Youthful opera sensation visits Tres Pinos
Opera
– in San Benito?
On a scorching Saturday outside the Veranda Restaurant in Tres
Pinos, the sun beats down on hundreds of bikers as they noisily
ride toward the ends of the scenic south county or park in front of
The Cantina Bar and Grill.
Youthful opera sensation visits Tres Pinos
Opera – in San Benito?
On a scorching Saturday outside the Veranda Restaurant in Tres Pinos, the sun beats down on hundreds of bikers as they noisily ride toward the ends of the scenic south county or park in front of The Cantina Bar and Grill.
But inside the Veranda, the mellow strains of Bach waft over customers – most of them locals – as they enter the cool oasis of Agah Khawaja’s eatery. And it’s not canned music.
Khawaja’s daughter, Ameena, is a musical prodigy majoring in cello and opera at Cal State Northbridge near Los Angeles. Lucky for San Benitoans, she has been visiting her parents for the month of July and is not stingy about sharing her talent with the community.
But locals best beat a path to the Veranda quickly if they want to catch the lovely Ameena, 27, playing Bach’s unaccompanied suites for the cello, Beethoven or selections of David Popper and Edward Elgar during the weekend lunch hours. She leaves for Germany early August to study at a musical conservatory.
While in Germany, Ameena plans to study voice, her first love even above the cello. Before studying at Northridge, she completed a summer program studying opera in Italy.
“I love cello but I’ve got to be on stage,” Ameena said during a break at her father’s restaurant.
Ameena specializes in opera and lighter stuff, musical theater, and apparently has quite the gift for singing. At Cal State Northbridge, the cello performance major auditioned to sing for the university’s production of Carousel – and landed the lead role of Julie Jordan over the school’s theater and singing majors.
“I’ve played in the pit for a lot of operas and now I know both sides of the music,” Ameena said. “I have to say, it was kind of cool for a cello major to get that part.”
Before leaving for Germany, Ameena has scheduled a concert at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Aug. 3, where she and her boyfriend, Cameron O’Connor, will provide a music program of Renaissance, classical, popular and musical theater selections. O’Connor, who hails from Simi Valley, plays classical guitar and will also play the Renaissance lute. Recently, the Moorpark Symphony of Southern California asked O’Connor to solo in a special performance with the ensemble.
Meanwhile, during the next two weekends people can catch Ameena playing her cello at the Veranda among the chicken wraps, tri-tips and hamburgers. Or enjoy the strains of Dvorak over one of the specialty desserts of cakes and tarts created by Ameena’s mom, Annie. The cakes, adorned with candy flowers and frosted bunting, look so picture-perfect one would think they were fake.
The lunch scene replete with background dining music from a professional cellist may be incongruous for a typical summer day in the sleepy historic town, but the fact is Tres Pinos was once a hotbed of Old West activity, culture and commerce.
In 1873, Southern Pacific Railroad extended its line to Tres Pinos with two freight and two passenger trains running through the town every day. The main export was hay, and on any given day the town of 600 would swell to 2,000 with hay brokers, cattlemen and grain dealers. Before the turn of the century, the town featured hotels, a theater, restaurants, blacksmiths, general stores, an ice cream parlor, a newspaper – and even a brothel or two. One of these “social clubs” was The Inn at Tres Pinos, now a posh restaurant.
According to Janet Brians of the San Benito Historical Society, the county’s one Opera House was located in Hollister. Ameena’s scheduled performance of light opera brings that culture alive again in a full circle from the area’s glory days of old.
For more information about Khawaja and O’Connor’s upcoming performance at Sacred Heart, call 831-637-8384 or send an email to
am*****@ya***.com
. Tickets can also be purchased at The Veranda in Tres Pinos.
