[The second joint training session was held in December]

We held a joint practice session in Fukushima City on Saturday, December 24th and Sunday, December 25th.
The first photo shows the facility we use as a practice venue.
For the Fukushima Minpo newspaper's article introducing the regular concert to be held in March next year,
This is a shot taken from the sidelines of a group photo shoot of all the members who gathered in the afternoon on the first day.

The first day will be an ensemble practice led by conductor Toshio Yanagisawa.
We took our time working on Mahler's Symphony No. 5, the main piece of the concert.

Some people took long breaks along the way, perhaps due to fatigue building up at the end of the year.
I took the picture carefully so as not to wake him up.

Of course, the person in question has given his permission to post this picture, but I will not reveal his name!!

Members who arrive late have the admirable attitude of first practicing alone before entering the group so as not to cause any trouble for the other members.

However, Mr. Yanagisawa had encouraged him to work harder on the trombone part, so Mr. Takeda Manabu from the Fukushima office stood next to him at his desk and gave instructions.

It looks like you can see a speech bubble saying, "Oh, that's difficult."

Mr. Yanagisawa pointed out that the song had not yet fully memorized, and advised me to practice not only by looking at the parts, but also by listening to the song while looking at the score and even playing the song while playing it.

Bassoonist Yuki Nagata was playing the instrument with a cardboard attached to the end.
This is a measure to wipe the semitone below the lowest note,
There seems to be a lot of potential for design innovation in the white areas.

At this point, Yanagisawa has given the horn part a passing grade.

I'm awake.

After all, the piece starts with a trumpet solo, so it seems like it would be quite difficult.

To all members, advance ticket sales will begin in the new year, and the performance will be just around the corner. We can't change the song now, so please practice hard during this winter break.

There are only three violas in total this season.
Today, only Takezawa Tomoya performed, and he received high praise from Yanagisawa, who said he did a great job.
I have been accepted to work in research and development at a certain musical instrument manufacturer next spring.
I could feel their enthusiasm for their final regular concert.
It is very encouraging that he has managed to redeem himself after the blunder of being extremely late on the first day of the training camp so far away.

On this day, we received a thoughtful gift from former student, Minoru Sato.

What a fine man you have become!
Even four years after graduating, I still remember your kind consideration and thank you for that.

As it was Christmas Eve, several members were dressed in red, green and white, so we took some photos to record the occasion in Christmas colors.

The man behind the green sweatshirt was yelling.

Merry Fuchsmas!

The flyer that was posted there was for the local FTV Junior New Year's Concert.

The next day was Sunday, December 25th.

Trombone player Kaizu Kota, a first-year university student from Fukushima, had been feeling a bit down the previous day because he hadn't been able to play well, but he was in high spirits from the morning, donning a Santa hat.
Resilience is important in life!

Merry Fuchsmas! (This is the second time, do you think it's funny?)

The second day was a Sunday of part and section practice, also known as per-rehearsal and sec-rehearsal, led by instructors dispatched by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.

The woodwind section took over Shirayuri Kindergarten, a 15-minute walk from Fukushima Minpo Hall, and received instruction from flutist Nayuki Hironobu.

The rest of the day will be spent practicing in various areas on the third floor of the Fukushima commercial broadcasting headquarters.
The viola is played by Akiaki Shigemitsu.

Output is twice as high as the previous day!

The second violin is Mayuko Otani.

The first violin is Jun Ninomiya.

The brass section features tuba player Tetsuya Otsuka.

The double bass is played by Iwahisa Kuroki.

The cellist is Takebayashi Ryo.

The percussion section is led by Kazuhiko Takano.

One-on-one individual instruction is a luxury!

And here too.

Even though it was already lunchtime, concert mistress Watanabe Masahiro was giving us individual instruction like a private tutor.

Or so I thought.

Even after the teacher left, the Watanabe Masahiro Violin Class continued to receive rave reviews.
The unreliable adults in the secretariat get away with telling jokes that don't get laughs, and it's the end of the year, and I feel relieved that these overly reliable members of the group are able to get by.

However, I will repeat this because it is important for the good members of the group.
Anyway, Mahler's 5th.
Listen carefully to the song and practice it well.

Have a wonderful New Year's holiday!