Hello everyone! Thank you for reading this report.

I am Yuna Kanno, an oboist (11th cohort) from Fukushima Prefecture and currently a second-year university student. I’ll be the one writing this member report. It’s a pleasure to meet you!

On Saturday, October 3rd, we participated as a woodwind quintet in an "Outreach Concert" for the Sendai Classic Festival 2026, held in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture!

A woodwind quintet consists of flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and horn. The ensemble is characterized by a very warm, mellow, and gentle tone—the kind that seems to wrap you up and shield you from the recent autumn chill! (*^-^*)

Interestingly, every single member performing this time is a second-year university student.
Let me introduce this close-knit group!

Flute: Aomi Sawada | Oboe: Yuna Kanno | Clarinet: Shizuku Goto
Bassoon: Mokuhiro Takiguchi | Horn: Riku Asami

We performed the following five pieces:
・Composed by Ryuichi Sakamoto: "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" and "Yae no Sakura"
・Composed by Ravel: "Pavane for a Dead Princess" (Pavane pour une infante défunte)
・Composed by Liszt: "Liebestraum" (Dream of Love)
・Composed by Yoko Kanno (Reconstruction support song for the Great East Japan Earthquake): "Hana wa Saku" (Flowers Will Bloom)

Each piece features a beautiful melody and a striking sound; I imagine many of you are familiar with these tunes.
I found the works by Ryuichi Sakamoto particularly challenging to prepare.
Since we are usually accustomed to playing in large orchestral settings, we struggled with how to express the music as a quintet—specifically, how to create an atmosphere distinct from the original while effectively showcasing the unique timbres of all five instruments. "Liebestraum" (Dream of Love) was another piece that we found quite challenging. Since it is frequently performed on the piano, we practiced with a focus on how to best convey its charm using the unique timbres and expressive qualities of a woodwind quintet. We placed great importance on creating a unified musical experience as a group of five, paying close attention to individual melodies, rapid runs, the passing of musical lines between instruments, and the overall balance.

Each piece presented its own set of difficulties, but through trial and error and repeated practice within a limited timeframe, we were able to successfully reach the day of the performance.

The big moment had finally arrived!
As our performance time drew near, our nerves began to mount; however, seeing so many people already in the venue before we even walked out made us realize just how much support the Tohoku Youth Orchestra receives from so many wonderful people.

We received so much warm applause during the performance and were able to finish successfully. Thank you so much to everyone who came to see us.

Here we are after the performance—the tension has melted away, and we look a bit relieved (haha).

We hope our performance conveyed the fruits of our hard work and our passion for music!

Thank you for reading to the end.
With influenza and colds going around lately, please take care of your health. We intend to stay healthy as well as we continue our practice!

Our next scheduled volunteer performance is the "Fukushima Machinaka Music Festival,"
taking place on Saturday, October 24, in Fukushima City, Fukushima Prefecture. [Event Details]
■ Date & Time: Saturday, October 24 – Performance starts at 12:20 PM
■ Location: Fukushima Station East Exit Plaza
■ Admission: Free (no advance reservation required)
■ Ensemble: Mixed 8-piece ensemble

[Scheduled Repertoire (in no particular order)]
1. BEHIND THE MASK (YMO)
2. Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (Ryuichi Sakamoto)
3. Hoshikage no Yell (GReeeeN)
4. A Cruel Angel's Thesis (Yoko Takahashi)

We look forward to seeing you there!