Notice of changes to performers and program for the 730th Tokyo Subscription Concert in May

Pietari Inkinen (Principal Conductor), who was scheduled to conduct the 730th Tokyo Regular Concert, will be unable to come to Japan due to entry restrictions related to COVID-19.

Instead, Masato Suzuki (conductor) and Ayana Tsuji (violin) will be performing as soloists. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to both of them for accepting such sudden substitutions.
Due to the change in performers, the song list will also be changed as follows:
Suzuki Masato is a spirited maestro who has mastered not only Baroque music, which is his own background, but also classical, romantic and contemporary music.
This time, as he will be performing with the Japan Philharmonic, Suzuki's own wish was to perform the traditional Sibelius Violin Concerto and Symphony No. 6.
Soloist Ayana Tsuji is a talented performer who won the Montreal International Music Competition with this piece.
The Japan Philharmonic has previously performed this work with Sibelius specialists such as Watanabe Akio and Berglund, and this time they will perform it with all their heart together with two young musicians.

<<Changed Program>>

●730th Tokyo Subscription Concert
May 28th (Friday) 19:00, May 29th (Saturday) 14:00
Conductor: Masato Suzuki
Violin: Ayana Tsuji
Stenhammar: Overture "Excelsior!"
Sibelius: Violin Concerto in D minor, Op.47
Sibelius: Symphony No. 6 in D minor, Op.104

We will be taking even more thorough infection control measures to ensure that everyone can enjoy the event with peace of mind. We believe even more in the power of music in these circumstances, and we look forward to welcoming you there.
Those who have already purchased tickets will be notified separately.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused.

For the latest information, please visit the official website (https://japanphil.or.jp/japanphil_wp/)Please verify.

Masato Suzuki (conductor)

ⒸMarco Borggreve

Born in the Netherlands in 1981, he graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts and its graduate school, as well as from the Royal Conservatory of Music in The Hague. He is a recipient of the 18th Saito Hideo Memorial Fund Award, the 18th Hotel Okura Music Award, and the 71st Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists. He has served as Principal Conductor of the Bach Collegium Japan (BCJ) since September 2018, and as Conductor/Creative Partner of the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra since April 2020. As Music Director, Ensemble Genesis presents ambitious programs ranging from Baroque to contemporary music using original instruments. As a conductor, he has performed with Ensemble Kanazawa, NHK Symphony Orchestra, Kyushu Symphony Orchestra, Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra, and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra, among others. In 2017 and 2020, he produced and performed the BCJ Opera Series, produced by Suzuki Masato. His Monteverdi opera "The Coronation of Poppea" (2017) and Handel's opera "Rinaldo" (2020) were highly praised as innovative Baroque operas and generated much buzz. As a composer, he has received numerous commissions, and has also received high praise for his restoration of the lost movement of J.S. Bach's BWV 190 (Carus) and his completion and revision of Mozart's Requiem (Schott Music). He is frequently featured in the media, appearing as a regular on NHK-FM's "The Joy of Early Music" and as a guest on TV Asahi's "Untitled Concert."
In 2019, he released a new album with Antoine Tamestit (viola) on Harmonia Mundi.
He is the executive producer of the Chofu International Music Festival, stage director, planning producer, and composer, and his activities are not limited to these two fields, and he is highly anticipated by many. He is also a visiting professor at Kyushu University.

Twitter / @eugenesuzuki
Facebook & Instagram / masatosuzukimusic

Ayana Tsuji (violin)

ⒸMakoto Kamiya

Born in Gifu Prefecture in 1997. Graduated from Tokyo College of Music. Won first place at the 2016 Montreal International Music Competition. He began playing the violin at the age of three using the Suzuki method. After performing with the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra at age 11, he has since performed with numerous orchestras both in Japan and abroad, including the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra, and Kyoto Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed in chamber music with cellist Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi and pianists Akira Eguchi, Megumi Ito, Tomoki Sakata, and Emanuel Strosser. In 2018, he received the 28th Idemitsu Music Award.
She has studied under Kenji Kobayashi, Toshiko Yaguchi, Kimiko Nakazawa, Machie Oguri, Koichiro Harada, and Régis Pasquier. She plays a Joannes Baptista Guadagnini 1748, loaned to her by the non-profit organization Yellow Angel. In April 2019, she toured Geneva and Japan with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, conducted by Jonathan Nott, and received high praise from all quarters for her lustrous tone and expression. She is currently based in France and Japan, expanding the scope of her activities and is enrolled in the Tokyo College of Music as a special scholarship student, receiving an Artist Diploma.