Sõ Percussion with Caroline Shaw to perform at UCSB Campbell Hall

By MARILYN MCMAHON NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

UCSB Arts & Lectures presents Sõ Percussion with Caroline Shaw at 8 p.m. April 21 at Campbell Hall. Pulitzer Prizewinner Caroline Shaw joins Sõ Percussion as vocalist for 10 songs she co-composed with the quartet members.

“Let the Soil Play Its Simple Part” explores soil cultivation as a metaphor for creativity and collaboration. Ms. Shaw’s acclaimed ear for melody and harmony and Sõ’s playful sense of rhythmic invention come together in this original music.

Taking inspiration from James Joyce, ABBA, American roots music, plainchant, Christian hymns and stories from the Old Testament, Sõ Percussion and Ms. Shaw dissolve the boundaries between classical and pop.

In the first half of the program, Sõ Percussion will perform works in its repertoire from a trio of young composers including ensemble members Eric ChaBeach, Angélica Negrón and Nathalie Joachim.

For 20 years and counting, Sõ Percussion has redefined chamber music for the 21st century.

Recent highlights have included performances at the Elbphilharmonie, Big Ears 2022, where the ensemble performed “Amid the Noise,” premiered a new work by Angélica Negrón with the Kronos Quartet, and performed its album with Caroline Shaw, “Let the Soil

Calendar

The calendar appears Mondays through Saturdays in the “Life & the Arts” section. Items are welcome. Please email them a full week before the event to Managing Editor Dave Mason at dmason@newspress.com.

TODAY 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. “Storytelling: Native People Through the Lens of Edward S. Curtis” is on display through April 30 at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol, Santa Barbara. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Mondays. For more information, visit sbnature.org.

10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. “SURREAL

WOMEN: Surrealist Art by American Women” is on display through April 24 at Sullivan Goss: An American Gallery, 11 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara. The gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily. For more information, www.sullivangoss.com. By appointment on weekdays: “Holly Hungett: Natural Interpretations” is on view through May 20 at the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara’s gallery, 229 E. Victoria St., Santa Barbara. The gallery is open 1 to 4 p.m. Saturdays and weekdays by appointment. For more information, call the foundation at 805-965-6307 or go to www.afsb.org.

Noon to 5 p.m. “Clarence Mattei: Portrait of a Community” is on view now through May at the Santa Barbara Historical Museum, which is located in downtown Santa Barbara at 136 E. De la Guerra St. Admission is free. Hours are currently from noon to 5 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays and from noon to 7 p.m. Thursdays. For more information, visit www.sbhistorical. org. to etcsb.org or call 805-9655400.

APRIL 12

8 p.m. Elton Dan & The Rocket Band will perform at the Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St., Santa Barbara. The band plays tribute to Elton John. Tickets cost $34 and $52 for general admission and $92 for VIP seats. To purchase, go to lobero.org.

APRIL 13

7:30 p.m. John Oates, one-half of the duo of Hall & Oates, will perform at the Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St., Santa Barbara. The concert will also feature singersongwriter and guitarist Steve Postell. Tickets cost $45 and $55 for general admission and $106 for VIP seats, which include pre-concert reception.

APRIL 15 email: mmcmahon@newspress.com

Edward T. Cone performers-inresidence at Princeton University.

Ms. Shaw is a musician who moves among roles, genres and mediums, trying to imagine a world of sound that has never been heard before but has always existed. She works often in collaboration with others, as producer, composer, violinist and vocalist.

She is the recipient of the 2013 Pulitzer Prize in music, several Grammy awards, an honorary doctorate from Yale and a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship. This year’s projects include the score to “Fleishman is in Trouble” (FX/ Hulu), vocal work with Rosalía (MOTOMAMI), the score to Josephine Decker’s “The Sky Is Everywhere” (A24/Apple), music for the National Theatre’s production of “The Crucible” (dir. Lyndsey Turner), Justin Peck’s “Partita” with New York City Ballet and a new stage work “LIFE” (Gandini Juggling/Merce Cunningham Trust).

Ms. Shaw has written more than 100 works in the last decade. The program is presented in association with UCSB Department of Music.

7:30 p.m. The Santa Barbara Symphony will perform “Beethoven Dreams” at The Granada, 1214 State St., Santa Barbara. The allBeethoven program will include a collaboration with the Ensemble Theatre Company’s artistic director, Jonathan Fox. Mr. Fox will direct the West Coast premiere of Ella MilchSheriff’s staged monodrama, “The Eternal Stranger,” based on one of Beethoven’s dreams. The concert will also feature the symphony playing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 and Symphony No. 4. The concert’s piano soloist is Inna Faliks. Tickets cost $35 to $175. To purchase, go to granadasb.org.

APRIL 16

3 p.m. The Santa Barbara Symphony will perform “Beethoven Dreams” at The Granada, 1214 State St., Santa Barbara. The allBeethoven program will include a collaboration with the Ensemble Theatre Company’s artistic director, Jonathan Fox. Mr. Fox will direct the West Coast premiere of Ella MilchSheriff’s staged monodrama, “The Eternal Stranger,” based on one of Beethoven’s dreams. The concert will also feature the symphony playing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 and Symphony No. 4. The concert’s piano soloist is Inna Faliks. Tickets cost $35 to $175. To purchase, go to granadasb.org.

APRIL 25

Play Its Simple Part “ and a return to Carnegie Hall, where, Sõ Percussion performed new collaborations with Nathalie Joachim and Dominic Shodekeh Talifero.

Sõ Percussion’s recording, “Narrow Sea,” with Ms. Shaw, Dawn Upshaw and Gilbert Kalish, won the 2022 Grammy for Best Composition. Other albums include “A Record Of..” on Brassland Music with Buke and Gase, and an acclaimed version of Julius Eastman’s “Stay On It” on new imprint S� Percussion Editions. This adds to a catalog of more than 25 albums featuring landmark recordings of works by

David Lang, Steve Reich, Steve Mackey, and many more.

In the summer of 2022, Sõ performed at the Music Academy of the West Festival, Newport Classical, at Time Spans in New York and offered four concerts at Our Festival in Helsinki.

In fall 2022, Sõ Percussion began its ninth year as the

7:30 p.m. The American Theatre Guild will present “Anastasia” at The Granada, 1214 State St., Santa Barbara. The new Broadway musical follows a brave young woman on a journey to discover the mystery of the past. This production transports the audiences from the twilight of the Russian empire to Paris in the 1920s. Tickets cost $54 to $129. To purchase, go to granadasb.org.

— Dave Mason