Buying a ticket to a newly commissioned ballet involves a certain amount of risk. There will be unfamiliar movement to new music – and no reliable swans or princes. Will you love it? Maybe, maybe not.

Rest assured, though, that the real risks have already been taken. The dancers and choreographers have devoted themselves to a work that could be masterpiece – or a flop. And those who commissioned the work are ultimately the ones who took the biggest gamble: Will the public pay to see this?

New York City Ballet is betting on a “yes.” In its spring season, which begins tonight, the company will introduce seven new ballets commissioned under the auspices of its Diamond Project festival. NYCB’s ballet master in chief, Peter Martins, founded the festival in 1992 as a stimulus for new ballet choreography. And though he himself is one of the seven choreographers, he’s not sure how the 2006 series will strike audiences. “I haven’t seen one step of anything. I don’t peek,” he said. “But knowing who these guys are, I’m sure it will be good.”

And so the gamble continues. But while Mr. Martins will see all seven ballets, the average ballet fan might decide to see only one or two. How to pick ’em? It would be nice to think that all bets here are winners. Given the vagaries of individual tastes, however, it’s best to put money down as if playing the ponies: Study the facts, then trust a hunch.

The first offering in the series, on April 29, comes from a hometown favorite: Eliot Feld, founder and director of the Ballet Tech company and school. Mr. Feld has scores of dance works on his resume, ranging from electric to playful. His “The Unanswered Question,” which he made for City Ballet’s 1988 American Music Festival, will be danced along with his Diamond Project debut: a solo set to excerpts from Philip Glass’s score from the film “North Star.” This piece, danced by City Ballet apprentice Kaitlyn Gilliland, offers a chance to see how a young, green dancer fares in a featured solo role.

Next up, on May 4, is the work of Mauro Bigonzetti, artistic director of Italy’s Aterballetto. This will be Mr. Bigonzetti’s second contribution to a Diamond Project series: In 2002, he created the dark, romantic “Vespro,” set to a score by composer Bruno Moretti. The new piece, “In Vento,” will also use Mr. Moretti’s music. “In Vento” takes up the “many different aspects of the wind,” the choreographer said. “It’s an abstract thing, but you can see what happens after it comes through.” Among the 11 dancers he tapped for the piece are several he worked with in 2002, including Benjamin Millepied, Jason Fowler, and Maria Kowroski.

The company’s annual spring gala, on May 10, will provide the opportunity to see premieres by City Ballet’s resident choreographer, Christopher Wheeldon, and Mr. Martins. Mr. Wheeldon’s work – his 13th for the company – is set to Bartok’s Piano Concerto No. 3 and features a role created for Damian Woetzel.

Mr. Martins’s work is set to John Corigliano’s music from “The Red Violin.” The 35-minute score for violin and orchestra has four movements and will feature four couples. The central couple is Jennie Somogyi – whose return to the stage last season after an injury has been gradual, limited, and most welcome – and Sebastien Marcovici, a fine dancer who is steadily garnering more artistic roles.

Mr. Marcovici also will be half of the lead couple when the new work by Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux, which opens May 25. Mr. Bonnefoux, the artistic director of North Carolina Dance Theatre, saw Mr. Marcovici dance as a student and encouraged him over the years. So when Mr. Martins’s invitation came, this choreographer had a clear vision in mind for the male lead.

Mr. Bonnefoux also knew he wanted to choreograph for dancer Sofiane Sylve, with whom he worked during a public workshop. As for the concept of the ballet, he said: “It’s more about her. He is a figure that was – and is not anymore. He’s a haunting presence.” The piece is set to a piece of music by Bright Sheng, the composer in residence at City Ballet.

Ms. Sylve, like Mr. Marcovici, is doing double duty. She’ll dance in the June 8 premiere of “The Russian Seasons” by Alexei Ratmansky, the artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet. The music, by the contemporary Russian composer Leonid Desyatnikov, is inflected with a folk spirit, but the movement owes much to the choreographer’s travels. “I spent much of my career in the West; now I come back to Moscow,” Mr. Ratmansky said. “The music is based on the Russian calendar – I wanted to see how much Russian is there in me.”

For a new ballet with familiar music, you might have to wait until the June 16 premiere of Jorma Elo’s Diamond Project debut. Mr. Elo, the resident choreographer of Boston Ballet, has chosen Vivaldi excerpts. He hopes the work, a series of duets and solos, will give audiences a fresh look at 16 City Ballet dancers. “I like a dancer who can have that moment of being uncomfortable. They strive for beauty, but in the process they go through an off-balance, ugly moment,” he said. “To create something new, you have to take that plunge.”

Mr. Elo’s thoughts on dancers apply to audiences, too. Watching new ballets is a process, and it differs from watching the classics. You’ll see things that set you off-balance, or that you perceive as ugly. But to witness something new, to be a part of the form as it goes forward, you have to let go and dive in.

pcatton@nysun.com