club, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button presented Brad with the award, saying, “You just roll the camera and be. And this is the gift to your film that Brad Pitt brings.

He form-fits his characters to the overall narrative. So few people have been good at this. People like Bogart, Cary Grant or Jimmy Stewart or Paul Newman. They exist on celluloid in a way that mere mortals can’t. They are movie stars. And this is one of them,” as he pointed to Brad.

Pitt responded eloquently and

SEEN Page 334 30 January – 6 February 2020

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30 January – 6 February 2020

• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

17

MISCELLANY (Continued from page 6)

Proudly serving the Santa Barbara community for 24 years LYNDA J. BENEDETTO, DDS GREGORY M. SCARCELLO, DDS CRISTOPHER SHEPARD, DMD

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wildlife which reminds me of the Bird Refuge in Santa Barbara where my restaurant was located,” says Michael, who worked in Paris, Monaco, and London, where he was a chef at Le Gavroche, Britain’s first three-starred Michelin eatery and an old favorite of mine.

“In fact, we can catch shrimp and local crab from our back porch. I look forward to mastering the southern BBQ and exploring the food tradition of the Low Country.”

The couple plan on still being active in the food community of Charleston, given son-in-law Clint Wood manages a country club and has already planned a Julia Child tribute dinner, a nod to Michael’s friendship with the late Montecito chef, whose TV show Dinner at Julia’s he worked and appeared on.

“We look forward to exploring the East Coast and lots of grandkid time!” adds Michael. “Proximity to Europe means we will be off to Spain, France, and Italy on cultural and culinary journeys.”

Current plans are to continue his popular cooking show on Cox cable, The Santa Barbara Chef, which will also start airing on Amazon Prime later in February.

Michael, who also ran food operations at the Santa Barbara Polo Club and was Chef de Cuisine at the Olive Mill Bistro, has worked with innumerable charities here, including Girls Inc., the Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, Camerata Pacifica, The Music Academy of the West, the Museum of Art, and the Santa Barbara Rescue Mission.

“We will miss our adopted hometown,” concludes Michael. “Santa Barbara has been a wonderful place to raise a family, build a career and enjoy the unique lifestyle on the Central Coast. Cooking in paradise was fueled by an abundance of great products from local farms and the ocean.”

Bon voyage – and bon appétit!

Celebrating Perlman Legendary violinist Itzhak Perlman, who has appeared in Santa Barbara many times over the years for CAMA

Offered at $2,275,000

and UCSB Arts & Lectures, celebrated this 75th birthday at the soldout Granada for Stories of His Life and Career, accompanied by pianist Rohan de Silva.

The charming two-hour A&L retrospective, which traced his career from a 13-year-old living in Tel Aviv, Israel, to his 1958 debut on the Ed Sullivan Show, the 60th anniversary of that milestone which he celebrated with a return to the same Manhattan theater in November, 2018, now occupied by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Perlman, who has garnered 16 Grammys, a National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, recounted his fascinating life with period photos from his impoverished childhood and more recent videos from his many international appearances, including with singer John Denver and “singing” with the late Luciano Pavarotti.

He was helped down memory lane by his wife, Toby, also a classically trained violinist and fellow teacher at Juilliard in New York, as they recounted his Carnegie Hall debut in 1963. But there were unfortunately no reviews because of a newspaper strike!

Perlman ended his musical discourse with the moving John Williams-composed theme from the Steven Spielberg 1993 movie Schindler’s List.

Just 72 hours later, at another UCSB Arts & Lectures show, New York’s 94-year-old Martha Graham Dance Company, staged The Eve Project, celebrating women and the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment The beautiful five work program, which kicked off with Justin Scholar’s film Eve Forging, followed

by Graham’s 1948 piece Diversion of Angels, her 1933 work Ekstasis and her 1947 piece Errand into the Maze.

The concert concluded with 2007’s Lamentation Variations, choreographed

by Aszure Barton, Liz Gerring, and Michelle Dorrance, which commemorated the anniversary of 9/11, and Chronicle, a 1936 Graham piece.

MISCELLANY Page 364 Itzhak Perlman, wife Toby Perlman, and event sponsor Sara Miller McCune (photo by Isaac Hernandez)

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18 MONTECITO JOURNAL

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©2019 Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties (BHHSCP) is a member of the franchise system of BHH affiliates LLC. BHH Affiliates LLC and BHHSCP do not guarantee accuracy of all data including measurements, conditions, and features of property. Information is obtained from various sources and will not be verified by broker or MLS. Buyer is advised to independently verify the accuracy of that information.

30 January – 6 February 2020

• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

19

ON THE RECORD

Nicholas Schou

Nicholas Schou is an award-winning investigative journalist and author of several books, including Orange Sunshine and Kill the Messenger, his writing has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Newsweek, The Atlantic, and other fine publications. If you have tips or stories about Montecito, please email him at newseditor@montecitojournal.net.

Bob Easton Montecito’s Whole Earth Architect

Robert Easton at his office in the Upper Village

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20 MONTECITO JOURNAL

ver the decades since he became a highly successful architect, Bob Easton has constructed custom design homes for a litany of celebrities – everyone from Barbara Streisand, Jane Fonda, Michael Douglas and Michael J. Fox to Joe Cocker, Barry Manilow, Mike Love and Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys – even Charo of “Cuchi-Cuchi” and Fantasy Island fame.

But Easton, 80, whose office is located in Montecito’s Upper Village, is also known for his high visibility historical preservation projects, including the Montecito Country Club, which he completed in 2000, and the 120-yearold Craftsman-style All Saints-bythe-Sea Episcopalian Church. In 2018, after a contractor discovered that the church lacked any substantial bracing or even a foundation below the façade, Easton won a contract to restore the church.

It was a good thing that the contractor peeked underneath the building, Easton says. “We got ahold of the original drawings and it didn’t tell us there was much bracing that was done,” he explains, meaning the building was vulnerable to a collapse in the event of a strong earthquake. “The whole front of the

“Everything ends this way in France... everything is a pretext for a good dinner.” - Jean Anouilh

church facing the street was not on any foundation, just piled on stones,” he continues. “If there had been a big quake while people were sitting in a service, there would have been some real trouble.”

Work commenced on February 1 of last year. Easton’s first move: restore the church’s bell tower. The more difficult work involved rebuilding the church’s wooden framing. “The precious part of the building is the roof and the framing of the roof structure inside, which was in terrible shape,” Easton says, estimating that construction might be completed by this July. “Keep your fingers crossed,” he added by way of caveat.

“There is a very busy construction industry right now, so the scheduling is tough.”

Archery and Architecture

The fact that Easton became an architect to the stars and a prominent historical renovator comes as little surprise the more one knows about his family roots. Easton’s great-grandfather was a cabinet maker and undertaker from Edinburgh, Scotland who emigrated to San Francisco with his 30 January – 6 February 2020

1919–2019/20

All Saints-by-the-Sea’s bell tower restored to its original glory

Easton’s Domebook 2 chronicled the hippie homebuilding movement

A 15-year project by Easton and his friend, Peter Nabokov

brother in the 1830s. The family’s dual profession was no coincidence, Easton says. “Undertakers were also the cabinet makers back in those days because they made the coffins.”

In San Francisco, the Easton brothers became very successful in designing and selling roll-top desks, so much so that they were ultimately able to purchase the entire city block where their factory was located downtown, between Third and Fourth avenues and Mission and Market streets. “They sold it three years before the [1906] earthquake and fire,” Bob Easton

says, smiling. “Otherwise I probably wouldn’t be sitting here now.”

Easton’s father, James D. Easton, brought the family’s fortune to new heights, but it all started with a teenage hunting accident that nearly ended his life. While hunting on the family’s ranch in Northern California, James accidentally dropped his rifle, which discharged, wounding him in both legs. He spent nine months recovering in the hospital, during which time he read, courtesy of his father, a copy of a

ON THE RECORD Page 224

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21

ON THE RECORD (Continued from page 21)

Easton at age 50, circa 1990

recently published how-to guide for hunting, Native American-style.

Hunting with the Bow and Arrow’s author was Dr. Saxton Temple Pope, the doctor assigned to monitor the health of Ishi, the last surviving chief of the Northern Californian Yahi tribe.

Before he perished from tuberculosis, Ishi taught Pope everything he knew about bow and arrow hunting, which led Pope to popularize archery as a competitive sport.

“My father was living down near Santa Cruz,” says Easton. “When he got out of the hospital he went up to San Francisco and studied with Dr. Pope.” James competed in the fledgling National Archery Association.

Meanwhile, he designed the ultimate performance arrow that would come to dominate the sport. “My father was a real artist,” argues Easton. “He developed the idea of a very high precision aluminum tubing for arrows which is still used today.”

After World War Two, when the U.S. government ended its monopoly on aluminum, James Easton branched out from aluminum arrows to ski

Montecito Country Club’s original tower Like father, like son, Easton, circa 1951

poles and other sporting devices. In the 1960s, his son, Bob’s older brother James L. Easton, expanded the family business into baseball bats and hockey sticks; both products have long been household names and remain in mass production today.

Growing up in the racially diverse Arlington Heights neighborhood of post-war central Los Angeles, Easton became fascinated with both architecture and other cultures. After completing a few drafting classes in high school, Easton designed his first building for an architect at age 16.

“Then I partied for a couple of years at USC and had some fun,” Easton recalls, laughing.

Without bothering to graduate, Easton flew to Honolulu to work for a designer-builder of custom houses. After a few years, he returned to California. His studies at UC Berkeley ended with the 1965 Free Speech Movement. “It was nuts,” Easton recalls. “Nobody was paying attention

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to anything in school.”

Heading south in search of work, Easton built a house for a psychiatrist in Big Sur who had the untimely misfortune of driving off a cliff on Highway 1. Easton left California to attend architecture school in London.

“For a while,” he clarifies. “I never finished school. I have four years of college, but I don’t have a degree in anything. I was a smart ass.”

Dharma at Big Sur

If Big Sur is where Easton’s architecture career had seemingly stalled, it was also the location of its reincarnation. In 1967, Easton, who was living in the area, accompanied his friends Lloyd Kahn and Stewart Brand to the seaside Esalen Institute to hear a talk by the visionary architect and designer of the geodesic dome house, Buckminster Fuller. A camera crew set up their lighting equipment and recording devices before a crowd of 20 people. But two or three minutes into the talk, a passing storm took out the power. “So they took out some candles and he turned into a very grandfatherly, charming person from this technology nut which we all thought he was,” Easton recalls. “He turned into a human being. That meeting was really the genesis for the Whole Earth Catalog.”

Frank Lloyd Wright, not Fuller, was the primary inspiration for architects of Easton’s generation. “He talked about organic architecture, how architecture should look natural and grow

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“I cannot prevent the French from being French.” - Charles de Gaulle

out of the ground,” Easton explains.

“And then Bucky Fuller came along with the technological concept of the dome. I was interested in Bucky Fuller because he asked, ‘Why can’t we make the world work?’”

After following Fuller around for a while and listening to his lectures, Easton and his friends sought to implement Fuller’s ideas, each according to their abilities. “I really appreciated what Stewart Brand was doing; he was really ahead of the whole tech movement. It was fun, on the one hand, to have the skills and be trained as a classic architect, but also to be in the whole counterculture with regard to building and being part of the times.”

Easton’s friend Brand had come up with the idea for the Whole Earth Catalog after hearing about a rumored photograph taken from outer space which for the first time in human history showed the tiny, vulnerable, blue and white home planet in its entirety.

In 1968, the year after Fuller’s appearance at Esalen, Brand published his masterpiece manual – the first do-ityourself-style guide to global citizenship ever published.

The Whole Earth Catalog inspired an entire generation of Americans and others abroad to eschew the concept of a corporate-dominated society; it has been republished dozens of times in many languages all around the world. In 1969, along with his friend Kahn, and with help from Brand, who lent him his design facility, Easton published Domebook 1 and Domebook 2.

The two volumes documented the DIY teepee and dome-building experience, much of which was taking place off the grid or in hippie communes, featuring a wealth of black and white photography as well as lettering and logos designed by Easton. Priced at $4, Domebook 2 sold hundreds of thousands of copies. “Time magazine made a big deal out of it,” Easton recalls, “which helped us a lot.”

In 1973, Easton and Kahn published Shelter; the title a nod to the Rolling Stones song “Gimme Shelter.” This volume, translated into Spanish, French, and Japanese, has sold some 300,000 copies. “It was a combination of history and documenting the hippie building experience,” says

ON THE RECORD Page 264

WENDY GRAGG 805. 453. 3371

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30 January – 6 February 2020

Brilliant Thoughts

by Ashleigh Brilliant Born London, 1933. Mother Canadian. Father a British civil servant. World War II childhood spent mostly in Toronto and Washington, D.C. Berkeley PhD. in American History, 1964. Living in Santa Barbara since 1973. No children.

Best-known for his illustrated epigrams, called “Pot-Shots”, now a series of 10,000.

Email ashleigh@west.net or visit www.ashleighbrilliant.com

Hair Today

W

hy is so much hair wanted where it isn’t, and not wanted where it is? Many of our ideas of beauty, of grooming – even of sexuality – are hair-related. It’s one of the things we have in common with our fellow mammals. (Many non-mammals – even some insects – may appear fuzzy – but, anatomically speaking, it’s not real hair.)

As in numerous other cases, our thoughts about hair can often be traced back to the Bible. According to Genesis, Esau, one of two brothers who were contending for their blind father’s blessing, happened to be hairier than his sibling, Jacob. Since the father (Isaac) could feel, but not see, Jacob “disguised” himself as Esau by covering his smooth skin with goatskin, and thus successfully deceived Isaac.

Then, the Book of Judges tells the story of Samson, who had enormous strength, which somehow resided in his hair. And when deceitful enemies rendered him shorn, he was in their power.

It was only when his hair began to grow again that he had the power to bring down the temple of the Philistines.

It has always seemed remarkable to me that, judging from their sculpture, most ancient Roman males were clean-shaven – although the methods and implements they used must have been extremely primitive by modern standards. (They called savage outsiders “barbarians” from their word

“barb,” meaning beard. Incidentally, the name “Barbara” also derives from the same root.)

Even today, however, without some kind of expensive and arduous surgery to stop their hair from growing, most men in our culture are doomed to a regular, often daily, shaving ritual – a fact which, a century ago, made a fortune for a man named King Camp Gillette, whose marketing innovation was to sell razors cheaply, but sell separately the blades, which had to be frequently replaced.

I personally have chosen to forego that badge, or penalty, of masculinity, and been bearded for most of my adult life. I fear an original incentive may have been a thoughtless remark by my father. He was in general a mild-mannered man, but once, when, for some reason, he was angry at me, he told me I had “a weak chin.”

(Ironically, on the occasion of a subsequent confrontation, I was bearing that criticism in mind, when he said, “Don’t you jut your chin out at me!”)

So, when I was able to grow a beard, I did. My father himself had a moustache, and, in his later years, people used to tell him he looked like Groucho Marx.

Speaking of resemblances, my own beard marked me out, as a young man, from most of my contemporaries, and, in 1959, which was the year of revolution in Cuba, l was often

semi-mockingly called “Fidel Castro.”

Hair color is of course one of its most important properties, especially in women, and we are bombarded with legend and lore that redheads are fiery, that men dream of a Jeannie with light brown hair, or that they prefer blondes. But eventually there comes the appearance of “silver threads among the gold.”

Hair is also, for better or worse, a matter of race. The Japanese, for example, nearly all have black hair, and tend to have very little facial hair. Some people of African descent tend to have kinky hair, and fortunes have been made selling them hair-straighteners.

est in hair, a fashion should have arisen for elaborate wigs, worn especially by men. This custom prevailed so enduringly that, until only recently, British judges and barristers were required to wear wigs in court.

And what about Religion? The Jewish faith endorses plentiful beards for men – and even boys are encouraged to let their sidelocks grow – but it wants women’s hair discretely hidden. Islam has similar permissions and restraints. Buddhists are fairly free hair-wise, unless they’re monks, who are enjoined to shave their heads, in order to discourage vanity. Christians also shave – although Jesus is general-

My own beard marked me out, as a young man, from most of my contemporaries, and, in 1959, which was the year of revolution in Cuba, l was often semi-mockingly called “Fidel Castro.”

Speaking of fortunes, hair products in general must constitute a huge proportion of national consumer expenditure. And what we don’t spend on ourselves, we spend on our pets, particularly on our furry cats.

It seems ironical that in certain societies, such as that of England, which have shown comparatively little inter-

ly depicted with a beard. (After all, he was a Jew.) As for the future – in practically every science-fiction portrayal of future humans I’ve seen – not to mention humanoid aliens – they appear to be hairless. In which case, our destiny is clear: Hair today – gone tomorrow.

•MJ

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Contributors Scott Craig, Julia Rodgers, Ashleigh Brilliant, Sigrid Toye, Zach Rosen, Kim Crail Gossip Richard Mineards • History Hattie Beresford • Humor Ernie Witham Our Town Joanne A. Calitri Society Lynda Millner • Travel Jerry Dunn • Sportsman Dr. John Burk • Trail Talk Lynn P. Kirst Account Managers Sue Brooks, Tanis Nelson • Bookkeeping Diane Davidson • Proofreading Helen Buckley Design/Production Trent Watanabe Published by Montecito Journal Media Group, LLC PRINTED BY NPCP INC., SANTA BARBARA, CA Montecito Journal is compiled, compounded, calibrated, cogitated over, and coughed up every Wednesday by an exacting agglomeration of excitable (and often exemplary) expert edifiers at 1206 Coast Village Circle, Suite H, Montecito, CA 93108.

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30 January – 6 February 2020

• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

25

ON THE RECORD (Continued from page 22)

Easton. “I designed the whole book in six months, did the logo and some of the drawings, and came up with the phrase ‘Shelter is More than a Roof Overhead.’”

While not building custom homes, Easton spent almost all of his free time between 1975 and 1990 working on Native American Architecture with his anthropologist friend Peter Nabokov, a professor at UCLA and a nephew of a Vladimir Nabokov, the famed Lolita and Pale Fire author. So far, Native American Architecture has sold 35,000 copies and it remains in print today.

“It was a great experience working with Oxford Press and we won an American Institute of Architects award for the book, which I am very proud of,” says Easton. “We covered everything north of the Mexican border.”

Building and Rebuilding

Easton moved to Montecito at an inopportune time for an aspiring architect: the late 1960s. After getting a loan from his father, he purchased land in Montecito and began building a spec house with the intention of flipping the property and launching his business. But then the big storm of 1969 caused both flooding and a debris flow that wiped out the San Ysidro bridge. “It was like a mini version of the debris flow from a couple of years ago,” Easton recalls.

“The flow took out houses in the Glen Oaks area. That was fifty years ago; people forget.”

For six weeks, Easton had no choice but to watch his unfinished house laying vacant up the hill until the bridge could be repaired. “As I was finishing the house and was putting it on the market, there was the oil spill, it was terrible publicity for Santa Barbara,” he says. “People quit moving to Santa Barbara. So I moved into

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26 MONTECITO JOURNAL

Easton and Lloyd Kahn’s bestselling book, Shelter

The club’s original entrance, with visible deterioration

the spec house and started designing houses and that was the takeoff for my architectural career.”

Easton’s first remodel job: Montecito’s Old Firehouse on East Valley Road, a handsome, deteriorating structure from the 1930s that had been purchased by one of his clients.

“It was a masonry building and had to be earthquaked,” he says. “We turned it into offices.” After finishing the work, Easton moved his office into the building, where he stayed for a dozen years before moving down the street to his current suite.

Because the remodel was on a high-visibility property, Easton landed his next major remodel gig: the Montecito Country Club, which had been built in 1922 but had fallen into disrepair after being sold to a Japanese firm in 1972. The club had gone through five different remodels over its history, benefiting from the work of such influential Santa Barbara architects as George Washington Smith.

But when Easton was hired to restore the building, much of its charm had faded. Among other things, the Spanish-style ornamental porticos framing the four windows on the building’s tower had been removed, either to make the building seem more modern, or because the heavy concrete materials posed a safety problem.

“So they made us put it back,” Easton recalls. After researching his options for recreating the club’s most visible exterior decorative feature, he found a company in Orlando, Florida that manufactured decorative pieces for Disney World and Universal City. “I resurrected the look based on the original drawings,” he continues. “They made these foam models and then glued them on the tower with resin and painted it to look like stone.”

Renovating the Montecito Country

The club, just before Easton’s renovation

Club took five years and aside from a couple of pricey but necessary extras, came in on budget at $5.5 million.

According to Easton, the structural condition of the club was in surprisingly good shape. Although the initial plan was for it to be constructed in the masonry style of the time, the builder refused, arranging instead for the purchase of a trainload of Douglas Fir and Redwood lumber from Northern California.

Because both woods are almost impervious to termites, and thanks to Santa Barbara’s mild climate, almost all the wood was still structurally sound. Just about everything else, though, was in dire need of help.

“A lot of it was just in disgusting shape,” Easton, himself a club member, says, laughing. “When we renovated the kitchen, I couldn’t imagine how they’d escaped the health department, but it was in desperate shape.”

In 2004, billionaire Ty Warner, creator of the Beanie Baby, purchased the club, and has since remodeled the interior with a mostly Moroccan theme; he also added a home theater, relocated and expanded the gym, put in a new pro shop and ocean-view bar, along with new men’s and ladies’ locker rooms.

Easton is grateful that Warner mostly left the club’s exterior alone.

“All my changes to the building were on the exterior,” Easton says. “The new entrance, the south side, the pool house, the tennis house, the pergola – that’s all intact.”

On the Art of Drawing a Straight Line

Despite being well past retirement age, Easton still works full-time as a custom homebuilder and – with the aforementioned All Saints-by-the-Sea project the most recent example – a successful historic renovator.

“France has the only two things toward which we drift as we grow older — intelligence and good manners.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald

“I have to say it is very rewarding and interesting to work in renovation because you are dealing with history and a lot of people’s feelings and attachment to certain buildings and spaces, he says. “You are dealing with a different set of parameters than when you design a new building.”

During a recent visit to his office, Easton took a break from examining the floor plans and elevations sketched out in the house plans that were rolled out on his desk. The plans pertained to his current homebuilding project: rebuilding a house in Calabasas that burned down in the Woolsey Fire.

“Typically how I work on these projects, no matter how complex they are, is I’ll develop the floor plan, the elevations, the structure, and weave that in with the electrical, the mechanical, and the plumbing – all the systems that are involved,” Easton tells me. “It’s like a complex chess game. When you do the structure, you’ve got to anticipate the lighting, where the heating goes, so it is intellectually stimulating and challenging. It’s fun to do.”

Although he is an accomplished draftsman who uses all the hardedged tools of the trade and is wellversed in the complex mathematical principles of design and construction, Easton keeps an open mind for process. In fact, he credits a Tibetan monk for finally teaching him the correct way to draw a straight line.

“To draw or paint a straight line, you always pull towards yourself, you never push way,” Easton says the monk told him.

Once in position and ready to draw, an artist must envision a vertical, open-space triangle between his or her pencil point or brush trip, “from there up to the eye and then down to the heart, then back to the starting point,” he adds. “Then you do your stroke and invariably it will be a pure stroke. All of architectural drawing and sketching is really the quality of that line and the consciousness you bring to it.”

•MJ 30 January – 6 February 2020

On Entertainment

Ernie’s World

by Steven Libowitz

Bringing Accordion into the Spotlight Accordionist Hanzhi Wang makes her Santa Barbara debut at the Music Academy of the West’s Hahn Hall on Saturday, February 1 (photo by Matt Dine)

H

anzhi Wang wasn’t born an accordion player. But it was only a few years later at age six that the young Chinese girl fell in love with the instrument when she overheard it on the soundtrack of an Italian movie. “My father was watching it and I heard the most beautiful sound I’d ever heard in my life,” Wang recalled earlier this week. “I was fascinated by what seemed to be something very unique, and I didn’t know what it was.”

Wang may not have been familiar with the accordion, but she knew how it made her feel. “It’s like it was telling a story, someone talking very kind and warmly,” she said. “It just touched me even though it was just a simple solo.”

Within a few weeks, Wang’s parents bought the budding musician a toy accordion, a colorful red box with only a few buttons for the left hand, she recalls. But the girl was smitten.

Within a couple of years, and armed with a real instrument, Wang was fooling around with folk music and polka – “the oom pah pah” and traditional songs, she said – but by 13, encouraged to follow a professional path in classical music by her teacher who noticed her exceptional talent, her parents enrolled her at the China Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, where she eventually earned a degree in the instrument.

Wang then pursued a master’s degree and Performer’s Diploma at the Royal Danish Academy of Music 30 January – 6 February 2020

Steven Libowitz has reported on the arts and entertainment for more than 30 years; he has contributed to the Montecito Journal for more than 10 years.

in Copenhagen with the renowned accordion professor Geir Draugsvoll, who recruited her after hearing her perform at a competition, telling the then 21-year-old, “The accordion needs you. Come develop your career with me.” Despite the inherent difficulties for a slender girl performing on a 32-pound instrument, one that doesn’t seem as readily controllable as, say, a piano or violin bow, Wang has become a master of her instrument.

“And you can’t see the buttons at all from either hand. You are playing basically blind,” Wang added. “But we do have the bellows, which are the soul of the accordion and let you control the intensity of how you make the sound, but it’s not easy. You have to have not only muscle memory but a brave attitude on stage, especially when jumping octaves.”

Things went very well, as Wang perfected her artistry and craft to the point where she claimed a number of competitions, and in 2017 became the first accordionist to win a cov-

ENTERTAINMENT Page 414

by Ernie Witham

Read more exciting adventures in Ernie’s World the Book and A Year in the Life of a “Working” Writer. Both available at amazon.com or erniesworld.com.

Lessons in Lifelong Learning Vistas Lifelong Learning, mentioned in this piece, is an excellent source of continuing education for adults. More information is available at vistaslifelonglearning.org

A

fter six years of high school, I figured there was nothing else to learn. (Just kidding… it only took me five years to graduate.)

But I was wrong. Soon I got a job and found I needed new skills. “So, I won’t be needing Algebra or English Lit?” “No, and you probably won’t need your gym bag either. Just the ability to properly use tools. Not to worry though, even apes have learned to use tools in nature.”

So, I worked really hard and soon I mastered the skills needed to operate high-powered machinery. “Oops.

Hey boss, the machine just grabbed my screwdriver and now there is smoke coming out of it.”

“I should have hired the primate.”

Having discovered how much fun learning new things can be, I moved to California in 1977 and decided to go back to school to become a photographer. I learned that you really need to develop your own niche to become successful and I quickly found mine. “I’m going to take a whole series of photos of me. I’m going to call them self-Es, for Ernie.

Get it?”

“That’s stupid. No one takes a bunch of photos of themselves.”

Turns out he was right. After graduation, it became obvious I might need to supplement my photography income or eat instant ramen for the rest of my life, so I decided to learn all about publishing and got an interview at a specialty magazine.

“Will I be required to figure out lighting ratios and use exposure compensation techniques?”

“No. And you can leave the tripod at home, too.”

I caught on quickly, though I did mess up the copy machine a few times. That’s when I learned one of the most valuable lessons to-date: if you screw up doing the easy stuff, they make you a manager and salt you away in an office somewhere.

But it can be boring being a manager.

So, I decided to teach myself the craft of writing in my spare time. “Is this funny?” “No.” “This?” “No.” “How about this?” “Yes!” Fast forward 25 years, hundreds of columns, and several publishers later

• The Voice of the Village •

and I came out of my office one day and said: “I’ve decided to retire.”

“Really? Who are you again?”

Retirement was great at first. I watched ESPN all day and night and learned which was the best beer for each sport. But… boredom set in. I was having learning withdrawal.

So, I decided to take a class on the Art of Bonsai. I quickly learned how to carefully prune a miniature juniper with ultra-sharp bonsai scissors.

“Ow! Need another Band-Aid over here. Hurry my tree is turning red.”

The instructor quickly intervened.

“Perhaps you would like to learn all about soil preparation. You can begin by sifting. Use the plastic sifter.”

Eventually, I mastered beginning bonsai techniques and figured there was nothing left to learn. But then a gentleman from the Bonsai Club of Santa Barbara, who’s been doing bonsai almost longer than I have been screwing up, gave a class on the art of grafting foliage onto bonsai to make them more aesthetically pleasing. So, I’m going to try it. All I need is a razor-shape grafting knife, some tape, and wire. Looks easy.

I have also been training in the Japanese Garden at Lotusland in the art of pruning trees Niwaki style, which is similar to bonsai only the trees are much bigger, so I need to use larger pruning shears, branch cutters and tree saws. Seems simple enough.

I have also been contemplating taking courses in martial arts, skydiving, and trapeze artistry for fun and exercise.

“I have an idea that might save your life and the lives of others,” My wife said. “You should join Vistas.”

“Vistas? Like views? Will I need my extraordinary photography skills?

Self-Es on the edge?”

“No! Vistas is a non-profit lifelong learning organization. They have all kinds of classes – history, science, music, politics. Great presenters, and there is a cookie and coffee break at each session. You can learn something new every week and snack to your heart’s content.”

“Wow. Science huh? I always wanted to be a scientist. I almost passed science twice in high school.”

“Perfect. And the best part… no tools required.”

•MJ MONTECITO JOURNAL

27

A 2017 Young Concert Artists First Prize Winner

Hanzhi Wang, accordion

“Accordions: so hot right now.

Once considered glamorous and sexy, then forgotten, the instrument is making a comeback.” The Atlantic Program includes: J.S. Bach, Jean-Philippe Rameau, Alfred Schnittke and Edvard Grieg Corporate Sponsor: Grafskoy Hindeloopen Up Close & Musical Series Sponsor: Dr. Bob Weinman

Sat, Feb 1 / 4 PM / Hahn Hall Music Academy of the West $25 / $9 UCSB students Nouveau Cirque From Quebec

FLIP Fabrique

MacArthur Fellow and Multi-Grammy Award-winner

An Evening with

Chris Thile “A graceful and soulful singer, relaxed raconteur, dazzling virtuoso, gifted composer and all-around charmer.”

The Washington Post Host of the acclaimed radio program Live From Here and a member of Punch Brothers and Nickel Creek, mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile has a broad outlook that encompasses classical, rock, jazz, bluegrass and just about everything else.

Presented through the generosity of Marcia & John Mike Cohen

Tue, Feb 4 / 8 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall Tickets start at $40 / $15 UCSB students

David Brooks The Quest for a Moral Life

“The soul is the piece of your consciousness that has moral worth and bears moral responsibility.”

“FLIP Fabrique projects an irrepressible spirit of fun and, yes, it’s catching.”

The New York Times

– David Brooks

A New York Times op-ed columnist and regular guest on PBS NewsHour and NPR’s All Things Considered, David Brooks is one of America’s most prominent political commentators. Now, he’s on a mission to help people live deeper and more joyful lives. Brooks’ latest book, The Second Mountain, explores what it takes to lead a meaningful life in a self-centered world.

Books will be available for purchase and signing courtesy of Chaucer’s

Presented through the generosity of Jillian & Pete Muller Presented through the generosity of Kay McMillan and Susan McMillan

Corporate Sponsor: Casa Dorinda

Sun, Feb 9 / 6:30 PM (note special time) / Granada Theatre Tickets start at $35 / $19 UCSB students and youth (18 & under)

Tue, Feb 11 / 7:30 PM / Granada Theatre Tickets start at $25 / $15 UCSB students

A Granada facility fee will be added to each ticket price

Corporate Season Sponsor:

A Granada facility fee will be added to each ticket price

(805) 893-3535 | www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu Granada event tickets can also be purchased at: (805) 899-2222 | www.GranadaSB.org

28 MONTECITO JOURNAL

30 January – 6 February 2020

Special FREE Community Event

Co-presented with

Understanding Genetics and Cancer

Featuring Dr. Mary-Claire King, the Scientist Who Discovered the BRCA1 Cancer Gene

“There has never been a scientific career quite like Mary-Claire King’s.” The New York Times

The Genetics of Inherited Breast and Ovarian Cancer: From Gene Discovery to Precision Medicine and Public Health Thu, Feb 6 / 7:30 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall / FREE Renowned human geneticist Dr. Mary-Claire King discovered the genetic mutation responsible for breast cancer, a finding that has revolutionized the course of cancer research and transformed the way patients are diagnosed and treated. A recipient of the National Medal of Science for her bold, imaginative and diverse contributions to medical science and human rights, Dr. King will discuss the genetics of inherited cancers in this free community event.

Following the talk a panel of experts will address genetics, cancer and you, including the following topics: photo: Steven Dewall

• • • • • •

lifestyle and cancer risk reduction family history and ethnicity risk factors genetic testing as cancer prevention privacy of genetic testing results benefits and perils of ancestry testing local resources for cancer risk assessment and counseling

Presented in association with Breast Cancer Resource Center, Ridley-Tree Cancer Center at Sansum Clinic, Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics and UCSB Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology

Sponsored by the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara, proud supporter of the Ridley-Tree Cancer Center and its Genetic Counseling Program

A&L Corporate Season Sponsor:

30 January – 6 February 2020

(805) 893-3535 | www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu • The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

29

The 501c3 Weekly

by Zach Rosen

Fishbon

F

or decades Santa Barbara has had a bohemian tone to its art and culture. From the fantastical floats and costumes of the Solstice Parade to the old artists’ lofts of the Funk Zone, the area has long played with whimsical art and culture. And over the years, no organization has been at the core of this quirkiness more than the nonprofit art collaborative, Fishbon.

Since 2002, this organization has been bringing imaginative art to the community while helping countless local and visiting artists grow their creative skills and understanding.

Fishbon is less the heart of the local art scene and more the misshapen mass that you were kind of worried about but then found out was harmless. There are no membership dues or applications. If you want to become a part of Fishbon, sign up for the newsletter, and just start showing up and being a part of it. The obscure nature of the organization can be challenging for some, but really the vague objective is usually what draws in its longtime members. Fishbon has no formal entry process but it does ask new members to walk fearlessly into the

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unfamiliar and help with its ongoing search for meaningful creativity of a nonsensical nature.

While many may have heard about Fishbon over the years, unless you’ve come to an event, it is hard to know what the organization actually is. “Yeah but what does Fishbon... do?” is probably the most common question I’ve been asked during my years of involvement with Fishbon.

And honestly Fishbon means something different to each person. I’ve called it an “artist sanctuary where artists can go to be artists.” It is often just referred to as an “art incubator” but really Fishbon serves as a multifaceted tool. There are workshops and classes that are taught during the week and throughout the month. Over the years it has helped support struggling artists (including myself) with event space, materials, and other art resources. But most importantly, it provides a priceless network of knowledge from its talented and diverse member base. Of course it is most well known for hosting wacky, irreverent events.

From the landscapes of Mars to inside the human body (think “Fantastic Voyage”), Fishbon has hosted some epic themed events over the years. But the party-side of an event is often only what the public

sees. It is the planning and building of the event where Fishbon achieves its mission and realizes what it actually does, even if that path is littered with non sequiturs and silly string.

Each event takes anywhere from a few to a few dozen volunteers and creatives working together to create it. Each collaborator brings a unique skill, or may try their hand at a new one. For the Mars party, I painted my first wall mural, an abstract painting to go in the alien autopsy room. For the human body, I collaborated with a friend on a brain bar and neural forest. Using fabric, aluminum ducting, and a whole lot of staples (among other things) we figured out how to make the bar look like it was inside the human brain. Each one of these experiences has grown my skill and confidence as an artist. And ultimately, that is what Fishbon does.

It allows one to explore, enjoy, and learn about art in an accepting and low pressure environment so that they can grow themselves as an artist while sharing their own art with others. Or sometimes it’s just a fun party to go to.

Visit spliff.eventbrite.com for more information. To find out more about Fishbon’s events, sign up for the newsletter at Fishbon.org.

•MJ

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“I like Frenchmen very much, because even when they insult you they do it so nicely.” - Josephine Baker

30 January – 6 February 2020

EDITORIAL (Continued from page 5)

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and local level and there is no question he has more facts at his fingertips than Laura does on a plethora of issues.

It was notable that when asked about the issues that are important to Montecito residents, neither candidate mentioned two of our most pressing concerns: unaffordable insurance rates post-debris flow, and the ag businesses such as avocado, citrus and grape growers who can’t adequately protect their crops for fear of litigation by cannabis growers. Both candidates should incorporate those issues into their talking points and their thinking.

Our County Supervisors have arguably more impact on our daily lives than any other elected official, so it’s important to get this right. Full disclosure: Laura Capps is my friend. Not my best friend, but I invited her to my birthday celebration and she invited me to hers; we socialize. For this reason, I’ve stayed away from her campaign events and I’ve not personally contributed to her effort.

That said, I have decided, after much thought, to support Laura, and here’s why: For starters, the County Democratic Party did not even meet with such a serious candidate as Laura before endorsing Das prior to the filing deadline.

This says to me unelected party leaders are playing the role of “king-makers.”

By pre-selecting Das without so much as looking at other candidates they disregard one of the most fundamental principles of democracy: that the best ideas and the best candidates should be given the chance to prove their mettle.

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A Nod to Capps

While this is not an official Montecito Journal endorsement, for me this Supervisor election is about being proactive and expecting more of our leaders in terms of how we do business. We deserve brave and ethical leaders who believe in and practice inclusion, transparency, and even some out-of-the-box thinking. If we don’t demand that, we will never get it. I like Das and I appreciate his long-standing public service. But he’s had four years in this position, and I think it’s well worth seeing what Laura can do.

•MJ 30 January – 6 February 2020

Feb

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Character Informs Action

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If I learned anything from my 20-year stint as a screenwriter, it’s that character informs action… and it’s for this reason I come down on the side of Laura Capps.

Das is a dedicated public servant who cares about the communities he represents. He has helped many people here, myself included. And I do believe he has tried to be here for us post-disaster. A good example of this is his close work with the Bucket Brigade and his support of the Randall Road debris basin, for which we’re also indebted to folks like Tom Fayram and John Frye at County Flood Control, Scott McGolpin, and others. He’s been a good Supervisor.

But here’s what gives me pause. A few months after the debris flow, for example, Das announced he was going to engage the community about how best to serve the various stakeholders by asking those who wanted to be leaders in the rebuilding process to sign up for committees, etc. This plan then morphed into a “plan to have a plan”… which then morphed into a community survey… which over the course of many months morphed into a study… which to the best of my knowledge has not been completed or disseminated… certainly not in any kind of timeframe to be of much use. Das may have changed his perspective on how such a leadership group should come about, but a little communication on that would have helped.

Another factor that supports my endorsement of Laura is my experience as a founding member of The Project for Resilient Communities (TPRC) (I am not speaking for the Board). Today, TPRC is seen as the successful “nets group” that deployed debris catching nets on our mountains. But what a lot of folks don’t know is that much harder than the literal high-wire act of deploying the nets was getting the entitlements for those nets – a process Das was slow to put his full support behind until it looked like our efforts would actually succeed. But if our leaders are not willing to risk losing, we can never really win.

By contrast, very early on, only days after the debris flow, our congressman Salud Carbajal met with us, late at night in the back room of the IHOP on Upper State and opened up his contact list to us. This support proved critical in getting us out of the starting gate. Without Salud’s help and his connections, it would have been much harder to get the job done. Salud helped us because it was the right thing to do, not because we had momentum, which at that point we definitely did not. That is good leadership rather than waiting-and-seeing.

That’s representing.

It’s impossible to know how Laura would have handled such a moment, but I’ve watched how she listens, how deeply she takes on complicated issues and finds solutions. I’ve seen her roll up her sleeves and meet with stakeholders to build consensus around difficult topics. I’ve seen her do this with environmentalists and with community members around issues of sustainability in the public schools. I’ve admired her courage to be the lone dissenting vote when a challenging issue came before the school board related to leadership at San Marcos High.

Sun

COURAGE & RESILIENCE: An Afternoon with Elizabeth Smart

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VIP ticket price includes a special invitation to the VIP reception for Elizabeth Smart in the McCune Founders Room immediately following the event.

• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

31

VILLAGE BEAT (Continued from page 12) said. “You don’t take money as an elected official when you’re entrusted by the people, to do what’s right, from the very interest that stands to gain millions,” she said, stating that Williams accepted $62,000 from the cannabis industry while working on the cannabis ordinance in 2017.

Williams denied the accusations, saying that 58 cannabis operators in Carpinteria have been raided in the last year, and that his $500K campaign this year included $2,500 from a cannabis farmer, who also grows flowers and avocados.

“We want to permit the best, and shut down those that can’t live by the rules, and that is precisely what we are doing. We have possessed more marijuana than the CHP has done in four years. That’s not going soft on the marijuana industry,” Williams said, adding that Capps’ accusation that 62% of cannabis operators have not paid taxes is incorrect. “Those numbers are totally false,” he said. “I find it painfully ironic that I, as someone who vocally thought we should not pass Prop 64, that we were not ready for it as a State, would have the job of cleaning up the mess for people who have voted for it,” Williams said, adding that Capps was in favor of legalizing marijuana.

Climate change was another significant topic of conversation, which Capps said would be at the forefront of her mission on the Board of Supervisors. “The Board is not spending enough time on climate change. We are not moving in the right direction,” she said. Williams disagreed, citing several initiatives from the Board that are in response to the Thomas Fire and debris flow, which are directly linked to climate change. Williams said the County is now the guarantor of the clean-up bond for the debris basin nets,

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Jonathan Bastian, Gwyn Lurie, Floyd Wicks, Sharon Byrne, Bob Ludwick, Silvia Easton, Tom Bollay, Cori Hayman, Ashlee Mayfield, Kate Murphy, Jennifer Miller, and Tim Buckley at the First District Supervisor Debate (photo by Jim Fabio)

which is allowing the Partnership for Resilient Communities to install two more ring nets in our local canyons.

“It’s a significant financial participation,” he said. He also noted the building of two new debris basins, one on Randall Road and one on Buena Vista Basin, as well as the enlargement of Cold Springs Basin. “This is the largest amount of flood control infrastructure that has been done in two generations,” he said. “We need the county to be a proactive partner. We know that this is the new normal and that climate change is now,” Capps said.

On the homelessness issue, Capps says being proactive is key. “We have the second highest rate of poverty in the state,” she said. “Let’s keep people from being homeless in the first place.

There are state and federal funding that we are currently leaving on the table. Let’s devote more time to it,” she said. “One out of eight kids in our local schools are homeless. Let’s see some sense of urgency.” Williams, who was homeless at age 16, said the way to make progress is through extensive street outreach and to build permanent supportive housing, which he says the County is currently doing.

The second portion of the debate featured questions formulated and asked by nine local leaders. Coast Village Association board president Bob Ludwick asked the candidates about their creative ideas to bring traffic management and relieve congestion on Coast Village Road. Williams said that local projects, including the roundabouts at Olive Mill and San Ysidro roads, need to be moved ahead as quickly as possible, in anticipation of the increased traffic during the construction of the third lane on Highway 101. Capps said the traffic along Coast Village and surround-

Challenger Laura Capps and incumbent Das Williams (photo by Jim Fabio)

A packed Hahn Hall at Montecito Journal Media Group’s inaugural event (photo by Wendy Read)

ing streets is unacceptable, adding that Montecito needs a strong voice on SBCAG (Santa Barbara County Association of Governments).

Both board presidents from Montecito Union School (Kate Murphy) and Cold Spring School (Jennifer Miller) asked the candidates about school safety; Capps said local

“When I got to France I realized I didn’t know very much about food at all.” - Julia Child

schools should be safe havens with their own microgrids, and both candidates said it was important to them to build new safe routes to school.

Other questions dealt with keeping Montecito’s unique character, with Montecito Association execu-

VILLAGE BEAT Page 404 30 January – 6 February 2020

SEEN (Continued from page 16)

ended with, “I feel really blessed to be here and I feel grateful for this.”

The SBIFF is no longer just a festival, but an active year-round education center. It’s time to “CUT” and roll up the red carpet for the 35th time remembering it attracted 95,000 attendees, 200 plus films, tributes, and panels with 600 volunteers helping.

Way to go, Roger!

SBIFF executive director Roger Durling with a premier sponsor from UGG Andrea O’Donnell at the post-Brad Pitt tribute party

MClub At Casa Del Herrero As Maria McCall, director of the MClub for the Montecito Bank and Trust said, “Visitors to the Casa are transported back to Montecito in the 1920s and 1930s – the heyday of the original owner George Fox Steedman.

Designed by George Washington Smith, the Casa is one of the finest examples of Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in America. It is included on the National Register of Historic Landmarks.”

The 11-acre estate is a non-profit organization to preserve the house and grounds. One of the things that make a visit special is the collection of 15th and 16th century fine and decorative art objects from Spain that the family left for us to enjoy.

As a long-time docent for the Casa, I had the pleasure of leading members of the MClub through and telling all my stories, many from the mouths of grandkids who remember romping

around the estate as children. Those enjoying the estate and its gardens were: Gillian Connor, Peggy Caswell, Jacque Ohl-Trlica, Marilyn Cross, Sara

More MClub members Gillian Connor, Peggy Caswell, Jacque Ohl-Trlica, Marilyn Cross, Maria McCall, Sara Stokley, and yours truly

MontJournal_January29th'20:Layout 1

The Arlington all decked out for Brad Pitt

Stokley, Keith Mautino Moore, Anne Luther, Karen Paythress, Amanda and Richard Payatt, Virginia Markel, and yours truly.

•MJ

1/24/20

3:07 PM

Page 1

MClub members touring Casa del Herrero Keith Mautino Moore, Anne Luther, Karen Paythress, Amanda and Richard Payatt, and Virginia Markel

LUNCH | DINNER | COCKTAILS | PRIVATE DINING

Photos courtesy of Olio e Limone Ristorante and Kevin Steele / kevsteele.com

next door to sister restaurants

Brad Pitt at his tribute

30 January – 6 February 2020

11 W. Victoria St., Ste.’s 17, 18 & 21, Santa Barbara

• The Voice of the Village •

| OLIOCUCINA.COM | 805.899.2699 MONTECITO JOURNAL

33

Spirituality Matters

by Steven Libowitz “Spirituality Matters” highlights two or three Santa Barbara area spiritual gatherings. Unusual themes and events with that something extra, especially newer ones looking for a boost in attendance, receive special attention. For consideration for inclusion in this column, email slibowitz@yahoo.com.

Welcome to Elemental Wellness

N

inaya Nancy Strandberg and William Gale’s new Elemental Wellness Events series promises quarterly group circle seasonal experiences that are both soulful and sensational. Whereas the couple’s previous recent workshops were geared toward other couples, the new series can be enjoyed as individuals also. Each of the one-day mini-retreats will involve intimate coed sharing circles, therapeutic healing arts and play, and processing, mostly held in the yurt located at Rockwood Sanctuary nestled in Mission Canyon.

Gale, LMFT, who employs Hakomi Mindfulness – Centered Somatic Therapy and Attachment-Focused EMDR among other techniques, and Strandberg, a holistic health practitioner specializing in water therapies – the owners of the private sacred space – count 60 years of knowledge, wisdom, and experience in the healing arts and self-realization practices between them. Participants will have the opportunity to connect, process, and relax immersed in natural beauty, peacefulness, and loving kindness, and enjoy love-infused food while listening to transformational heart talks and engaging in elemental healing arts.

Character Matters: Civility in Uncivil Times Jim Taylor, Westmont College Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020, 5:30 p.m.

University Club, 1332 Santa Barbara Street Free and open to the public. For information, call 565-6051.

Our public conversation is wounding our nation and preventing us from solving our problems.

What would it take to listen to each other with respect and openness? We need a renewed commitment to crucial, neglected qualities of character.

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34 MONTECITO JOURNAL

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The Winter event, slated for this Saturday, February 2, carries a “Water ~ Dream” theme, with a focus on vision and intention setting practices. Spring’s offering, “Air ~ Cleansing,” focusing on clarity and new beginnings practices, takes place April 26; Summer’s “Fire ~ Celebration” event, with attention on action and creativity practices, happens on July 26; and the series concludes on October 18 with Fall’s “Earth ~ Harvest” themed event, incorporating nourishment and reflection practices. Each event costs $175 per person ($150 if paid online one month in advance). Call or visit their websites – 805-252-6716 / www.WilliamGale.com, 805-637-2387/ www.Ninaya.com – for more detailed information.

Mindful Self-Compassion

Think about what it would be like in moments where you are challenged to offer yourself the same kindness, care, and support that you would naturally extend to a dear friend. That’s the impetus behind Mindful Self-Compassion, a new eight-week course from Hattie Bluestone, DPT, and Anahita Holden, PhD, being offered at Yoga Soup in February and March. Developed by Kristin Neff, PhD, pioneering researcher in the field of self-compassion, and Christopher K. Germer, PhD, leader in the integration of mindfulness and psychotherapy, MSC is an empirically-supported program designed to cultivate the resource of self-compassion through teaching core principles and practices that enable participants to respond to difficult moments in their lives with kindness, care, and understanding. The course includes guided meditations, short talks, experiential exercises, group discussion, and take-home practices to integrate self-compassion into daily life.

Research has shown that self-compassion greatly enhances emotional well-being, boosting happiness and reducing anxiety and depression. Recent randomized controlled trials found that participants in the eight-week MSC course experienced significant increases in mindfulness, self-compassion, compassion for others, social connectedness, life satisfaction, and happiness, as well as decreases in depression, anxiety, and stress. Better yet, the gains in wellbeing were maintained one year after the course.

At the upcoming MSC course, students will learn the theory and research behind mindfulness and self-compassion as well as a variety of tools to relate to difficult emotions with greater moment-to-moment acceptance and motivate oneself with encouragement rather than criticism. The MSC program offers seven different formal meditations, 20 informal practices, and 14 experiential exercises, along with the theory and rationale for each one, so that you can become your own best teacher and find tools that support you best.

Tuition for the series that meets at Yoga Soup from 2-4:30 pm on Sundays, February 2 to March 22, is $400, or $200 for students; scholarships are available for the financially challenged. Email hattiebluestone@gmail.com or visit www. yogasoup.com/category/events.

Raise your Voice to ‘Bare Your Soul’

Tania Isaac-Dutton’s Nada Yoga Workshop creates a safe space to reflect and connect within and with community via the practice that combines flow of sound with union. Everything and everyone in the universe has a unique frequency, but through the practice of Nada Yoga, one can cultivate bringing their mind into harmony with the collective consciousness through the use of sound – one’s own voice. The workshop, which takes place 2-3:30 pm on Saturday, February 1, at the Santa Barbara Yoga Center, and costs $25, guides participants through seated and walking meditations and one-on-one mindfulness techniques before closing with a group toning in a sacred circle.

Yin & Therapeutic Yoga with Cheri Clampett, slated for 2-4:30 pm on Sunday, February 2 at SBYC, combines a pair of practices for extra effect. The first hour is designed to activate the movement of chi, or prana, through the body as the soft nature of the Yin practice creates an opportunity to gain greater insight and awareness, while Therapeutic Yoga is a blend of restorative poses, gentle yoga, breath awareness, and guided meditation that gently encourages your body to release and your mind to open. The yoga is accompanied by live improvised waveforms with healing intention played by Avahara, plus essential oils and hands-on adjustments. Admission is $50.

Re-claim your authentic voice, listen in new ways, and honor and empower your innate wisdom through self-inquiry, self-compassion practices and poetry, and inspire truth-telling through the use of words to regain wholeness. No previous experience is necessary to participate in Write Resonantly with Lalli Dana Drobny, MAW, University of Iowa, who has taught writing classes/ workshops nationally for 35 years and Embodied Mindfulness at SBCC for 15 years. The class meets 5:15-6:45 pm on Thursdays, February 6-20, plus 1:15-4 pm on Saturday, February 29, and costs $18 per class, or $39 for the three-class series, and $30 for the February 29 event.

Santa Barbara Yoga Center is located at 32 East Micheltorena Street. Call (805) 965-6045 or visit www.santabarbarayogacenter.com.

•MJ

“Quarrels in France strengthen a love affair, in America they end it.” - Ned Rorem

30 January – 6 February 2020

Calla’s Corner Vicky Diaz Pagenkopf, Family Nurse Practitioner

F

amily Nurse Practitioner Vicky (Virginia) Diaz Pagenkopf apologizes for getting emotional when she talks about the woman who convinced her to pursue a nursing career. “I was finishing my requirements to go to UCSB to become a high school teacher and was looking for a temporary job. My younger sister, who worked as a nurse’s assistant at Cottage Hospital, suggested I might look into being a companion to an elderly lady she knew, who was in the terminal stages of breast cancer. I liked the woman and took the job.

“She told me, when I asked her what she wanted me to do for her, that she didn’t want to continue with the cancer treatments, and just wanted to end her life at home with dignity. She said I should read Death and Dying,

by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. The book made a big impression on me and I ended up staying with and caring for the woman for a year and a half, until she died. Before she died she said to me, ‘Vicky, you should really go into nursing, you’re a natural.’

“I came to Santa Barbara from Veracruz, Mexico with my parents and seven siblings when I was thirteen, not speaking a word of English.

My father was a farm worker. Some of my brothers and sisters never finished high school as they had to help my father in the fields and my mother at home. From a very early age” explains Vicky, “I knew I wanted to do something helping others, especially the under-served.”

After graduating with honors with a MSN (Master of Science Nursing) from UCLA in 2009, following her BSN from Cal State Fullerton in 2007, Vicky worked as a Nurse Practitioner in the emergency room at St. John’s Hospital, primary care at Buellton Medical Clinic, at Cottage Hospital in different departments for ten years, at Sansum Clinic’s skilled nursing facilities for two years, and finally with Dr. Barbara Hrach. She has been with Dr. Hrach for a year and a half “The timing was perfect for me and Dr. Hrach,” says the petite, fortyeight-year-old, who runs marathons and completed the grueling Camino De Santiago pilgrimage in Spain. Dr. Hrach had recently lost a talented, young internist, who decided to join another practice where she would not have to deal with low Medicare reimbursements. At the same time, Dr. Hrach had decided to turn her flourishing, 15-year-old practice into the Concierge ExtraCare Program where she provides primary care internal consultative services to a limited 30 January – 6 February 2020

Dr. Barbara Hrach and Vicky Diaz Pagenkopf

by Calla J Corner

number of patients for an annual fee, giving her more time to spend with patients and allowing her to become intimately involved with their health and provide more personalized care.

Many of Dr. Hrach’s patients were able to pay the $5,000 annual fee for the individualized, 24/7 care. Those patients, many elderly, who couldn’t afford the service, were to be looked after by the doctor who left. Faced with a significant challenge to her practice, Dr. Hrach got in touch with Vicky, who had been her patient and whose path to becoming a Nurse Practitioner, she had followed closely.

As it happened, Vicky was looking into a way she could build on the vast knowledge she had gained with her extensive nursing skills, especially in caring for many of Samsum’s patients with diabetes and other endocrinologic diseases in their nursing care facilities. Dr. Hrach asked Vicky if she would come one day a week to help her look after patients.

“The one day turned into two and then, when Dr. Hrach realized that I was able to provide her patients with the kind of individual care she wanted to emphasize in her practice and my caregiving instincts complemented hers, she asked me to come full-time.

“It’s always been known in the medical community that nurses are able to provide the intimacy that doctors often don’t have time for. Many doctors have even felt threatened by the breadth of knowledge and experience that nurses offer. But, as Nurse Practitioners’ unique qualifications have become known as a medical as well as a financial asset, rather than a threat to doctors, the nursing profession has gained new respect.

My specialties are Gerontology and Endocrinology and many of my older patients are on Medicare.

In 2017, nursing was ranked by the American Hospital Organization in a Gallup poll as the most trusted profession for honesty and ethical standards.

A Nurse Practitioner is a registered nurse who has advanced education and training specializing in their own scope – Family Medicine, Mid-Wifery, Psychiatry, OBGYN, Pediatrics, and Trauma among the choices. Nurse Practitioners have to have at least a master’s degree. Many go on to earn a PhD and/or DNP in nursing.

“I am able to offer my patients 24/7 care and assistance, too. I could easily have stayed with Sansum and been nine to five and earned more, but I love the connection I have with my patients, especially the elderly. They have respect and I often learn some-

thing from many who have lived with their diseases for a long time. I listen to them as they are so knowledgeable.

“I am also now treating teenagers, who tell me they feel they can talk to me when they can’t talk to their parents. Because I speak Spanish, I am able to provide better care to members of the Latino community and serve as a positive role model. Many of my patients come through referral. When Dr. Israel Trujillo, a Spanish speaking doctor who cared for many in the Latino community, died unexpectedly at thirty-nine, some of his former patients came to me.

Dr. Hrach is one of a growing number of Santa Barbara physicians in family practices and clinics who are filling voids in their practices with Nurse Practitioners that, in the past, newly graduated doctors would have jumped into.

Although Nurse Practitioners have been around in some capacity for over thirty years, it is a field that has been undervalued. Now it is growing in popularity with physicians, as well as those of college age, who want to get into medicine, but simply can’t afford the enormous cost of becoming a doctor and the rigors of medical school, internship, residency, and specialization.

By 2030, it is estimated that the doctor shortage will be between 46,000 and 121,900.

Three years ago with the help of two other Nurse Practitioners, Vicky formed the Santa Barbara Chapter of the California Association of Nurse Practitioners, to promote careers in the field and support for its 52 members. At the moment, she is organizing a celebration to mark the third anniversary of the Chapter, when a

• The Voice of the Village •

Nurse Practitioner of the year is chosen. In 2017 the award went to Jorie Nilson, FNP for her contribution in working with the homeless community. In 2018, the award went to Nancy Warner FNP, from Jackson Medical Group for being a pioneer, with over 30 years of experience.

“The Chapter meets once a month, sometimes to listen to representatives of pharmaceutical companies, explaining new drugs and available treatments or other speakers that would add to our knowledge,” says Vicky.

Of particular interest to Vicky is supporting the bill that is before the Sacramento Legislature now to give Nurse Practitioners the right to provide more services. “In California, we can prescribe medications, but there are many things, like signing death certificates, that we can’t do. There are twenty-one states that give Nurse Practitioners the ability to replace doctors, especially in rural communities.

We are up against lobbyists for doctors who fear that Nurse Practitioners will “hang up their shingles,” but this is not the case. We complement what doctors do and are not in competition with them. Here in Santa Barbara, where it is so expensive to live, the country-wide lack of doctors going into family practices, is particularly acute,” explains Vicky.

“I also want to get the word out that we need more men becoming Nurse Practitioners. We have had male nurses in the profession for decades, so men who are thinking of becoming nurses should consider getting the extra education. My eighteen-year-old nephew Anthony Martinez has just decided to go into a Nurse Practitioner program. I am so proud of him,” beams Vicky.

•MJ MONTECITO JOURNAL

35

MISCELLANY (Continued from page 18) A glorious evening of wonderful work from a Santa Barbara eduacated woman who single-handedly defined contemporary dance as a uniquely American art form.

Picking SB

David Bolton’s TV company helms the Super Bowl yet again

Former SBIFF president and chair Jelinda DeVorzon and Oscar nominated composer husband Barry with Brad Pitt

Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, co-hosts of American Pickers

The History Channel’s popular reality show American Pickers, which was last here visiting Jim O’Mahoney’s Funk Zone museum in June, is returning to our Eden by the Beach in March.

The show is a documentary series where recycled and forgotten relics are rescued, while meeting characters with exceptional items across the country.

The hosts, Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, give historically significant objects a new lease on life, while learning a thing or two about America’s past along the way.

If you have a large, private collection or accumulation of antiques worth perusing, call 855-OLD-RUST or email americanpickers@cineflix. com.

Meeting with Meghan Former actress Meghan Markle is giving her first interview since dumping the British Royal Family with her husband Prince Harry to Montecito TV talk show host Ellen DeGeneres.

“Ellen and Meghan have already discussed a sit-down interview. That’s been in the works for some time now,” a source at Ellen’s Burbank-based show tells the London Daily Mail.

The two met by chance at a Los Angeles dog shelter where Ellen encouraged the Duchess of Sussex to adopt her first dog, Bogart, and the women have stayed in touch with Ellen and wife, actress Portia de Rossi, visiting the royal couple and son, Archie, at their Frogmore Cottage, Windsor, home last summer, as I chronicled in this illustrious organ.

“Meghan says Ellen understands her pain and suffering. That she epitomizes authenticity,” another friend tells the Mail. “Meghan feels like they are kindred spirits.”

Stay tuned...

Bravo, Brad!

There was not a seat to be had at the 2,000-seat Arlington Theatre, with some selling for $500 a ducat on eBay, when Brad Pitt, an Oscar nominee for his role in Quentin Tarantino’s

36 MONTECITO JOURNAL

Brad Pitt receives the Maltin Modern Masters Award at SBIFF (photo by Fritz Olenberger)

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, was presented with the Maltin Modern Masters Award, adding to his Golden Globe, Critics Choice and his Screen Actors Guild accolades, when he famously reunited with his ex-wife Jennifer Aniston backstage in the Big Orange.

Before he came on stage to be interviewed by acclaimed film critic Leonard Maltin, Pitt, 56, signed autographs, posed for selfies and did myriad TV interviews, with one commentator asking him if he’d be taking Aniston, whom he divorced 15 years ago, to the Oscars on February 9.

Looking rather sheepish, he replied: “I don’t have a date.”

Other winners of the award, established in 1995, have included a heavenly pantheon of Hollywood stars, including Glenn Close, Denzel Washington, Michael Keaton, Ben Affleck, Christopher Plummer, James Cameron, Clint Eastwood, Will Smith, Cate Blanchett, George Clooney, and Peter Jackson.

“I hang out here a lot,” Pitt said. “I have been in Goleta since 1999. This is home!” referring to this oceanfront estate by El Capitan State Beach.

Starting his Tinseltown career as an extra for three years after dropping out of the University of Missouri with just one paper to write, he recounted trying to earn his SAG card by adding an unsolicited line while filming a non-speaking role as a waiter. “I thought, I’m going to try it, and so I went: ‘Would you like anything else?’

And I heard the first assistant director

go ‘Cut! Cut! Cut!’ And he said, ‘If you pull that again, you’re out of here.’”

And when asked about major roles he’d turned down, Pitt admitted the 1999 sci-fi film The Matrix, which ended up going to Keanu Reeves and grossing more than $460 million worldwide, with two major grossing sequels.

“I took the red pill... If we were doing a show on great movies I’ve passed on, we would need two nights.”

Upon accepting the award, Pitt added: “It’s nights like this and nights like these that tell me I’m old. I’ve been around a while and I’ve been doing this for a bit... I can’t do night shoots anymore, and I’ll gladly hand a stunt over to a stunt man... But it’s also nights like this where I get to look back and feel really, really blessed. I feel so fortunate to all the amazing people I’ve been able to work with who have taught me so much and who’ve touched my life.”

A definite highlight of the 35th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival, which wrapped at the weekend...

Another Touchdown for Bolton David Bolton, executive director of the California Missions Foundation, has a lucrative sideline with his TV production company, Cultural Global Media.

One year after covering his first Super Bowl, the company has been hired again to produce the legendary NFL event from Miami, Florida,

“As an artist, a man has no home in Europe save in Paris.” - Friedrich Nietzsche

on Sunday for millions of viewers throughout Latin America.

A Montecito Union School graduate, David’s career has spanned more than three decades producing a plethora of live events from every major and medium size city in the U.S. and Canada.

At the Super Bowl, he will be responsible for Fox Sports broadcasts from Mexico to Argentina.

Recently he handled the same duties for the NFC championship game in San Francisco, as well as the previous weekend’s clashes at Green Bay and at the 49ers.

Fluent in Spanish, the foreign language has opened up many doors including extensive relations with Spain, which awarded him a Spanish knighthood last April.

“Our fourth-grade teacher at MUS, Mrs. Pacunas, began to teach us Spanish,” says David. “I owe her a lot.”

SBDT Season Starts Santa Barbara Dance Theater premiered four works by international guest choreographers to kick off its 44th anniversary season at the Hatlen Theatre.

In addition to featuring the works of Jennifer Muller, Stephanie Miracle, UCSB dance faculty member Nancy Colahan, and artistic director Christopher Pilafian, the entertaining program also had original scores by renowned composers Ryan Beverage and Omar Zubair.

Michael Klaers’ characteristically innovative lighting designs showcased the dancers, sets and costumes.

Muller’s Miserere Nobis, a 2015 work, with choral music Agnes Dei

by Samuel Barber sung by the choir of Trinity College, Cambridge, and Pilafian’s colorful Chrometrics, were of particular note.

Artistic Talents Abound More than 20 student artists were honored by the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara during a presentation and reception at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, with each of them receiving a $2,500 scholarship and their artwork exhibited in the museum’s Family Resource Center.

30 January – 6 February 2020

SFSB Board member David Duron, winning student artist Magdaline Rose Gooch, and SFSB Board chair Christie Glanville (photo by Isaac Hernandez)

Schall Family Best of Show honoree Evan Sherman (of Santa Barbara High School) with honorary board member Maryan Schall in front of one of Evan’s winning submissions (photo by Isaac Hernandez)

30 January – 6 February 2020

Double the Fun Comedienne and TV talk show host Ellen DeGeneres and actress wife Portia de Rossi have once again bought in Montecito, their favorite stomping ground for property flipping.

Their latest $3.6 million three-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom acquisition is a pair of Tudor revival barns that have been artfully composed into a private residence.

The two beamed structures were originally deconstructed in England and reconstructed in our rarefied enclave after traveling across the Atlantic.

The lot measures 1.35 acres, while the interior boasts exposed timber, plaster whitewashed stone, and soaring cathedral ceilings.

Oprah Down Under Former TV talk show titan Oprah Winfrey may be taking her 2020 Vision “wellness tour” to Australia.

Montecito’s most famous resident is expected to announce dates for the antipodean jaunt in due course.

Oprah, 65, took her Chicago-based talk show to Sydney in 2011 with huge crowds mobbing her outside the iconic opera house. She also climbed the Sydney Harbor bridge.

This year’s 25 art scholarship recipients (photo by Isaac Hernandez)

“We have held this event for 41 years now, and the winning submissions are always impressive,” says foundation board chair Christie Glanville. “We are proud to recognize these extraordinarily talented artists and provide them with their scholarships.”

The works, done by 70 students, were judged by prominent local artists – Anthony Askew, Ginny Brush, and Patti Jacquemain – at the Ridley-Tree Educational Center at McCormick House.

Santa Barbara High senior Evan Sherman won the Schall Family Best of Show prize and received an additional $1,000 scholarship.

sites, and the ancient city of Tomar, with a visit to the Templar castle and the Baroque organs at the famed monastery.

Complete details of the trip can be accessed at emeritiphilharmonic.com.

Bon Voyage Santa Barbara music critic Dan Kepl is morphing into quite the tour guide.

After hosting a performing arts tour in Cuba three years ago, he is now planning a similar event in Italy next year visiting Bologna, Florence and Modena, opera legend Luciano Pavarotti’s final resting place.

And this year Dan is taking a small group of fellow arts, wine, food and culture lovers to Portugal in June, with stays in Lisbon and Porto, complete with trips to the wineries of the Douro River Valley, a two-hour river cruise, excursions to Fatima, one of the world’s great Christian pilgrimage

Goop on the High Seas Montecito actress Gwyneth Paltrow launched her lifestyle brand in 2008, which has garnered attention for touting eccentric and expensive health fads.

And now the 47-year-old Oscar winner is taking Goop to Europe, announcing her company is partnering with Celebrity Cruises to “bring a day of wellness to sea” in August.

Gwynnie revealed the news in an enticing video posted on Instagram showing a cruise ship at sea along with various wellness classes and activities.

The cruise on Celebrity Apex departs Barcelona on August 26 and takes in destinations in France, the Mediterranean and the Italian Riviera, returning September 6.

Pacho and the Prince The Maharajah of Jaipur, Padmanash Singh, 21, who visited the Santa Barbara Polo Club with his team in 2016, has opened up about his close relationship with his godfather, Prince Charles, 72.

Pacho, as he is known by friends, sees Queen Elizabeth’s son about once a year, describing the Prince of Wales as down-to-earth and friendly

• The Voice of the Village •

towards his many, many staff.

“Prince Charles never makes you feel in the company of someone popular or important,” the Indian royal, who was educated at Millfield in the U.K. and New York University, tells Hello magazine.

“I look to him for inspiration. I am always amazed by how aware he is about life.”

Back Together Montecito comedian Steve Martin, 74, and fellow funnyman Martin Short, 69, are teaming up yet again to produce and star in a Manhattan-set half hour Hulu comedy series.

The dynamic duo are currently casting a younger actress to play the third lead in the yet untitled show centering on three true-crime obsessed strangers who become embroiled in a crime.

“I’m starting to look like my caricature,” joked Martin, who’s a Tony away from EGOT – Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony – status, despite getting his start on shows like Saturday Night Live and the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.

The talented twosome, whose friendship spans 30 years, have co-starred in movies like Father of the Bride, Three Amigos!, The Prince of Egypt, and Jiminy Glick in Lalawood.

Paul’s Whips Sell The late Santa Barbara actor Paul Walker’s personal car collection has raked in more than $2,333,450 at auction.

The collection, which included an eclectic mix of cars, motorcycles and trucks, was sold by auctioneers Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale, Arizona.

“Paul’s daughter, Meadow, kept a few vehicles she had a connection with,” says Craig Jackson, CEO. The sale included five BMW M3 lightweight editions of only 126 made.

A 1995 E36 took in $385,000, while the rest sold for between $220,000 and $258,500.

Walker died, aged 40, in November, 2013, when a Porsche he was riding in crashed in Santa Clarita.

Sightings: Bond theme singer Adele checking out the Peregrine Galleries on CVR... Actress Scarlett Johansson at the Rosewood Miramar... Rob Lowe in San Francisco for the 49ersGreen Bay Packers game.

Pip! Pip! Readers with tips, sightings and amusing items for Richard’s column should e-mail him at richardmin eards@verizon.net or send invitations or other correspondence to the Journal.

To reach Priscilla, e-mail her at pris cilla@santabarbaraseen.com or call 805-969-3301 •MJ MONTECITO JOURNAL

37

LETTERS (Continued from page 8) consequential, salient issue on which this election should be decided is integrity and ethics. While Mr. Williams deserves the gratitude of Montecitans for his constituent service in the post-mudslide recovery, we should not turn a blind eye to his record on the pot industry, fueled by his acceptance of more than $60,000 in that industry’s contributions.

Mr. Williams cannot have it both ways: It’s disingenuous to claim our incumbent supervisor possesses a superior level of legislative experience on the one hand, while on the other hand giving him a hall pass for ignorance and naiveté in opening the regulatory door wide for California’s marijuana millionaires. Our beloved Santa Barbara County, renowned for the heady Mediterranean-influenced scents of floriculture, viticulture and pomology – luring seven million visitors per annum – has been hit by two stronger scents. One comes from the stinky terpene chemical odors in Carpinteria and along Avenue 246 during the weed-drying process; the other comes from the stench of public corruption brought about by catering to special-interest lobbyists. Mr. Williams’s and fellow “Doobie Brother” Steve Lavagnino’s circumvention of the state’s Brown Act governing open meetings, by forming a two-supervisor, non-transparent committee in 2017, then working with pot lobbyists to craft a lax ordinance, is now well documented, thanks to two long investigative stories by the Los Angeles Times and the work of industrious local reporters. These supervisors’ gaffes have made Santa Barbara County a national case study in how not to introduce, manage, tax, and regulate Cannabis sativa. Stories such as “Flower Town Grapples With Pot Industry’s Stench” from the Associated Press are echoing round the world and could in future alter our county’s image as a wholesome and healthy mecca for beachgoers, mountain climbers, and especially families. Property values near pot-growing operations could also be at stake. Why couldn’t our supervisors follow the lead of Ventura County, which bans commercial cannabis cultivation but is earning tax revenue from its 4,000 acres permitted to grow industrial hemp?

Supervisors Williams and Lavagnino promised to limit pot farms to just 10,000 square feet, but instead we ended up with loopholes allowing growers to purchase and “stack” multiple licenses to create giant pot plantations. Parents and school leaders in Carpinteria are dismayed at having pot farms in uncomfortable proximity to Carpinteria High, the Howard School, the Boys and Girls Clubs, and the historic 1910 Cate School. Pot farms are so close to traditional Santa Barbara agriculture that avocado and citrus growers, who must use certain pesticides on

38 MONTECITO JOURNAL

their crops, are worried about potential lawsuits from nearby pot purveyors.

And given the enormous size of Santa Barbara County’s new pot industry, financial watchdogs have been calling for investigations into why comparatively little tax money has flowed into county coffers. Up county, my friends Blair and Dianne Pence, who grow award-winning pinot noir and other varietals in the Santa Rita Hills viticultural area, have been fighting “cannagribusiness” through the County Planning Commission appeals process, successfully persuading commissioners to deny a 73-acre operation next door and to scale back another’s 37 acres to 12.5. But this temporary measure is likely to be appealed and could be overridden by – guess who – the supervisors.

Six months ago, it was widely reported that farms in our county held 35% of all California marijuana cultivation licenses issued in 2019, despite our small size representing just 1.8% of the state’s land. This month, the County Planning Commission began hearings on the subject, with a wide range of residents asking for restricting the size and types of cannabis operations, tightening the permitting process, requiring odor control, and establishing more reasonable setbacks and buffers – safeguards that many believe should have been part of the original ordinance.

The prudent way to face this powerful and highly controversial industry is to elect Laura Capps and support her five-element campaign finance reform package, including: a ban on contributions from industries with business before the supervisors; limits on both campaign contributions and candidate spending; an ethics commission; and greater transparency on campaign donations. Voting for Ms. Capps, a candidate unconnected to the cannabis industry, would help send a signal to the rest of the supervisors that Santa Barbara County residents will not tolerate cosy relationships with lobbyists.

We need public officials who possess the ethical chops to weigh special interests’ wish lists against more important criteria, the public interest and the commonweal.

Eileen White Read Montecito

Climate Leadership 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, which took place in the wake of the first massive oil spill in Santa Barbara. It comes after the hottest decade on record, when consensus on the need to act on climate is so high the Oxford dictionary chose “climate emergency” as the 2019 word of the year.

At the same time, the Trump administration has plans to open a million acres of public lands in Santa Barbara and surrounding counties and ocean

Laughing Matters

Well Balanced

D

id you hear about the guy who got his whole left side cut off? He’s all right now.

Send us your best joke, we’ll decide if it’s funny. We can only print what we can print, so don’t blame us. Please send “jokes” to letters@ montecitojournal.net waters of the Santa Barbara Channel to fracking and drilling, while eliminating safety measures taken after the 210 million-gallon Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the gulf and disallowing climate considerations from development.

We are fortunate to have strong environmental champions like Supervisor Das Williams fighting back to protect our environment and opposing these moves by the Trump administration.

Das Williams had a 100% rating by the Sierra Club and League of Conservation Voters when he was in the California Assembly, where he helped advance ambitious climate legislation. Santa Barbara County need not become a fossil fuel sacrifice zone. California’s goal of 100% renewable energy and millions of electric vehicles is on track, and Santa Barbara County is leading the way with a wide range of active projects, including the Strauss Wind project, the Tajiguas Resource Recovery project, converting waste into renewable energy, a number of large battery storage projects, a new solar ordinance, community choice energy, county building renewable projects, and the electrification of the county’s fleet of cars. These will create hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars of tax revenue.

Critical to this progress is maintaining the environmental leadership of Supervisors Das Williams and Joan Hartmann, both instrumental to this progress, both endorsed by the Sierra Club, and both up for re-election on March 3, with mail in ballots dropping in early February. Vote Das Williams for 1st District County Supervisor!

Katie Davis Chair, Sierra Club Los Padres Chapter

Integrity Matters

For those of us who have done any building in SB County we can all agree, it ain’t easy. Indeed, it’s this understanding that makes our current cannabis process so suspect.

Prop 64 took effect in 2016 and for growers to expand from small medical grows to what are now the largest pot farms in the world, they needed to file an affidavit stating “yes” we were growing medical MJ on or before January 19, 2016. No photographic evidence or revenue receipts, just the affidavit. This scheme was created because earlier the County had banned recre-

“Paris is the city in which one loves to live... what other city offers as much as you leave a train?” - Margaret Anderson

ational cultivation except for those who claimed (I won’t say “proved”) legal medical MJ grows.

This single piece of paper – approximately 200 were filed – formed the basis (“Legal Nonconforming Use”) for every provisional state license in the County. A County that now boasts 1,146 such licenses over approximately 70 parcels. Frankly, it’s utterly amazing how many folks were growing medical MJ – who would have guessed?

Anyway, here’s the rub: The County – usually sticklers for process – deemed these affidavits sufficient on their face. How about a quick site visit or a momentary search on Google Earth – no, too involved for our $950M County and second largest employer.

Or, how about settled law that requires the claimant to prove (and the County to “adjudicate”) the prior use at a public hearing? Something that the Planning Commission recommended – after all, it is the claimant seeking the entitlement. Not in our banana republic where when it comes to cannabis our Political Monarchy set no reasonable limits. And the costs, well the Supervisors require that other non-profiting residents pay – huh? I’m thinking about seeking a variance for an open-air dump and I can’t wait for the County to require my complaining neighbors to belly-up. Strange madness, wouldn’t you agree?

You might not care about how cannabis affects our vaunted American Riviera brand, health, values and wine/ hospitality industries or that there are reasonable fixes that our Supervisors ignore. My question is whether you care about integrity? I ask because here is where things get downright weird – a certain number of affidavits have been questioned. Guess what the County is thinking about doing? Nothing! That’s right, they are considering ignoring a false affidavit when it comes time to issue a County Permit.

As questions and accusations swirl, the one thing we know for certain is that in this election year special interest money has flowed like a river to our Supervisors and pols. But this is still America and unless we make a change in March and November we can all expect more of the same. Integrity matters!

Jeff Giordano SB County Resident •MJ 30 January – 6 February 2020

Notice Inviting Bids

ORDINANCE NO. 5930

ON CALL PAVING REPAIRS Bid No. 5817 1.

2.

Bid Submission. The City of Santa Barbara (“City”) will accept sealed bids for its On Call Paving Repairs Project (“Project”), by or before Wednesday, February 19, 2020, at 3 PM, at its Purchasing Office, located at 310 E. Ortega Street, Santa Barbara, California 93101, at which time the bids will be publicly opened and read aloud. Each bidder is responsible for making certain that its Bid Proposal is actually delivered to the Purchasing Office. The receiving time at the Purchasing Office will be the governing time for acceptability of bids. Telegraphic, telephonic, electronic, and facsimile bids will not be accepted.

Project Information.

2.1 Location and Description. The Project is located at locations throughout the City where paving cuts and excavations have been performed, and is described as follows: Locate and confirm locations to be repaired, remove existing patch, compact subgrade, place and compact base and asphalt or concrete for a permanent patch per the specifications. The work includes all labor, material, supervision, plant and equipment necessary to complete the following: sawcutting and removal of temporary street sections; grinding (cold milling) to remove and replace AC; grinding of failed areas and repair, spot leveling, apply temporary traffic control and signing, notification, and performing all other related work as necessary to provide a completed project; all in accordance with the Standard Specifications, City Standard details, Plans, and Special Provisions.

AN INTERIM URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA BARBARA EXTENDING ORDINANCE NO. 5927 CONCERNING ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS FOR 10 MONTHS & 15 DAYS, OR UNTIL DECEMBER 17, 2020 The above captioned ordinance was adopted at a regular meeting of the Santa Barbara City Council held on January 14, 2020.

The publication of this ordinance is made pursuant to the provisions of Section 512 of the Santa Barbara City Charter as amended, and the original ordinance in its entirety may be obtained at the City Clerk's Office, City Hall, Santa Barbara, California.

(Seal) /s/ Sarah Gorman, CMC City Clerk Services Manager

2.2 Time for Completion. The Project will be performed over the course of five years on an as needed basis. City anticipates that the Work will begin on or about March 1, 2020, but the anticipated start date is provided solely for convenience and is neither certain nor binding.

2.3 Estimated Cost. The estimated construction cost is $2,250,000 over the course of 5 years. Subject to actual budgetary appropriations, the annual amount is estimated to be $450,000.

3.

License and Registration Requirements.

3.1 License. This Project requires a valid California contractor’s license for the following classification(s): A. 3.2 DIR Registration. City may not accept a Bid Proposal from or enter into the Contract with a bidder, without proof that the bidder is registered with the California Department of Industrial Relations (“DIR”) to perform public work pursuant to Labor Code § 1725.5, subject to limited legal exceptions.

4.

Contract Documents. The plans, specifications, bid forms and contract documents for the Project, and any addenda thereto (“Contract Documents”) may be downloaded from City’s website at: http://www.planetbids.com/portal/portal.cfm?CompanyID=29959 A printed copy of the Contract Documents may be obtained from CyberCopy Shop, located at 504 N. Milpas Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93103, at (805) 884-6155.

5.

Bid Security. The Bid Proposal must be accompanied by bid security of ten percent of the maximum bid amount, in the form of a cashier’s or certified check made payable to City, or a bid bond executed by a surety licensed to do business in the State of California on the Bid Bond form included with the Contract Documents. The bid security must guarantee that within ten days after City issues the Notice of Award, the successful bidder will execute the Contract and submit the payment and performance bonds, insurance certificates and endorsements, and any other submittals required by the Contract Documents and as specified in the Notice of Award.

6.

Prevailing Wage Requirements.

6.1 General. Pursuant to California Labor Code § 1720 et seq., this Project is subject to the prevailing wage requirements applicable to the locality in which the Work is to be performed for each craft, classification or type of worker needed to perform the Work, including employer payments for health and welfare, pension, vacation, apprenticeship and similar purposes.

6.2 Rates. These prevailing rates are on file with the City and are available online at http://www.dir.ca.gov/DLSR. Each Contractor and Subcontractor must pay no less than the specified rates to all workers employed to work on the Project. The schedule of per diem wages is based upon a working day of eight hours. The rate for holiday and overtime work must be at least time and one-half.

6.3 Compliance. The Contract will be subject to compliance monitoring and enforcement by the DIR, under Labor Code § 1771.4.

7.

Performance and Payment Bonds. The successful bidder will be required to provide performance and payment bonds, each for 100% of the Contract Price, as further specified in the Contract Documents.

8.

Substitution of Securities. Substitution of appropriate securities in lieu of retention amounts from progress payments is permitted under Public Contract Code § 22300.

9.

Subcontractor List. Each Subcontractor must be registered with the DIR to perform work on public projects. Each bidder must submit a completed Subcontractor List form with its Bid Proposal, including the name, location of the place of business, California contractor license number, DIR registration number, and percentage of the Work to be performed (based on the base bid price) for each Subcontractor that will perform Work or service or fabricate or install Work for the prime contractor in excess of one-half of 1% of the bid price, using the Subcontractor List form included with the Contract Documents.

10.

11.

Instructions to Bidders. All bidders should carefully review the Instructions to Bidders for more detailed information before submitting a Bid Proposal. The definitions provided in Article 1 of the General Conditions apply to all of the Contract Documents, as defined therein, including this Notice Inviting Bids.

Non-Mandatory Pre Bid, Bidders’ Conference. A bidders’ conference will be held on Thursday, February 6, 2020 at 1:00 PM., at the following location: David Gebhard Public Meeting Room, 630 Garden Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 to acquaint all prospective bidders with the Contract Documents and the Worksite. Attendance at the bidders’ conference is not mandatory, but is strongly encouraged. No relief will be granted to contractors for any conditions or restrictions that would have been discovered, if they had attended the pre-bid conference.

By: ___________________________General Services Manager Publication Dates: 1) January 22, 2020

Date: ________________

2) January 29, 2020 END OF NOTICE INVITING BIDS

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: Sotero Landscaping, 104 Los Aguajes Ave Apt. #1, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Raul Sotero, 104 Los Aguajes Ave Apt. #1, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on January 24, 2020. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original state-

ment on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL), filed by Maria F. Sanchez. FBN No. 2020-0000274. Published January 29, February 5, 12, 19, 2020.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: The Locals; The Locals, Santa Barbara, 209 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101.

Evokelife LLC, 804 Grove Lane, Santa Barbara, CA 93105. This statement was filed with the Coun-

30 January – 6 February 2020

ty Clerk of Santa Barbara County on January 21, 2020. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office.

Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL), filed by John Beck. FBN No. 2020-0000201. Published January 29, February 5, 12, 19, 2020.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business

as: Orchid Cleaning, 104 Los Aguajes Ave Apt. #1, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Orquidia Hernandez, 104 Los Aguajes Ave Apt. #1, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on January 22, 2020. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL), filed by Maria F. Sanchez. FBN

• The Voice of the Village •

ORDINANCE NO. 5930 STATE OF CALIFORNIA

) ) COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA ) ss. ) CITY OF SANTA BARBARA ) I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing ordinance was introduced and adopted by the Council of the City of Santa Barbara at a meeting held on January 14, 2020, by the following roll call vote: AYES:

Councilmembers Eric Friedman, Alejandra Gutierrez, Oscar Gutierrez, Meagan Harmon, Kristen W. Sneddon; Mayor Cathy Murillo

NOES:

None

ABSENT:

None

ABSTENTIONS:

Councilmember Mike Jordan

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the City of Santa Barbara on January 15, 2020.

/s/ Sarah P. Gorman, CMC City Clerk Services Manager I HEREBY APPROVE the foregoing ordinance on January 15, 2020.

/s/ Cathy Murillo Mayor Published January 29, 2020 Montecito Journal

No. 2020-0000224. Published January 29, February 5, 12, 19, 2020.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: Khemia Haircare, 5575 Hollister Ave Ste C, Goleta, CA 93117. Eleni Tziouvaras, 2019 Bath Street Unit C, Santa Barbara, CA 93105. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on January 6, 2020. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk.

I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL), filed by Margarita Silva.

FBN No. 2020-0000064. Published January 22, 29, February 5, 12, 2020.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: Amorita, 6267 Covington Way, Goleta, CA 93117. Elisiana Qori Aldenderfer, 6267 Covington Way, Goleta, CA 93117. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on January

13, 2020. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL), filed by Margarita Silva. FBN No. 2020-0000134. Published January 22, 29, February 5, 12, 2020.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT: The following person(s) is/are doing business as: Montecito Journal; The Santa Barbara Sentinel, 1206 Coast Village Circle, Suite H, Santa Barbara, CA 93108. Montecito Journal Media Group, LLC, 1206 Coast Village Circle, Suite H, Santa Barbara, CA 93108. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on January 14, 2020.

This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL), filed by Maria F. Sanchez. FBN No. 2020-0000145. Published January 15, 22, 29, February 5, 2020.

MONTECITO JOURNAL

39

VILLAGE BEAT (Continued from page 32)

tive director Sharon Byrne asking how each candidate plans on keeping Montecito semi-rural but technologically up-to-date. Both candidates said keeping traffic off local streets is important to them, with Capps saying she would be a proponent for undergrounding power lines on main arteries. Montecito Fire Protection District board president Silvia Easton asked if the candidates would be a proponent of combing our three special districts into a Special Service District; Capps said no, while Williams, who serves on LAFCO, said he would be happy to serve as a facilitator if the community wanted to further discuss becoming a special district. Regardless, he said, the County is continuing with an $8M investment to move forward on borderless dispatch, which will consolidate and enhance emergency dispatch.

President of the Groundwater Sustainability Agency Board President Cori Hayman, Montecito Sanitary District Board President Tom Bollay, and Montecito Water District Board President Floyd Wicks brought up the topic of sustainable and recycled water; both candidates agreed that recycled water, conservation, drought tolerant landscaping, and management of the groundwater basin are imperative for the community’s resilience.

Montecito Trails Foundation Board President Ashlee Mayfield brought up improvement of walking paths and the trail system in Montecito; Williams noted his involvement with the SB Bucket Brigade to build the new path along North Jameson, while Capps stated that she is committed to keeping the trails system a priority.

Both candidates said they recognize what a unique and special community Montecito is, making mention of the diversity of talents and creativity from Montecito residents, in addition to the community’s resilience and dedication. “The role of the supervisor is simple: to protect and enhance the quality of life for the people,” Capps said during her closing statement.

Williams closed by saying that he has been more than dedicated to the Montecito community. “Over many years I’ve consistently proven to you that I am faithful to this community.

We have staff that give it their all, I give it my all. I have been here for this community, and I will continue to be here for this community.”

The election is March 3, with mail-in ballots beginning February 3.

Mercury Ballroom Supper Club

Montecito resident Christie Jenkins has been hard at work planning a unique musical experience at the Rockwood Woman’s Club in February; the Mercury Ballroom Supper Club runs nightly (with a matinée on Sunday) from Tuesday, February 11 through Sunday, February 16.

Jenkins, who moved to Montecito in 2017, says she decided to create the four-hour experience to bring happiness to Santa Barbara and Montecito residents. “The characters in a 1940s musical are happy! They dress well, go to wonderful clubs, dance, sing, are available for fun capers, and always find love and romance. Exactly what most of us are missing today,” she said.

Guests are encouraged to dress up for the event, which starts with a greeting by a showgirl with a “cigarette tray” of retro cocktails; a coatcheck girl takes your wrap, and you are led to your table by a bellhop.

Soon after the floor show – a cabaret – begins, starring Broadway star Nathan Madden, who recently returned from Paris where he starred in An American in Paris. Next, guests will be entertained by a 31-minute floor show designed by Jenkins, featuring dancers and singers, comedy, the Andrews Sisters tribute, radio commercials, and surprises.

A festive dinner follows, featuring turkey that has been smoked in East Texas, followed by dessert and coffee.

Cast members from the show will

Montecito resident Christie Jenkins has created a unique event at Rockwood Woman’s Club. The Mercury Ballroom Supper Club transports attendees to another time, the 1940s, for music, show, dinner, and dancing.

invite guests up to dance, while the Blue Note Jazz Orchestra takes over the entertainment. The orchestra features twenty musicians in white tuxedos, all playing songs from Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, and the hits from The Great American Songbook as it’s now called. “There will be lots of surprises, and the music is the best music ever. You can dance or just listen, and really leave your daily troubles behind,” Jenkins said.

Jenkins says she hoped to offer the Supper Club event in 2018, but felt it would seem insensitive as Santa Barbara, and particularly Montecito, was shell shocked from the 1/9 debris flow. “That’s exactly what they did in war-times, created musicals to lift spirits,” she said.

She hopes to sell enough tickets to cover the cost of the production, and humbly asks that those interested buy their tickets as soon as possible. As of press time, tickets for The Mercury Ballroom Supper Club have sold to the half-way mark for breaking even, Jenkins said. “I’m eagerly expecting 1,200 people to come have an amazing 1940s happy experience. Guests will feel as if they are in a Fred Astaire musical. What could be better?”

Tickets include the first cocktail, with a cash bar available as well. Tickets can be purchased at www.brownpa pertickets.com/event/4452047. The event is at 6 pm Tuesday, February 11, through Saturday, February 15, with a matinée (2 pm) on Sunday, February 16.

Festival of Hearts

40 MONTECITO JOURNAL

Friendship Center is hosting its 21st Annual Festival of Hearts on Saturday, February 8, at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort.

This festive pre-Valentine’s Day event features an elegant sit-down lunch with local wines and live music

by A la Carte, owned by Jan Ingram and Henry Garrett. The theme this year is the Roaring ‘20s, and guests are invited to dress as a jazz-age flapper, dandy, or gangster!

Since the first Festival of Hearts in 2000, the centerpiece of the event has “When Paris sneezes, Europe catches cold.” - Metternich

been the exquisite Heart-art sold at silent auction, created by local artists and celebrities, including Jeff Bridges, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Tony Askew, and Rod Lathim. Provided with a blank papier-mâché heart, the ever-inventive “Heart-ists” paint, sculpt, and decorate in a multitude of ways to create these unique works.

The live auction, conducted by notable local auctioneer Geoff Green, will feature an in-town getaway with a dinner for six of fresh local lobster and white sea bass at a private home, a sojourn to a Seattle speakeasy, and the Gatsby Glamour Package: a stay at the Rosewood Miramar Beach with added surprises.

Fundraising from this event support Friendship Center’s HEART (Help Elders At Risk Today) Program, subsidizing the cost of adult day services for low-income aging and dependent adults and their families.

Major sponsors include Tom and Nancy Crawford, Casa Dorinda, HUB International Insurance Services, Marborg, Union Bank, SB Home Improvement Center, Cal-Western & Pacific Tree, CenCal Health, Quinn Fiduciary Services, and Rosewood Miramar Beach Resort.

For tickets, $140 each, visit www. friendshipcentersb.org or call 805969-0859 to purchase by phone with a credit card. Or mail your check to Friendship Center, 89 Eucalyptus Lane, Santa Barbara, CA 93108.

Suspects Arrested for Auto Burglaries

A man and a woman driving a stolen sedan were arrested at gunpoint on Saturday afternoon, January 25, after a string of auto burglaries in Goleta at the Calle Real Shopping Center and in Montecito on Coast Village Circle.

At about 3:30 pm, a deputy on patrol in Carpinteria observed a suspect vehicle that had been connected to several reported vehicle break-ins. The deputy tried to get close enough to make a traffic stop on the black sedan, which was reported stolen from San Jose, but was unable to do so. A short time later, the sedan collided with another vehicle on southbound Highway 101 near the Santa Ynez Avenue overpass, and the two occupants of the suspect vehicle fled on foot. The woman was quickly taken into custody nearby, while the man ran down Carpinteria Avenue, hiding in an unlocked vehicle. The male suspect was taken into custody a short time later with the aid of a K-9 unit and a county helicopter.

The suspects were connected to several auto burglaries in Goleta, as well as at least one other on Coast Village Road; a witness reported seeing the sedan circling the parking lots on Coast Village Circle on Saturday afternoon.

•MJ 30 January – 6 February 2020

ENTERTAINMENT (Continued from page 27)

eted place on the roster of Young Concert Artists in its 58-year history. Her hour-long interview and performance on the 2,145th episode of New York WQXR’s Young Artists Showcase marked the first appearance of a solo accordionist on the program.

As the First Prize Winner of the 2017 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, Wang’s debut opened the Young Concert Artists Series in New York in The Peter Marino Concert at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, and her Washington, D.C., debut opened the 40th Anniversary Young Concert Artists Series at the Kennedy Center, co-presented with Washington Performing Arts.

Her mastery of her instrument is complemented by her creative taste in programming, with concerts ranging from her transcriptions of Baroque music to tangos and contemporary works written for the instrument or for Wang herself.

Wang now serves as an assistant professor at the Royal Danish Academy, and in August 2018, Naxos released Wang’s Danish-recorded solo debut, On the Path to H.C. Andersen, which also happened to be the label’s first-ever solo accordion album in its history. The record features works by Danish composers that explore both the darkness and luminosity of Hans

Christian Andersen’s famous stories, tales that also had resonance for the accordionist when she was growing up.

“I loved his fairytales, and would always ask my parents to read me his stories at bedtime,” Wang recalled.

“To have music entirely written by Danish composers that was inspired

by Andersen, like ‘The Little Match Girl’ (which was composed for her by Martin Lohse) and ‘Little Mermaids,’ is exciting both for me and because it spans generations.”

This weekend, Wang makes her Santa Barbara debut with a solo recital at Hahn Hall on the campus of the Music Academy of the West, offering locals their first chance to see and hear her impeccable technique and captivating stage presence, one that comes naturally.

“On the stage are the most happy moments for me,” Wang said. “Piano is great, but they don’t get to hold the instruments as close as an accordionist does. We are hugging the accordion close to our hearts. It feels like a part of my body, a big part of who I am.”

Wang is also an artist with ambitions to expand the accordion’s repertoire, especially in America, where, unlike in China, there are literally no programs for students to study the instrument at a classical conservatory.

“The accordion has such a huge potential, and I used to wonder why people there don’t understand the instrument, or consider it as a classical one,” said Wang, who will play works

by Bach, Scarlatti and Rameau in the Baroque-oriented first half of her concert on Saturday, February 1, followed by pieces from Alfred Schnittke and Edvard Grieg. “They don’t realize how versatile it can be. But back in China, we do have the education for an accordionist. But I hope it will come. When I play in the U.S., people are really enjoying it. Since the musical history of the accordion is fairly new, my main focus is to help the accordion establish its own identity as an instrument, and to encourage American composers to write for the instrument. I think it’s just a matter of time.”

From Cookies to Cultural Concerts

If violinist-violist Sara Bashore hadn’t been craving cookies as a kid, she might never have made it to Montenegro. At least that’s what Bashore remembered about her first exposure to the violin at age five.

“My parents took me to an orchestra concert and asked me if I was interested in any of the instruments,” she recalled. “I told them I liked the

violinist in the front because not only did they get to sit in the front row, but they were also closest to the cookies at the reception. My desire to eat cookies changed my entire life.”

Fast-forward a few years shy of a couple of decades later and Bashore is still sitting in the concertmistress seat of both the UCSB Chamber Orchestra and the student created and managed UCSB Pops Orchestra and also plays first violin with the Santa Maria Philharmonic. It was early in her senior year at UCSB in 2018 when Bashore received the honor of representing Santa Barbara at Kotor’s annual arts festival in Montenegro that summer as part of the Sister Cities program.

“They hadn’t done anything like exchanges of musicians before,” Bashore said of the program that had Kotor-SB programs that had previously facilitated swaps of water polo players, youth theater actors and culinary students. “We were like the scouts for that process,” she added, referring to last year’s UCSB-to-Kotor participant graduate cellist Katrina Agate.

“I’d never been outside of North America before. To travel by myself like that was crazy, and I was a bit worried that I’d be a stranger in a strange land. But the people were

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• The Voice of the Village •

MONTECITO JOURNAL

41

C ALENDAR OF Note to readers: This entertainment calendar is a subjective sampling of arts and other events taking place in the Santa Barbara area for the next week. It is by no means comprehensive. Be sure to read feature stories in each issue that complement the calendar. In order to be considered for inclusion in this calendar, information must be submitted no later than noon on the Wednesday eight days prior to publication date. Please send all news releases and digital artwork to slibowitz@yahoo.com)

THURSDAY, JANUARY 30

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1

String Thing at Museum – The Thalea String Quartet brings together artists of Nigerian, Venezuelan, Japanese and Canadian heritage, and plays a repertoire as diverse as its members. Playing with exuberance, the Thalea has connected with audiences on musical, emotional and personal levels, impressing both first-time listeners and string quartet aficionados. The ensemble made its U.S. debut at the Kennedy Center in 2016, and have also performed across North America and in Italy, France, and Belgium, earning praise for their “vibrant performance” and “sincere expressivity” from the San Francisco Classical Voice. Today marks the Thalea’s local debut with an intimate concert at the Mary Craig Auditorium at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. The program features Aaron Copland’s Movement for String Quartet, Beethoven’s quartet Op. 59 No. 2, and Three Folksongs in Counterpoint by African-American composer Florence Price, plus a new work written for the Thalea Quartet – comprised of violinists Christopher Whitley and Luis Bellorin, violist Kumiko Sakamoto, and cellist Titilayo Ayangade – that has yet to be announced. WHEN: 7:30 pm WHERE: 1130 State Street (entrance in the rear) COST: $25 general, $20 museum members INFO: (805) 9634364 or www.sbma.net

Cash-ing in on Tributers – Two guys named Danny are sharing a bill at the Lobero that pays tribute to two of the icons of modern popular music. The legacy of Johnny Cash lives on with the help of singer-guitarist Danny Millsap and a group known as the Hennessy Three, who together go by The Only Johnny Cash Tribute Band. Millsap credits a 1990 Cash concert in Fresno as a formative moment in his life, one that sparked a lifelong goal to keep the music and mystery of The Man in Black alive. The Cash tribute, he’s performed all over Northern California and the Central Valley, Oregon and Arizona, keeping alive the legendary ballads of the somber country-inflected singer-songwriter with a show that always features audience participation. Danny Memphis took his last name from the city where he was born and raised, which was also where Elvis Presley first found fame and fortune. Danny No. 2, along with his first band, won first place in Memphis in a contest at the Overton Park Shell, the same stage that Elvis performed his first professional show.

Danny Memphis works hard to capture the look, essence, dance moves and natural vocal style of Elvis in a tasteful, heartfelt celebration of the man and his music from the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s eras. WHEN: 8 pm WHERE: Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 30 Teach ‘em with Meacham – Back in 2018, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Jon Meacham was one of four authors who collaborated on the book Impeachment: An American History, which examined the impeachments of Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon (who resigned before the actual vote) and Bill Clinton, as well as the concept of the process and the likelihood of Donald Trump being impeached. Whether Trump, who was impeached in December, will still be on trial in the U.S. Senate by the time you read this isn’t clear, but Meacham’s expertise extends far beyond the current crisis. Considered one of America’s great public intellectuals and a skilled raconteur, Meacham is the biographer of presidents Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and George H.W. Bush, and brings a depth of knowledge about politics, religion and current affairs bridging historical context to the issues and events impacting our daily lives. A contributor to Time and The New York Times Book Review, Meacham is a highly sought-after commentator, regularly appearing on CNN and MSNBC. His recent book, The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels, examines the present moment in America by looking at critical times in U.S. history when hope overcame division and fear. That’s also the thrust of tonight’s lecture titled “America Then and Now: What History Tells Us About the Future.” WHEN: 7:30 pm WHERE: Granada Theatre, 1214 State Street COST: $35-$50 INFO: (805) 899-2222/www.granadasb.org or (805) 893-3535/www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu (photo by Gasper Tringale)

42 MONTECITO JOURNAL

EVENTS

by Steven Libowitz

FRIDAY, JANUARY 31 Psychedelic Cumbia – Latin Fusion sensation Ocho Ojos was founded less than four years ago by Coachella Valley musicians Danny Torres (synthesizer) and Cesar Flores (guitar/vocals) – who chose their name, which means “eight eyes” in Spanish, as a lighthearted reference to the fact that both Flores and Torres wear thick black glasses. Their eyesight might need some help, but the duo’s vision has propelled them to big achievements in very little time, as Ocho Ojos, which started as a backyard band playing gigs in their hometown before adding bassist James Gastelum and drummer Rafael Rodriguez, soon found regular bookings at local clubs and bars. In the summer of 2017, they catapulted to performing at the Coachella Festival as a last-minute addition alongside global superstars such as Beyoncé and Radiohead, and then were invited back in 2019 as part of the official line-up. Apparently, combining the music that Torres grew up listening to – cumbia, classic rock, and heavy metal – with a psychedelic sound that comes from Chicha, a style of cumbia that originated in the Peruvian Amazon in the 1960s, resulted in a blend of sounds and timbres that has mass appeal. And now Psychedelic Cumbia is its own genre. Hear the originators tonight at the UCSB MultiCultural Center’s intimate theater. WHEN: 6 pm WHERE: University Center Room 1504 COST: $15 general, $5 UCSB students and children under 12 INFO: (805) 893-2064 or www.mcc.sa.ucsb.edu/events

COST: $46-$66 INFO: (805) 9630761 or www.lobero.com ‘Psalms of Cinder & Silt’ – Solo Novo Volume 7/8, Glenna Luschei’s most recent publication in a 50-year career, is an anthology of timely and heartfelt verse from more than 70 California poets, each of whom experienced first-hand the natural disasters that crippled the state in 2017-18. The book originated in community poetry readings in Ventura and Topanga held with the purpose of healing after the twin disasters of fire and mudslides and grew to include poems from many others written in response to these events.

Many of the moving poems will be read by some of the artists who created them including Westmont professor Paul Willis, former Santa Barbara Poet Laureate David Starkey, Marsha de la O, Phil Taggart, and several others. The aim is for audience members to feel a sense of connection with the poets and one another via the shared experiences of surviving the disasters, as well as enjoying the new growth that springs up after a wildfire in the form of verse. The reading will be presented as a memorial to the victims of the Montecito debris flows and will include a reading of their names. Light refreshments served. WHEN: 2-4 pm WHERE: Westmont College’s Deane Chapel, 955 La Paz Road, Montecito COST: free INFO: (805) 565-6051 or www.westmont.edu

“France is the only country where the money falls apart and you can’t tear the toilet paper.” - Billy Wilder

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 2 Harp on It – Kim Robertson is a nationally well-known harpist, composer and recording artist who has expanded the boundaries of the harp for more than one generation of music lovers. Classically trained on piano and orchestral harp, Robertson discovered the Celtic harp in the 1970s and her desire to explore the instrument’s potential made her a pioneer in the American folk harp movement.

She’s played gigs at grassroots folk clubs, luxury cruise ships, concert halls and mountaintops, regularly tours the USA, Canada and Europe and has recorded dozens of albums, including several on the Narada label and on Invincible Music for the Crimson Series of Gurmukhi meditation music in collaboration with vocalist Singh Kaur.

The Santa Barbara Chapter of the American Harp Society has booked Robertson for a special show featuring Ojai-based cellist Virginia Kron, who has won critical praise as “a remarkable musician with a distinctive cello style” and for her “intensity, subtlety and selfless musicianship ... and world class sound.” WHEN: 2 pm WHERE: Goleta Presbyterian Church, 6067 Shirrell Way, Goleta COST: $15 INFO: (805) 448-8906 or email malawler1@gmail.com 30 January – 6 February 2020

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 4 Mandatory Mandolin – Who might have predicted what lay in store for when Chris Thile began playing the mandolin at the age of five? Just three years later he and Sara and Sean Watkins formed Nickel Creek, which went on to reinvent the progressive bluegrass genre. By 12, Thile had won the mandolin championship at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas, and seven years later Nickel Creek went multi-platinum and earned Grammy nominations and awards.

And all that was before Thile went on to form the acoustic folk and progressive bluegrass quintet Punch Brothers, earn a 2012 MacArthur “Genius Award” Fellowship, make albums with classical music heroes including Edgar Meyer and Yo-Yo Ma, reinterpret the Bach violin sonatas for mandolin, compose a much-lauded mandolin concerto called Ad astra per alas porci, and take over as the host of the radio variety show A Prairie Home Companion, which in December 2017 was renamed Live from Here. We’ve heard precious little about what to expect when Thile, a frequent Santa Barbara visitor since the early Nickel Creek days, returns to town for a solo appearance at Campbell Hall. But does it really matter? When you have a chance to hear “A graceful and soulful singer, relaxed raconteur, dazzling virtuoso, gifted composer and all-around charmer” as The Washington Post put it, does the set list make a difference? WHEN: 8 pm WHERE: Campbell Hall, UCSB campus COST: $40-$55 INFO: (805) 893-3535 www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5 Passion Piece – Theater of the Feminine Underground’s Anima, produced by the pleasure activist/performance artist/sacred sexuality teacher Lisa Citore, has been called “Vulnerable, daring and feverishly gripping,” “Stirring, sensual, thought-provoking, mythic,” and “Raw, personal and bring-the-house-down funny” in local newspapers. OK, truth be told those remarks all came from your current correspondent, who has no trouble standing by every word, as the ritual theater experience is almost like its own mini rite of passage for the audience as well as performers. This time around, the women who will share

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their inner worlds, including dreams, secrets, vulnerable edges and hard won wisdom through dance, song, spoken word and performance art, include a bunch of returning artists: Elaine Gale, Melissa Lowenstein, Cybil Gilbertson, Jenna Tico, Cynthia Waring, Aurora Rose Wesman, Justine Sutton, Samantha Bonavia as well as Citore, whose own passionate pieces are usually worth the price of admission alone. WHEN: 7 pm WHERE: Upstairs in the Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, at the intersection of Chapala and De la Guerra Streets COST: $24 in advance, $29 at the door INFO: (805) 963-0408 or www.centerstagetheater.org •MJ

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UCSB Arts & Lectures presents

Poet Laureate in Person – Last June, Joy Harjo, a visionary poet of the Muscogee Creek Nation celebrated for her insightful attention to the spiritual and natural worlds, became the first Native American to be named United States Poet Laureate.

Her poetry tells an American story of tradition and loss, reckoning and myth-making over a wideranging body of work that includes the landmark poetry collection She Had Some Horses and her recent acclaimed memoir Crazy Brave. Harjo’s many writing awards include the 2019 Jackson Prize from the Poetry Society of America, the Ruth Lilly Prize from the Poetry Foundation, a National Book Award, the 2015 Wallace Stevens Award from the Academy of American Poets and the William Carlos Williams Award from the Poetry Society of America.

Her newest collection, An American Sunrise, was published in August. WHEN: 7:30 pm WHERE: Fleischmann Auditorium, Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta Del Sol Rd. COST: $20 INFO: (805) 893-3535 www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu (photo

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ENTERTAINMENT (Continued from page 41) so nice and Kotor is similar to Santa Barbara in that both places have water on one side and mountains on the other. It turns out the culture is quite similar, too. Everybody goes to the beach, and they have a relaxed, happy lifestyle. I felt quite at home and everybody was excited to hear about America.”

Now Bashore and Agate – who attended the Music Academy of the West’s summer festival in 2015 and now enjoys a varied career that includes numerous recitals and recent appearances and a recording with Coldplay – will serve as the home team for the other side of the exchange, as Montenegran violinist Nastasja Vojinović and pianist Andrija Jovović are headed our way for a pair of performances on Friday, January 31. The foursome will play a variety of selections from the standard classical repertoire, showcasing the instruments in a number of combinations.

“We’ve only communicated by email, but they seem very nice,” Bashore said. “And one of the things I learned from the cultural exchange is that there really aren’t any vast differences in rehearsals, concerts, and the music itself. That cheesy line that music is the universal language is actually true. When I was there, I was able to rehearse with people as if I’d known them my whole life. Now the musicians from Kotor are flying in on Wednesday night and we will only have one day to prepare. That speaks to their quality that they can be ready to go in 24 hours. I’m really looking forward to it.”

The Santa Barbara-Kotor Sister Cities concert takes place 7 pm Friday at Weinman Hall on the MAW campus. Visit www.sbkotor sistercity.com.

Changing Sprockets: 3 Qs with Glen Phillips We caught up with Glen Phillips, the lead singer-songwriter of Toad the Wet Sprocket, coincidentally just a few days after the death of Terry Jones, one of the stars of the seminal comedy group Monty Python. The Santa Barbara-born alternative rock band took its name from one of the troupe’s skits back when Phillips was just 15; Eric Idle had created the phrase as an absurd title for a rock band in a skit where a journalist delivers a nonsensical music news report. The moniker might be one of the biggest regrets of Phillips and band mates guitarist Todd Nichols, bassist Dean Dinning, and drummer Randy Guss, but Idle – who reportedly learned about the band when he heard a Los Angeles DJ identify a song on the radio as being

by Toad the Wet Sprocket – took it in stride. “He jokingly said he’d never sue us if we gave him a gold record if we ever earned one,” Phillips recalled.

“So, we sent him one when we did.”

That would have been after Toad, which formed in 1986, found chart success in the 1990s with a succession of such singles as “Walk on the Ocean,” “All I Want,” “Something’s Always Wrong,” “Fall Down,” and “Good Intentions” before disbanding for almost a decade in 1998, during which Phillips launched his artistically lauded solo career that still has him making new albums and performing all around the country, including gigs at SOhO several times a year. Over the ensuing dozen years, Toad reunited and began a run of nearly annual targeted summer tours while pursuing other interests during the off-season, which for Phillips includes leading weekly community singing sessions at

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active. A couple of seasons without new music can make things stale and that’s where trouble can start because you need changes and newness and frontiers. If we’re in the mode of exciting each other in that way, it goes better. Everything feeds each other.

d New iPaoo! t p u t se

Glen Phillips and Toad the Wet Sprocket play two shows at the Lobero, Thursday and Friday, January 30 and 31

a private Montecito home.

“It just feels so elemental,” he explained. “Before people began singing at each other in concerts, we sang with each other. It’s something we evolutionarily expect.”

This weekend, Toad will perform as a band in town for the first time in several years, with two shows at the Lobero on January 30-31. Phillips filled us in on the details.

Q. It’s been a while since Toad has played in town. Why now for these two shows at the Lobero?

A. Because we realized, hey, it’s been too long. We were overdue, and the gap was getting ridiculous. My mom, my brother, all of our families, they haven’t heard us play in years.

For all of us to have the whole families there is a big deal. More than anything these shows are for our parents…

But playing in town is always a bit strange. There’s a part that’s really warm and has that hometown feel.

But we’re also nervous because all of a sudden we have a huge block of friends and family. There are stresses we don’t have other places. Just making out the guest list alone is ridiculous. There’s a whole lot of people we love here! But it’s still a lot of fun to look out and see all those familiar faces. Of course we don’t want to mess up. So it’s kind of like Thanksgiving stress. Mostly it’s wonderful.

Speaking of familial situations, Toad has famously had some internal strife over the years. How are things now?

We’re working on new material, and we’re always better when we’re

“Every man has two countries: his own and France.” - John F. Kennedy

How about the old songs? Some of your most popular ones you wrote as a teenager or in your early 20s. Do you still enjoy singing them?

It’s all ever-changing, and it’s nightto-night. Some songs you sing because people want to hear them and some you still just like a lot. For the most part, I’m grateful that these songs still resonate in some way. The good things about asking the big questions – about life, like why are we here, what are we doing, how do we find happiness, what does it mean to be moral – you can keep asking those forever. The answers change more than the questions. So if the songs are asking them (which ours do), they don’t age badly... Having practiced regret, it’s hard for me not to think of what I might have done differently, but I’m proud of our material in Toad.

A Final Weekend of SBIFF

The red carpets have all been rolled back up, the klieg lights turned off, and filmmakers have gone on to the next festival along with their movies. But there’s still one final freebie for local film lovers before SBIFF calls it quits on its 35th festival. That would be the Third Weekend screenings, which although curtailed from the slate of nine or more films in the earliest years of the add-on will still show three of the most popular and acclaimed movies that screened during the official fest.

Screening on Friday, January 31, The Flying Circus, which won the Jeffrey C Barbakow Best International Feature Film, follows a troupe of actors from Kosovo who weigh the risks of illegally crossing the border into Albania in the hope of meeting their idol, Monty Python’s Michael Palin.

The Birdcatcher’s Son, a period drama set against the rugged landscape of the Faroe Islands that finds birdcatcher Esmar and his wife facing eviction from their farm unless they have a son, claimed the Audience Choice Award. It screens Saturday, February 1, while the following night brings Best Documentary Award winner Bastards’ Road, a story of pain, hope, and redemption that chronicles an Iraq War veteran who embarked on a 5,800-mile journey across the country – on foot – to visit fellow veterans and families of the fallen.

All the films screen at 6:30 pm and admission is on a first come, first served basis at SBIFF’s Riviera Theatre.

•MJ 30 January – 6 February 2020

Our Town

by Joanne A. Calitri

Joanne is a professional international photographer and journalist.

Contact her at: artraks@yahoo.com

Exploring the Process of Music with Joshua Roman

W

orld-renowned cellist, composer, and curator Joshua Roman is an alumnus of the Music Academy of the West (MAW) since 2002. He sent out letters of inquiry around the U.S. to secure a space undisturbed for composing a 16-minute piece for the Cleveland Orchestra. Scott Reed, President and CEO of MAW, reached out to Ashley Woods Hollister, Executive Director of The Squire Foundation, to inquire about having Joshua stay at its Via Maria Artist in Residence location from Christmas into January 2020.

She quickly made the arrangements and said, “My vision as the Executive Director of the Squire Foundation was to support Joshua Roman’s cello commission, to extend to the artist Morris B. Squire’s legacy of creating space for the purpose of elevating community from the ground up. I am pleased Joshua has the space here at Via Maria to experiment with his art while the community has the pleasure of welcoming one of the great musicians of our time within our daily life.” Scott added, “Joshua is a prime example of a classically-trained musician creating their own destiny. Currently, he is immersing into a community as an artist-in-residence at the Squire Foundation, a natural fit for his personality and artistry. While there, he is doing pop-up performances for new people he meets and personally connecting with many of our local cultural icons and leaders. We hope he’ll continue to spend time in Santa Barbara.”

I met with Joshua to do an exclusive on music for the Montecito Journal. The interview was taped, and transcribed for our readers: Q. Let’s start with your cello’s details and history A. The cello I play is named Midge; she was made in 1899 in Venice by Guilo Degani, in his early 20s. He studied with his father, Eugenio Degani, whose cellos I have seen in orchestras around the country, but have only seen one other made by Guilo. It’s very beautiful, the size is more narrow in the ribs than standard cellos, so it’s halfway between a cello and violin; sounds range from very sweet to full. I do not own it, it is owned by a couple who are my sponsors. The original intent was to start with this cello and at some point 30 January – 6 February 2020

go on to another cello. There are a few Stradivarius and Guarneri cellos that I love, so at some point moving on.

I do own several bows; the one I am currently playing was made in the 1790s with Mother of Pearl. The bow is so important!

Tone woods of your cello?

The top is made of spruce and the back is made of maple. I compare the woods to one stationary plate of maple and one vibrating plate of spruce. The sound posts help carry that vibration of the air inside and it comes out the f-holes.

String choice?

For strings I have spent years experimenting with different set ups.

Currently I use Jargar Forte Strings for A and D, and on the bottom I use the Spirocore Tungsten Medium Cello Strings. It’s expensive, $250 per set.

Do you need to be careful of the gauge due to the age of the cello?

It’s not so much about damage to the cello, but its ability to produce the sound, and on this instrument, the lower strings at a higher gauge just bottom out compared to the top strings.

Your tuning choice, e.g. 440?

Left to my own devices I put A at 441. But most of the time, I’m playing with orchestras. My trick is I stay backstage and tune to them playing the overture, which is not very long, and then I come out and play my concerto.

I don’t ever take the oboe’s A because even if everyone on stage tunes to that A, things change once they start playing, the room, the temperature, we go in different directions. I wait four or five minutes into that first piece, and it doesn’t matter what key they are in, I quietly backstage tune to whatever they’re doing so that when I come out later, I’m already prepared. And THAT can be all over the place, in Russia as high as 447, which is really bad for the cello, and it’s never below 440 [laughs].

What if it doesn’t resonate for you?

I have an exercise where I go through that, I want to feel why it doesn’t resonate. If I can’t take it, then I stop, but I always want to understand the nature of the reality that I am living in that moment and at times that means sitting with something

Cellist Joshua Roman during his Artist in Residency at The Squire Foundation, with Ashley Woods Hollister and Scott Reed

that is uncomfortable. There are pieces I refuse to play, I’ve turned down concerts because they want me to play those pieces, e.g., anything by Max Reger, people in Germany love him, it doesn’t resonate with me.

Who resonates with you?

Default is Bach, I play Bach for myself every day, I’ve played Bach since I was a kid, so it’s very strong inside. He just really figured out for most of the instruments, what is satisfying musically and physically, and tied them together, like you play a low open C string on cello at points where you can use them. It’s really fun to play an open C string, a natural freedom. My favorites are Bach’s “Six Solo Cello Suites,” all six of them.

Do you sing the notes to yourself when you play, practice, write?

Sometimes it comes out physically, but it is definitely there and a constant refinement and shifting; because there is so much to focus on, how am I going to hit the note, what color is the note, how does the note fit into the phrase, what should the phrase be, there’s what’s going on around me, how does it sound in the room, and you can go down any one of those paths for the rest of your life to the detriment of the others. A lot of these paths will have a similar approach, string players think ahead so they can play in tune, but if all you’re doing is making certain you’re accurate what are you communicating? If you just only think about color or emotions, are they detailed enough to produce the right note or in tune? You are always learning how to develop and refine technique and the point of it. That plays out in an obvious level, why am I thinking ahead? Is

• The Voice of the Village •

it because I’m afraid or I have something to share?

Your creative guru?

John Cleese! I read his book on creative process about 18 years ago and it is my whole go to thing.

On your upcoming foundation and legacy?

With the cello there is so much to explore and so many newcomers to the instrument as in the explosion of cello ensembles and in various genre bands. There is a very clear progression starting from Pablo Casals, Mstislav Leopoldovich “Slava” Rostropovich, and Yo-Yo Ma, cellists putting themselves out there engaged in the world, larger than life energies that made things happen bringing people in. I want to take that further, to make that grow. It’s a tremendous legacy to create opportunities, open doors and push the envelope, I want to make music more accessible to people who don’t think they can get into classical music. I do not play music by Bach, Beethoven, and Dvořák because it exists, I have to have a personal connection and feel it. You also have to do what’s new, we have to be creating. Recently there is a lot of growth in new classical music; loving classical music is having more of it. I don’t want the energy to stop with me, I want it to flow through me, and I say that classical music should not be a canon, it’s a tradition of creativity.

After a breath and smile, he finishes the interview with a quote by Gustav Mahler: “Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire.”

411: www.joshuaroman.com MONTECITO JOURNAL

•MJ

45

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