Report from the Tokyo performance on the 8th and final day of the tour
Report from the Tokyo performance on the 8th and final day of the tour
(※Information added on March 29th)
There is an end to everything.
The tour that began on Saturday, March 19th, from Tokyo to Morioka to Sendai to Fukushima to Tokyo, has now reached its final day.
I had just returned home after a long absence, and as I approached the venue for today's event, Suntory Hall,
The first car had just arrived.
Today, my junior colleague from the Tokyo office, Kumagai Kanae (a flute player from Morioka City), also joined us as a staff member. Kumagai supported the 7th term with social media, crowdfunding , and producing the Shibuya radio show "Shibuya's Tohoku Youth Orchestra" (every Wednesday from 11:30 to 11:55) .
Car No. 3, which I was in charge of until yesterday, has arrived!
I found it right away! Today's "person wearing bold clothing"
Trombone player Aoi Nishino (a first-year university student from Miyagi Prefecture) made his statement in this black T-shirt.
This is a charity T-shirt for the "Children's Music Revival Fund," a project to inspect and repair musical instruments in schools in disaster-stricken areas immediately after 3/11, which is the root of the Tohoku Youth Orchestra. When I came up with this name 11 years ago, I never imagined that "children's music" would be "revitalized" to this extent. After all, the fund developed into an orchestra.
In the parking lot, Yutaka Watanabe from the Fukushima office, who had driven himself, had just arrived. His son, Sota, a sixth grader, was going to be on stage playing the viola, so I took the picture with a shutter that seemed to have a good resonance in the background.
Antigen tests were also conducted on all those involved at the stage entrance of Suntory Hall today.
Yu Miyagawa from the Tokyo office, I wonder if your head feels refreshed? Well, you're also in the group that finally got home last night, so you're all fired up for today...
Anyway, we don't have much time today. We have to get straight to the dress rehearsal.
TYO Technical Director Norimitsu Iijima gave an orientation about the history of Suntory Hall , explaining that it is the venue where the world's top orchestras, such as the Berlin Philharmonic or the Vienna Philharmonic, always perform when they come to Japan, and encouraging the attendees to be aware that they are standing in a place where the world's finest musicians come to experience the "world's most beautiful sound."
Mr. Iijima, the president of Promax, said, "Okada was the one who worked the hardest this time," and Naomi Okada (who calls herself Miki-chan in "Promax Candies"), the pillar of the secretariat, gave a speech about various points to note.
I have just one thing to say. "Standing here and seeing this scene is like a dream. Everyone, please think of the people who have helped you and play today with gratitude."
The dress rehearsal started with "Time is Tilting Now." And the composer, representative and director Ryuichi Sakamoto was in the audience!
For the members of the troupe, this was the first time they had met the director, while for the 6th and 7th term members, this was the first time they had seen him.
In the dressing room, Yuji Arakawa (CEO and COO of Nextone Co., Ltd.), who wrote the song explanations in the pamphlets distributed on the day, and the "cream puff man" from the troupe, were there. Pointing at Iijima-san's bag, he pointed out, "Tanaka-san, isn't this the person wearing the "strong outfit" today?"
It certainly makes a strong statement, and it's expensive. Behind her is Aya Nishina, the composer of TYO's first commissioned work, "Kugui no Sora," who came to Tokyo following her performance in Iwate.
As I was wandering around backstage, I came across the duo I had been watching for eight days, holding a microphone and chatting away in a joyous manner.
On the right are sound/PA manager Kondo Kenichiro and sound engineer Ono Seigen (in my mind, I call them "Kon-chan and Gen-chan" instead of "Katchan and Ken-chan").
After the dress rehearsal, Captain Tajima read a message of thanks written by the orchestra members to the performers and secretariat. The orchestra members then presented a message of thanks to the orchestra captain, Shiori Tajima, and concert mistress, Masahiro Watanabe, who had contributed greatly to the concert.
TYO's culture of writing messages of gratitude was alive and well this year. Every year, during the training camp just before the actual event, I tell the students to "sleep" in the midst of a packed schedule, but when I think that they are taking up their time to write these messages, I feel a complex mix of sadness and joy.
After this, I read out the names of the 33 members who were graduating or taking a break from the group as the 7th term graduation ceremony. I'm sad, but congratulations on graduating!
Backstage, Fukushima Minpo Managing Director Araki Hideyuki (TYO director) was present.
Due to the sudden cancellation of our performances in Sendai and Fukushima due to the earthquake last week, we received an incentive payment from Fukushima Minpo Newspaper. Thank you very much for your kind consideration!
Then, just before the doors opened, the fanfare corps started rehearsing. They performed in front of the pipe organ.
Click here for the performers.
Trp.Yuto Nakamura Shogo Tomizawa
Hr. Natsuki Senda and Reo Mikami
Trb. Aoi Nishino
Tub. Yuuma Higashidate
And then there was the rehearsal for the "Shadow Announcer Squad." Just before the show started, five members of the group took turns going on stage to announce things to do inside the venue to the audience.
One of the "shadow announcer squad," violinist Ryunosuke Takeda (fifth grade elementary school student) from Morioka City, Iwate Prefecture, sat with a nervous look on his face, clutching his cue card.
Let's relax with a two-shot with Mari Watanabe. Yes. Mari Watanabe will finally be the host. The next day, I received an email from Mari saying, "I was able to stand on the stage with a warm feeling because I was able to support the shadow announcers who had been working hard." I am grateful for that.
On the other hand, they seem to be more relaxed. They are members of the high school ensemble performing in the mini concert before the show begins.
The following five groups performed as an ensemble at the mini concert before the Tokyo performance.
・High School Ensemble Trumpet Player's Holiday/Anderson (Sakamoto Saiun, Ishikawa Keika, Hiruta Erika, Kikuno Kanara, Kaizu Kota, Suzuki Nami, Takeda Ryoji, Oguro Shinne)
・String Quartet Behind the Mask/ Ryuichi Sakamoto (Masahiro Watanabe, Takuya Ito, Yoshiko Izawa, Kenmaru Honda)
・Oboe Quartet Oboe Quartet/Mozart (Kei Sekine, Masahiro Watanabe, Takuya Ito, Shin Hibino)
Horn Quintet French Suite for four French Horns/Reed (Hikari Otsuki, Kanara Kikuno, Shiori Tajima, Natsuki Senda, Reo Mikami)
・String Duo Passacaglia/Handel (Masahiro Watanabe, Shin Hibino)
Concert mistress Masahiro Watanabe was participating in three ensembles. And the "Shadow Announcer Squad" was also there. She was very busy even before the show started.
This is the foyer in front of the venue.
Preparations are underway for the real crowdfunding and book sales booths.
This photo was taken before the doors opened, so it was pretty orderly, but at the Tokyo concert, a lot of people bought books and participated in the real crowdfunding campaign. Thank you so much.
In front of the hall, there was a panel display from the sponsor, JA Kyosai.
Recently, there was a panel of interviews with members (Cl. Hiruta-san, Perc. Anazawa-kun, and alumnus Tomizawa-kun) that were featured in magazine articles in AERA (March 14th issue) and Weekly Shincho (March 17th issue),
A panel of messages from members was on display.
Now, it's time for the real thing.
After the world premiere performance of "Time is Tilt Now," host Watanabe Mari took to the stage.
"So, let me introduce you to Ryuichi Sakamoto, the representative and director of the Tohoku Youth Orchestra!"
The packed Suntory Hall erupts in thunderous applause.
Guest Yoshinaga Sayuri, who was staring intently at the monitor in the wings of the stage, waiting for her turn, said with a smile, "Mari-chan is crying." You can feel the emotion in her voice because she has been the MC since the 2012 Children's Music Revitalization Fund concert.
Finally, it's time for Sayuri Yoshinaga to make her appearance.
I had just seen Yoshinaga-san, beaming with joy at being reunited with Director Sakamoto for the first time in about two years at the dress rehearsal.
The cover of the poetry reading book, which she designs herself every time, is handwritten in two colors, "TYO Heart" and Ukrainian colors. She reads six poems to the accompaniment of "Mother and I" and "Still Life".
One poem that particularly touched me was "Dandelion in the Heart," written by Miyagi Natsuki from Okinawa Prefecture when she was in the fifth grade of elementary school.
Yoshinaga's voice really touches my heart.
"Do you want a dandelion for your heart? / I'll wash away your dirty heart / I'm sure you'll get rid of all conflicts."
Director Sakamoto's piano accompaniment, accompanied by a caressing touch on the keys, resonates delicately.
The two, who performed together on stage at TYO for the first time in three years, inevitably turned to the topic of prayers for peace.
When I greeted Yoshinaga-san backstage before the show, she said, "Tanaka-san, your voice is so good! Do you sing?" (After listening to a recording of me reading a poem for you at the Morioka performance rehearsal) I felt so honored to receive a recommendation for my own voice, following the book "Resound, the Sound of Hope - The Future Connected by the Tohoku Youth Orchestra" that had the text on the obi.
We went on a 20 minute break.
Captain Tajima delivers a collection of messages from the members.
Director Sakamoto squints as he holds the message book in his hand.
Captain Tajima then proposed to Coach Sakamoto a dream he had been holding for two years: "I want to put a sticker with the Tohoku Youth Orchestra logo on the board behind the stage at Suntory Hall together!"
He replied, "Of course, that's okay."
Now we are among the world's top orchestras! (On the surface)
After this, Captain Tajima went on a pilgrimage to distribute thank-you cards from the orchestra members to Yoshinaga Sayuri, Watanabe Mari, the four soloists - soprano Koda Hiroko, alto Yamashita Makiko, tenor Higuchi Tatsuya, baritone Narita Hiroyuki, and of course Yanagisawa Toshio, as well as the Tokyo and Fukushima offices.
The suit I was already wearing had started to look like a tracksuit, so I started looking around for something to satisfy my hunger.
Thank you everyone.
I prioritized volume and portability.
After learning that she would be performing for six minutes in the first half, Watanabe Mari began talking as she walked onto the stage to her position. I munched on the original Dorayaki I receive every year while reflecting on her professional skills.
Before the second part, conductor Toshio Yanagisawa appeared in the wings to prepare for the culmination of this season.
He seemed full of confidence in having been able to dramatically improve the performance of the orchestra members during the two-day pre-season training camp.
As the Ninth Symphony came to a finale and the curtain calls seemed to go on forever due to the never-ending applause, the Tokyo performance came to a close with a cast introduction by Watanabe Mari, which was not in the script, taking into consideration the time when the orchestra members would be returning home.
The performance was covered by the media on numerous occasions.
Here are links to the articles I know so far. They are in no particular order.
■Nikkan Sports "Sakamoto Ryuichi and Yoshinaga Sayuri pray for peace at Tohoku Youth Concert, first public appearance since announcing his cancer treatment""Sakamoto Ryuichi and Yoshinaga Sayuri appeal for anti-war: "If we all say it's absolutely wrong and fight back, we can make the situation better""
■Mainichi Shimbun "Ryuichi Sakamoto's first appearance since his battle with illness: 'Thoughts on 3/11 and Ukraine' - new production"
■Asahi Shimbun "Welcome back Professor Ryuichi Sakamoto returns to concerts""Ryuichi Sakamoto, currently undergoing cancer treatment, returns to the stage to perform alongside Sayuri Yoshinaga"
■Iwate Nippo Newspaper "Ryuichi Sakamoto, currently undergoing cancer treatment, appears at event for the first time in three years, prays for peace with Sayuri Yoshinaga, "I hope there will be no more conflicts""
For this concert, out of consideration for the physical strain it would cause to Director Sakamoto, no commemorative photos were taken after the performance, but these people made an exception and agreed to take part.
The quality of this concert was entirely due to the conductor, Toshio Yanagisawa. Director Sakamoto said, "The performance was at a professional level."
The first-term concertmaster, Takuya Ito, and the second-term and seventh-term concert mistress, Masahiro Watanabe. The two, who have competed fiercely as good rivals among classmates, are also graduating this year.
One man jumps into this shoot!
The trumpet player is Yuto Nakamura, who will also be graduating this year. The volunteer concerts that Nakamura started are an important part of the Tohoku Youth Orchestra's activities that continue to this day. The volunteer concert supporter page is here . We would appreciate your support.
A group of alumni came to help out at today's concert. These are the members who volunteered to help with real crowdfunding and book sales.
From the right are Hashimoto Karin, Onami Sakura, Nishimaru Sou, Kanno Momoka, Hibino Ai, Kijima Miu, and Momiyama Mizuho.
However, I regretted that Sasaki Shiori, who had helped us until the very end, was not there, so I contacted her and she replied, "I don't have any photos from the site on the day," and sent me some photos she had taken in the parking lot after leaving the hall.
Nice play, Nakamura Yuto!
Alumni, you don't have to help out so please come anytime.
I was so busy seeing the members off and seeing them off that I didn't notice the celebratory flowers.
I'm glad that he appeared as a guest at the Iwate performance and still cares about the Tokyo performance.
The Tohoku Youth Orchestra's usual motto when disbanding after a training camp or performance: "The field trip doesn't end until you get home."
It seems that the Watanabe Yutaka from the Fukushima Secretariat is also leaving for home.
The bus was originally scheduled to depart at this time to take the members who were unable to make it home from Koriyama Station, but it seemed that in addition to my son, Sota, two other "Mamadooru Ambassadors" were also on board.
Those taking the bus home got off at Koriyama Station, Fukushima Station, and Sendai Station around 11pm, and arrived safely at the final station, Morioka, just after midnight.
For the brother and sister band members Yota and Yuuki, along with their mother Masami and father who participated in the Tsunagaru Choir, it was a trip for the family of four. Before getting on the bus, Taguchi's father, who had watched the Iwate performance, kindly said, "The MC was great. The initial mask mishap also lightened the mood."
On the following day, Sunday the 27th, my mother said,
"Thanks to the efforts of everyone involved, including the secretariat, we were able to hold such a wonderful concert despite the difficulties, and it is a lifelong treasure for our family. We would like to continue to support you as long as your activities continue, so please continue to support us," he wrote in his email. He also sent me a photo of the bus on the way back, saying, "The three Iwate boys were fast asleep on the bus. By the way, we didn't even eat our lunch and just slept. Yodai is still sleeping now... (laughs)."
Great press photo!
Additionally, Yutaka Watanabe from the Fukushima office reported that, despite the long drive to and from Tokyo the previous day, all the large musical instruments had been returned to the Fukushima Minpo's storage space.
You need to add to the tagline.
"The trip doesn't end until you get home. The real fun doesn't begin until you return the instrument."
Thank you to Watanabe Yutaka and all the Fukushima members who helped out!
Thinking about it objectively, the secretariat reflected that this concert could not be performed again with the same members. This is certainly the case with the choir's collaboration with members of the Tohoku Youth Orchestra in the second part of the Ninth Symphony. However, if we just look at the Tohoku Youth Orchestra, their regular concerts are always in March, which overlaps with exams and graduation ceremonies, and this time too, the members on stage were different for the Iwate and Tokyo performances. In other words, it may be that TYO is characterized by being a one-off orchestra. Even though they are at the mercy of the great forces of nature, they may be an orchestra whose destiny is to cherish the connection and irreplaceable opportunity to perform together, and to be grateful for each and every encounter.
We would like to express our deepest gratitude to everyone who attended the Tohoku Youth Orchestra Concert 2022 and to everyone who supported us.
In March 2022, the Tohoku Youth Orchestra feels like it has reached new heights.
Everything has a beginning.