The Southern California chamber ensemble Camerata Pacifica has cultivated a unique relationship with audiences, performing in a small group of venues in its home region. Camerata Pacifica draws its membership from around the world and often commissions new music.

Camerata Pacifica was founded in 1990 by artistic director and flutist Adrian Spence, who remains its director. Spence personally selects the members of Camerata Pacifica, drawing them from the ranks of musicians around the world and focusing on their ability to add an individual voice to the ensemble. The group's mission statement states that it seeks "to affect positively how people experience live performances of classical music." To that end, instead of touring as widely as possible, Camerata Pacifica restricts its concert schedule to four Southern California venues, the Huntington Library in San Marino, the Museum of Ventura County in Ventura, the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, and the Colburn School in downtown Los Angeles. As of 2022, the group has seven permanent members, who are augmented in concert by visiting artists and who break down into smaller groups as needed. Camerata Pacifica also maintains (in collaboration with UCLA Health) the Nightingale Channel, which delivers videos of the group's performances to hospital patients.

An integral part of Camerata Pacifica's activities is its commissioning program, which has resulted in the completion and performance of 16 new works, with three more in development as of 2022. Composers involved include such leading figures as Jake Heggie, Lera Auerbach, and Bright Sheng. Individual Camerata Pacifica patrons fund the commissions; the commissioners participate in the development and rehearsal of the new works, and they receive a score engraved with their names. Some of these commissioned works have appeared on Camerata Pacifica's recordings, which include collections devoted to John Harbison (2014) and David Bruce (2019). ~ James Manheim, Rovi