THOUSAND OAKS, CA. - Areté Vocal Ensemble will present two concerts in tribute to Leonard Bernstein during its second season at California Lutheran University.

The first concert will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 7, in Samuelson Chapel. It will feature selections from Bernstein’s epic “Mass,” which was written for the opening of the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

“A Tribute to Leonard Bernstein Part 2” will be presented on April 3.

Areté is an innovative professional ensemble of vocal artists in residence at CLU. Music Director and Conductor Wyant Morton, CLU’s music department chair and conductor of the university’s annual New Music Concert, created the ensemble to perform and record the widest possible choral repertoire, including works from essentially all periods of music history. Special attention is given to contemporary, experimental, improvisatory, crossover and ethnic music.

The ensemble was designed to fill a need in Southern California for groups that can perform the many vocal works that visionary composers are creating today. Areté, which takes its name from the Greek word meaning striving for excellence, focuses on performing the new, the unknown and the unconventional with energy, passion, expertise and virtuosity.

The chapel is located south of Olsen Road near the corner of Campus Drive in Thousand Oaks. Additional parking is available at the corner of Olsen and Mountclef Boulevard.

Tickets purchased in advance are $15, $10 for seniors 65 years and older, and $5 for students with ID. Tickets purchased at the door are an additional $5. Children under 12 are free. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit http://www.aretevocalensemble.org , e-mail aretevocalensemble@me.com, or call (805) 493-3308.