Tagged with 'Suntory Hall'

Toru Takemitsu’s Nostalghia for violin and orchestra will be performed on 13 September in the Martinskirche in Basel, and on 14 September in St. Peter's Church in Zurich, by violinist Ilya Gringolts and the I Tempi chamber orchestra conducted by Gevorg Gharabekyan.

Composed in 1987 for Yehudi Menuhin, Nostalghia draws inspiration from Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1983 film of the same name, and its central theme of homesickness. While the word nostalgia refers to desire for a time since past, in both Russian and Italian nostalghia means to acutely miss a place or a person.

Nostalghia - “In Memory of Andrei Tarkovsky”

Takemitsu was attracted to the quiet camera work, sparing use of music, and tendency for long uncut scenes in Tarkovsky’s film, and after the filmmaker’s death in 1986 he dedicated Nostalghia to Tarkovsky’s memory. After a brief introduction, a simple solo violin melody dominates the composition, seeking to evoke a sense of memory, loss and longing. Maintaining the contrasts characteristically found in Tarkovsky’s films, Takemitsu uses a divided string orchestra beneath the violin to musically represent the differing states of water and fog. At the work’s end, the orchestral groups divide again into polyphony, while the solo violin remains in the highest heights.

I would like to follow both Japanese tradition and Western innovation, and to maintain both musical styles simultaneously has become the core focus of my compositional operations. It is a contradiction I do not want to solve – on the contrary, I want the two styles to combat each other. I want to achieve a sound that is as intense as the silence. – Toru Takemitsu

The same concert will also feature Karl Amadeus Hartmann's Concerto funebre for solo violin and string orchestra. On 14 and 15 September, the NHK Symphony Orchestra conducted by Paavo Järvi will play Takemitsu’s A Way a Lone II arranged for string quartet and How Slow the Wind for orchestra in the Suntory Hall in Tokyo. Also on 15 September, the Tokyo Sinfonietta conducted by Yasuaki Itakura will perform Rain Coming in the Supporo Concert Hall Kitara in Hokkaido. On 16 September, Pirmin Grehl plays Itinerant for flute at the Schumann Festival in Leipzig, and a day later the Philharmonic State Orchestra Mainz performs Night Signal at the theatre festival Mainz, conducted by Hermann Bäumer.

• Toru Takemitsu - profile

 

• Nostalghia - workdetails

 

On 18 July this week, Fazıl Say’s Ballad for alto saxophone and orchestra will receive its world premiere in Tokyo with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra conducted by Miguel Harth-Bedoya. Say composed the work for Japanese saxophonist Nobuya Sugawa, who will perform as soloist.



Born in Ankara in 1970, Say began playing the piano aged four and began composing as a teenager at Ankara conservatoire. Today, as internationally acclaimed composer and concert pianist, his keen interest in jazz, improvisation and traditional music influences much of his work and provides elements that are frequently incorporated into his compositions.

Fazıl Say’s Ballad – full of sonic possibilities

Say composed Ballad in a style allowing the soloist the opportunity to explore the full sonic possibilities of the saxophone's tonal range. Beginning with a long lyrical meditation evoking a search for peace, soft drum beats provide a backdrop reminiscent of the ocean.

All my compositions, as indeed my life does, take place between these two musical lineages (oriental and occidental). Turkish music has a stronger rhythmical character, German music has a great history. Both cultures interact with each other. - Fazıl Say

July has been a particularly busy month for Say with the composer himself performing as soloist for his piano concerto China Rhapsody with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra conducted by Long Yu on 15 July, and looking ahead The Hong Kong Sinfonietta Orchestra performing his piano concerto Silk Road on 23 July conducted by Yip Wing-sie. On 14 August Say will give a recital including four of his solo piano works, Bodrum, Paganini Jazz, Alla Turca Jazz and Summertime Variations at the Mosel-Musikfestival in Bernkastel-Kues.

• Fazıl Say - profile


• Ballad - workdetails