Q&A: Psychedelic Symphony

For adventurous music lovers looking for a new experience, the Psychedelic Symphony should check all the boxes for you. The event comes to Long Beach on February 10, 2024, in an intimate setting that’s sure to liven your taste buds and ignite your visual senses in a live classical music setting. To get a better understanding about the event, I spoke with Julia Kugel and Scott Montoya.

What’s your inspiration for the Psychedelic Symphony here in Long Beach?

For the past seven years, we’ve been working on building up the music scene in Long Beach through our free music festival called Happy Sundays. Last year, the Long Beach Symphony reached out to see if they could be a part of the fest. We love classical music and have been kicking around the idea of incorporating classical music in our repertoire. It was a little late in the game for the fest, but we presented the idea of Psychedelic Symphony, an immersive experience of the music, and here we are.

Who will be performing?

A quartet from the Long Beach Symphony, including Jonah Sirota, Ellen Jung, Allen Hon & Reina Inui, accompanied by Julia Kugel, Alice Sandahl, Cole Berliner and Scott Montoya on select songs.

Why did you choose Heritage Farm for the venue to perform Psychedelic Symphony?

Heritage Farm, located at 1336 Gladys Avenue in Long Beach, is a beautiful event space in an up-and-coming area in Long Beach called Zaferia. It's operated by Heritage Restaurant, so it made sense to host the event there.

Describe what attendees will experience visually at the performance?

Mad Alchemy Liquid Light Show, AKA Lance Gordon, is an internationally acclaimed performance artist. He uses oil and projectors to interact with the sounds and immerse the audience in psychedelic light waves. He has performed at major music festivals like Desert Daze, Red Rocks, with bands including Phil Lesh of Grateful Dead, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Big Brother and the Holding Company to name a few.

I understand you’ve chosen an eclectic mix of musical compositions to perform. Tell me more.

One of our goals is to expose people who have never experienced classical music to this amazing art form. Since this show falls on Valentine's Day weekend, we chose pieces that deal with love in every one of its forms. Eyvind Kang is arranging songs from cult classics from Serge Gainsbourg, Ennio Morricone, Caravelli and The Flamingos. Some songs are familiar, some may be new favorites but sorry, no Pachelbel.

Heritage Farm is known for some pretty amazing food. What’s planned for attendees to enjoy?

Heritage is curating a tasting menu and wine/beer pairings for the evening.

Will attendees have an opportunity to meet and greet the performers after the show?

Yes. After the show we will be having an artist reception with beer and wine.

For those perhaps concerned about a “Psychedelic” experience, the performance will be a substance free event, correct?

Correct. Regardless of the theme, we don't condone substance use at the event.

I gather attendance is limited in such an intimate setting. What is capacity?

Tickets are limited to sixty-five attendees, and as of today, there are twenty left. We're expecting it to sell out so better jump on it!

For those interested in attending, how can people get more information or reserve seats?

Visit psychsymphony.com for ticket link and more information.