AJSW Classical Music Concert Series

Part of the continuing AJSW classical music concert series promoting and supporting Japanese musicians drawn from a variety of environments be they professional, students, visiting or home based.

1. The Erdesz String Quartet

The Erdesz Sting Trio has performed at a variety of concert venues throughout the UK, including St Martin in the fields. In May 2009, they were awarded First Prize at Cavatina Chamber Music Competition in London. In February 2010 they gave a world premier performance of 'Eyes of Exile' by Mario Ferraro in London. The Erdesz Quartet hopes to continue the trio's success  performing in Japan and in various concert venues in the UK.

 

Programme
Haydn String Quartet in D Major, Op. 64 No. 5 "The Lark " (1790)  
1 allegro moderato
2 adagio cantabile
3 menuetto
4 finale

Mendelssohn String Quartet No.1 in E flat op.12        
1 Adagio Non Troppo,- Allegro Non Tardante.
2  Canzonetta
3 Andante espressivo
4 Molto allegro e vivace

 

2. Yuki Tashiro (violin) and Kumi Matsuo (piano)

 

Yuki Tashiro has experience as a violinist in various chamber groups or orchestras, and performed in Japan, Korea, Spain and England and attended festivals such as the Pacific Music Festival, Japan and Malta International String Festival. Yuki has studied with Natalia Boyarsky and graduated with a Post Graduate Diploma at the Royal College of Music, London in 2008.

 

Kumi Matsuo was born in 1984 in Tokyo, Japan. In December 2008, she performed Ravel's Piano Concerto for Left hand in Cadogan Hall with the RCM Sinfonietta conducted by Peter Stark, and in November 2009 she performed Schnittke's Concerto Grosso in the Queen Elizabeth Hall with the RCM Chamber Orchestra conducted by Vladimir Jurowski playing both piano and harpsichord. She has performed extensively in the UK and Japan, including the Elgar Room in the Royal Albert Hall, St Martin-in-the-Fields, St James's Piccadilly, Bristol Cathedral, the National Gallery, Handel House Museum,Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall, Kioi Hall and Tokyo Bunka Kaikan.

 

Programme

BEETHOVEN: SONATA FOR PIANO AND VIOLIN NO.3 in E flat major, Op.12-3
I. Allegro con spirito
II. Adagio con molta espressione
III. Rondo, Allegro molto

SCHNITTKE: SONATA NO.1 FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO
I. Andante
II Allegro
III. Largo
IV. Allegretto scherzando

SARASATE: INTRODUCTION AND TARANTELLA, Op.4

 

3. Midori Komachi (violin) with Tadashi Imai (piano)

 

Midori Komachi was born in 1988, in Japan.
As a chamber musician she has performed at the Wigmore Hall, leading her string quartet in a masterclass given by the Belcea quartet. In 2008 she was invited to the Takefu International Music Festival in Japan to perform in a string ensemble with professors Stephan Picard, Nobuko Imai and Stephan Forck. Midori has been awarded several prizes including Hattori Foundation Junior Award 2007/08, and she is also the laureate of competitions such as Dame Ruth Railton Prize 2006 and Harold Craxton Prize 2009. Most recently she has won the Max Pirani Prize 2009.

Tadashi Imai began his piano study at the age of 11 under the tutorage of Kazuyo Ueda and Mieko Nakagawa in Japan. Later, he was granted a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he studied with Christopher Elton and chamber music with Clifford Benson and Michael Dussek.
He has performed many concerto including Stravinsky's Piano Concerto (with the Royal Academy Orchestra), Tchaikovsky's Concerto No. 1 (with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra), Chopin's Concerto No. 1 (with the Osaka Symphoniker), and Rachmaninoff's Concerto No. 3 (with the Feuerwerk Symphoniker, Tokyo).
Since he graduated from the Royal Academy of Music he has been appointed Associate of the Royal Academy of Music (ARAM).
His forthcoming concert engagements in 2010 include solo recital and chamber music concerts in Japan, England, France, Ireland, Spain, Holland, Poland and Germany.

Programme

Cesar Franck: Sonata in A:-

Allegretto ben Moderato
Allegro
Recitativo-Fantasia
Allegretto poco mosso

Witold Lutoslawski: Recitativo e Arioso

Camille Saint-Saens: Introduction et Rondo Capriccioso, opus 28

 

 

4. Mansoon Bow (violin) with Sam Liu (piano)

Mansoon Bow is frequently on demand as both soloist and chamber musician in many major cities in Japan, as well as in the UK where she is currently based.

She was born in Japan of Korean origin studying the violin at the age of three in her native city of Osaka. Later she proceeded to the Royal Academy of Music in London obtaining a Bachelor and Master's Degree, in which she is a recipient of full scholarship.

Mansoon has been awarded prestigious prizes including in the Osaka International competition 2000. In 2008, Mansoon won the First Prize and the Audience Prize in The Cavatina Music Competition and most recently, she has been chosen to receive the Byram Jeejeebhoy Prize as well as the Silver Medal Prize which is awarded to students who has made the most outstanding contribution to the work and to performance activities.

From 2010 Mansoon continues to pursue her research for her PhD degree at Royal Northern College of Music/ Manchester University.

Sam Liu (Piano) Sam Liu has lived with his family in British Columbia until he was accepted in Trinity College of Music and moved to London as international student at 2007. He began piano studies at age 12 with Grace Schmuecker and subsequently with Dietmar Schmuecker. Sam earned his ARCT diploma in Canada.

Sam is now in his last year of the BMus course at Trinity College of Music where he
studies with Douglas Finch. In 2009, Sam won the first prize of 'Il Circolo' Competition held

Programme
Schumann Violin Sonata No.2 in D minor op.121

1. Ziemlich langsam 2. Sehr lebhaft 3. Leise, einfach 4. Bewegt