ON the Beat | FOSB | Old but Good Times

Folk Orchestra of Santa Barbara in Los Olivos, February 1, 2026 | Photo: Josef Woodard

Eight years into its adventure, the Folk Orchestra of Santa Barbara (FOSB) has become a unique, treasured, and popular phenom in the cosmos of Santa Barbara music culture. For several programs per season, 28-ish gifted musicians gather to perform the arrangements and conceptual agendas of fearless and seemingly indefatigable leader Adam Phillips. Often, the thematic landscape covers around things Celtic, but last weekend, the FOSB partied like it was 1399.

Phillips’s medieval-themed program found happy venue homes at El Presidio Chapel and Trinity Episcopal Church on Friday and Saturday, but I ventured over the hill and through the dreamy-green Santa Ynez Valley to catch the final Sunday afternoon performance in the acoustically and atmospherically friendly St. Mark’s in the Valley Church in Los Olivos. Everything came together in a bodacious way in that space, with Phillips’s arrangements of extra-early music from Spain, France, and elsewhere for a packed and happy crowd.

From left, Nicole McKenzie, Laura Nelson, and Josh Jenkins of Folk Orchestra of Santa Barbara. | Photo: Josef Woodard

The agreeably archaic setlist included the chill, contemporized version of the 13th century Benedictine plainsong “Adoro te devote,” a roundabout arrangement of the 1250-vintage Sumer is icumen in — considered one of the oldest canons — and a slow-then-fast rendition of French superhero Guillaume Machaut’s “Douce dame jolie.”

In addition to the full orchestral dynamics, a few “small ensemble” pieces proved to be fascinating side trips of their own, which showcased individual talents and instrumental trivia. Violinist Laura Nelson slipped easily into improvisatory mode on “Folia,” which fellow violinist Nicole McKenzie described as a set of chord changes in a kind of “medieval jazz” format. Multi-stringed instrumentalist Josh Jenkins oscillated from mandolin to oud, forefather of most plucked string instruments.

More musicological intrigue snuck into the picture, as well, when flutist Sherylle Englander introduced saltarello by briefly describing her instrument’s positional breakthrough (or breakdown?), moving to the “side-blown” transverse position in the 15th century. Ace harpist Lori Rasmussen switch-hit to the fascinating mutant Swedish instrumentalist known as the nyckelharpa, in a duet with Philips on hurdy-gurdy, taking on the snaky Swedish folk tune “Hvenormen.”

Folk Orchestra of Santa Barbara in Los Olivos, February 1, 2026 | Photo: Josef Woodard

For his part, Philips nimbly juggled conducting duties with performing on an array of pipes, the obscure crumhorn and shawm, a garden variety acoustic guitar, and a well-tooled tenor voice — the official vocal section of FOSB. All in all, the latest program was another satisfying feast of sound and folk orchestral vision.

Next up, a return to musical sources from more recent centuries, with an Irish-themed program on March 13-15. (Info here).

In Good Latin-Jazz Hands

Poncho Sanchez at the Lobero Theatre, January 31, 2026 | Photo: Courtesy

Latin-jazz legend Poncho Sanchez is 74 years old and going strong, although saving his strength by limiting his workload to two gigs a month. Luckily and thankfully for locals (and visitors), the Lobero Theatre was the happy home of one of those gigs, on a steamy Saturday night occasion. Sanchez and his octet — with nary a weak link in the line-up — delivered a potent set of music, reminding us that the conguero/bandleader has a unique ability to get a party started and a crowd lured into the groove, while slipping in sophisticated jazz content in the soloing and arrangement departments. The upshot is that listeners from many sides of the musical taste aisle belly up to the sound.

The Texas-born and east L.A.-bred Sanchez has been playing in Santa Barbara for years turned into decades, and he recalled coming up here in the late ‘60s with a Tex-Mex band, back in the days when Santa Barbara boasted an actual stoplight interrupting the flow of the 101 freeway, where State Street met the 101. All this time later, Sanchez has deeply established himself as a kingpin of the Latin-Jazz scene, with awards and poll-wins on his mantle and a discography now numbering 31: the most recent to be released is last year’s Poncho Sanchez & his Latin Jazz Band Live at the Belly Up Tavern (hear here).

Among the impressive players in this current line-up are longtime collaborator, music director, and trombonist Francisco Torres, trumpeter Ron Blake (composer of the Afro-Cuban 6/8 tune “Night Dreamer”), the fine Texan pianist Andy Langham (creatively burning on a solo on “Ye Ye”), and saxist/flutist Tom Luer. The band hit a late set high point with perhaps Sanchez’s biggest crowd favorite, a rendition of Herbie Hancock’s “Watermelon Man,” with the melody playfully stretched, phrased in silly putty fashion. Encore time brought out Sanchez’s tune “Bésame Mama,” with one more tasty conga solo for the road, and for good measure.

Sanchez manages to pull off a beautiful, festive-cerebral duality, especially in the live context. And last Saturday night, once again, the Lobero joint was duly jumping and swaying in a salsa-phonic way.

TO-DOINGS:

Joyce DiDonato and Time for Three | Photo: Shervin Lainez

Famed and idealistic mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato last graced The Granada Theatre stage with her concept-driven EDEN project in 2024. Her return to town, tonight, February 5, at the Granada, arrives with yet another conceptual packaging in tow, as the central voice of the Emily Dickinson–channeling Emily — No Prisoner Be, created by composer Kevin Puts, responsible for the Virginia Woolf–based opera The Hours that DiDonato was a key part of. She is joined by the venturesome Time for Three, last heard locally with the Santa Barbara Symphony in 2023, where they performed Puts’s Contact and crossover confections. It’s a hot ticket, on poetic and musical terms. (See Independent story here).

Over at the monthly “Sunday afternoon at SOhO” confab presented by the Santa Barbara Jazz Society, the featured musical guests often hail from Los Angeles or Santa Barbara, but the sourcing map grows wider this Sunday, with the arrival of guitarist Adam Moezinia. Moezinia hails from Los Angeles originally, but he followed the path eastward to the jazz mecca of N.Y.C. in 2010, to study at Juilliard and find his place in the scene there. His résumé includes having worked with Cécile McLorin Salvant, George Coleman, and Freddy Cole.

He will play at SOhO with his group, the Folk Element Trio, which veers from identifiable jazz polarities to worldly influences, touches of distortion-flavored fusion and Bill Frisell–like treatments of such songs as Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice.” Check out the evidence on the trio’s 2021 album (here).

In more localized jazz news, the San Marcos High School Jazz Band will perform in the big house of the Lobero Theatre on Wednesday, February 11, as a fundraiser to get the band to New Orleans for a competition in April. As heard in the past, this event is undeniably a good cause, with good music in the bargain. (See Madeline Slogoff’s Independent story here).

Up at the vibe-enhanced post-roadhouse of the Deer Lodge in Ojai, the pure beauty of acoustic guitar is in the spotlight on Saturday, February 7, with the enlightened pairing of My Morning Jacket guitarist Carl Broemel and guitarist Tyler Ramsey. Unplugged and lyrical guitar sonic solace is the deal here, with echoes of John Fahey, Leo Kottke, and something fresh and personal afoot. Listen up to the tasty sonorities of their lovely duo album Celestun here.