Japan Philharmonic Orchestra x Miyako High School Wind Orchestra Special Roundtable Discussion "Musicians and High School Students Seriously Discuss the Future of Music and Society" Report
Japan Philharmonic Tohoku Dream Project 2020 Special Event
Japan Philharmonic Orchestra x Miyako High School Wind Orchestra Special Roundtable Discussion
"Musicians and High School Students Seriously Discuss the Future of Music and Society" Report
Author: Madoka Yagi
(After experiencing the Great East Japan Earthquake in Sendai, he has been involved in the activities of "Philosophy Café @ Sendai," which creates a forum for dialogue among citizens, and has also been reporting on disasters and diversity.)
On June 7th, members of the Tokyo-based Japan Philharmonic Orchestra (hereafter referred to as JPH) and high school students from Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture, connected using an online conferencing tool to talk about music and the future.
This dialogue transcended various boundaries and provided an invaluable platform for mutual insight through music, something that is familiar to everyone. This article reports on the journey of this online roundtable discussion, which brought together people of different backgrounds, ages, and locations: a professional musician and a high school student, from Tokyo and Iwate.
"I want to talk to a professional musician" - High school students in Iwate
In response to the spread of COVID-19, schools have been closed since early March, and the All Japan Wind Orchestra Competition has been canceled. As a result, the third-year students of the Iwate Prefectural Miyako High School Wind Orchestra have decided to retire from club activities at the end of May. In addition to the daily loneliness of not being able to participate in the club activities they love with their friends, the depression they must have felt from losing sight of their goals is unimaginable. Mr. Masaharu Sato, the band advisor who instructs them, asked them what they wanted to do now. The third-year students apparently answered as follows:
"It's a shame that the competition has been cancelled. But I want to leave something behind for the local people who have supported me up until now. To think about that, I would like to talk with professional musicians about music and society."
Their voices were heard by the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, which had also lost its venue for activities. Since April 2011, the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra has traveled to the Tohoku coastal areas as part of a reconstruction support project called "Music for Disaster Areas," holding 293 concerts and instrument instruction sessions there. Furthermore, as the years have passed since the disaster, the situation and challenges in the affected areas have changed. In response to the voices of people in the affected areas expressing a desire to "spread their message more themselves," the orchestra launched the "Tohoku Dream Project" last year. This project aims to build a new community by bringing together many people through music and creating a platform for Tohoku children to have a "bright moment," with the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra and local people working together. The Miyako High School Wind Orchestra has been in contact with the orchestra since performing together on stage at the "Tohoku Dream Project 2019: Fun Orchestra in Iwate" event held in Morioka City last August.
Due to the impact of COVID-2, the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra has had to cancel all of its regular concerts and other events since late February. Ticket revenue has also disappeared, and musicians are no longer able to gather together to practice. The losses over this period have been significant, putting the orchestra in a financial crisis. While struggling to figure out what they could do in a situation where they had lost their usual venue for activities, the orchestra became concerned about the students at Miyako High School, and when the staff contacted them, they heard the story mentioned above.
Meanwhile, Miyako City and the Miyako Civic Cultural Center were also facing serious challenges.
Miyako City was severely damaged in the Great East Japan Earthquake, and construction work has progressed, with some physical reconstruction work progressing. However, it will take time to fully create an environment where people can work and raise children with peace of mind, and many people who leave the city never return, accelerating the outflow of population. Miyako City currently has a population of about 50,000. It is about a two-hour drive from the center of Iwate Prefecture, and there are not many young people of the right age to serve as role models for children.
In addition, the Miyako Civic Cultural Hall (https://iwate-arts-miyako.jp/It has been five years since the Cultural Hall was rebuilt and reopened after the earthquake. For the past three years, Yuhei Sakata, assistant director and producer, has been working to preserve the local arts and culture and build a civic community through projects such as community theater. This is because he believes that "culture can easily disappear if there is no one to cherish it." However, the Cultural Hall was forced to restrict use from March, suspending cultural activities for residents and temporarily halting exchanges with artists from urban areas.
In other words, for regions experiencing depopulation, restrictions on children's cultural activities and access to cultural facilities directly threatens the very existence of culture. Sakata, who had connections with the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra and the Miyako High School Wind Orchestra, listened to the high school students' thoughts and offered, "If we devise ways to use the cultural center, we can provide an online environment and a space that avoids close contact." Thus, members of the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra in Tokyo, the Iwate Civic Cultural Center, and high school students in Miyako City were able to come together and engage in dialogue, sharing the common theme of "music."
People from various backgrounds exchange words
The roundtable discussion was attended by five members of the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra and one office representative. The members varied in instrumental parts, years of membership, and hometowns. At the Miyako Civic Cultural Hall, 57 members of the Miyako High School Wind Orchestra, their advisor Mr. Sato, and musicians from Miyako City gathered. First, both the orchestra members and the high school students introduced themselves. The discussion then progressed with the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra answering questions from the high school students.
What kind of music moves people?
In response to this question, Hashimoto (trumpet) answered from a perspective likely gained from many years of performing as a musician, "Even if there are 100 people in the audience, it is impossible to give a performance that will be liked by all 100 people. This is because people are moved in different ways. A child's recital may be more moving for parents than a professional performance. That's why it's important to give a performance that you truly want to do. If you think, 'I gave an amazing performance, so it's only natural that people will be moved,' you won't be able to move people's hearts."
- "What do you think is the difference between experiencing music through online streaming and a live performance?"
During the school closures, many club members spent their time watching videos posted online. They were moved by watching videos of their favorite artists and were able to keep their spirits up.
Yagyu Kazuhiro (tuba) commented on the merits of live performances and online streaming, saying, "A live concert is something that is created not only by the performers, but also by the audience and the hall itself. Even within the same song, no two sounds are the same, and I feel that a distinctive feature of the song is that the atmosphere changes depending on the audience and their condition on that day. On the other hand, online streaming is still convenient, as it allows us to listen to great performances of the past anytime, anywhere. They have different roles, so I think it's important to use them appropriately."
Ottaviano (trumpet) from Italy found motivation in having someone listen to him, so he uploaded videos of his own performances to the internet during the period when regular concerts were canceled. However, he said, "It can't compare to the quality of sound at a live concert." He used the analogy of "sashimi and canned tuna are both made from tuna, and both are delicious, but the taste and the way they are prepared are different," explaining how to use them.
What do you think is the power of music?
"I feel like music has become less of a priority now than it was before. But we feel that music gave us encouragement during the Great East Japan Earthquake. We no longer have the answers on our own to what we can do for the local people through music."
In response, Harakawa (horn) quoted a famous conductor, saying, "Music is something that humans need, just like water or nature. It is something that we should always have in our lives." Meanwhile, Hashimoto said, "Rather than saying that 'art changes people or the times,' I believe that good music was born in good times, when people had peace of mind. Therefore, one of our missions is to create a good society."
Kishira (trombone) added, "Immediately after the earthquake, I had the opportunity to perform at evacuation centers and other places, but to be honest, I didn't know how I should feel when I played. But when people who listened to my performance told me things like, 'It's been a long time since I laughed so hard,' I was able to realize the meaning of music." He spoke of his feelings when he participated in the "Music for Disaster Areas" activity.
Furthermore, as a message to the high school students, Harakawa said, "Don't be shy about trying anything that interests you, not just music," while Kishira encouraged them, saying, "Music isn't just for competitions; you can continue to play in many different places." Yagyu and Ottaviano shared their feelings of loneliness at not being able to perform with their peers, saying, "It's frustrating that the Japan Philharmonic concerts haven't been held for a while, and we can only gradually plan our future." However, they also shared positive words, saying, "Difficult times will always end, so I'm gathering strength and dreaming of the day when I can perform to my heart's content." Hashimoto, the oldest member of the orchestra who participated that day, reminisced about the brass band competition he participated in during his high school days and concluded the conversation by saying, "Being able to play music is a wonderful talent. I hope you will continue to play music in various forms in the future."
At the end of the day, both the brass band members and the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra sent each other surprise videos, bringing the discussion to a close.
"I'm sure people of my generation across the country are struggling with this issue."
In fact, it took about two weeks from planning to implementation. Mr. Sato of Miyako High School persuaded the school, saying, "This will definitely be useful in the future," and Sakata also enlisted the cooperation of local staff to set up an online environment. In post-event interviews, the second- and third-year students who spoke said that the discussion not only changed their views on musical performance, but also their own values in life. They also said, "The musicians taught me the meaning of music, and it gave me the strength to look forward," and "I'm sure there are many people of my generation who are struggling like us. For example, I would be happy if we could hold a project in the future where section leaders from all over the country could connect and talk using online tools." They were already imagining their next goal.
Dialogues like this may not be actions that will produce visible results immediately, but I think it was very meaningful that adults seriously listened to what children had to say and took on the challenge of using new tools.
Even small actions inspired by this exchange can lead to big changes in the long term if they continue. In fact, after the talk, the members of the Miyako High School brass band have been exchanging opinions over the internet with high school students in the Kansai region, with whom they had no previous contact. If this talk was what prompted them to take action on their own initiative, then it has certainly brought about positive change.
Meanwhile, for the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, interacting with children in Tohoku in a new way—through a "dialogue" rather than a performance—was a new idea born out of the current situation where concerts could not be held. As a result, it became an opportunity to reexamine the existence of music, something that we have taken for granted. This is because dialogue, an activity in which we verbalize our thoughts and communicate them to others, can sometimes be confusing due to differences in opinion, but knowing the differences leads to seeing things from more diverse perspectives. Some orchestra members also said that it was the first time they had heard the musicians' deep feelings about music in a public setting, and this was a discovery that can be applied to the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra's future activities.
As one high school student said, "Music is becoming less of a priority right now." For example, if cultural activities were to cease in a town, one of the "places to spend time with others" would disappear. This would lead people to leave the town in search of other places. If this trend were to accelerate, the town would lose its population and its vitality. From this long-term perspective, isn't support for cultural and artistic activities just as important as support for material goods and economic activity?
Culture and art are so familiar to us that it is difficult to put into words how important they are, and they can serve as a medium that connects diverse people, so perhaps now is the time to reexamine their value.
