London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Sir Simon Rattle
©Doug Peters
©Oliver Helbig
GLOBAL
GLOBAL
London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Sir Simon Rattle
©Doug Peters
©Oliver Helbig
In accordance with our corporate motto of “Contribute to culture and industry through creativity,” TDK has been cosponsoring Japanese performances by world-famous orchestras since 2001 under the title “TDK Orchestra Concert.” In 2018 we cosponsored performances by the London Symphony Orchestra, which has been called the “Queen’s orchestra,” conducted by Sir Simon Rattle, who previously served for 16 years as the artistic director of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and has now embarked on a new era as music director at the LSO.
On the occasion of this cosponsorship, TDK also organized the TDK Outreach Mini-Concert and an open rehearsal and performance invitation as part of our social contribution activities directed toward education and training.
Linking with TDK’s communication message of “Attracting Tomorrow,” these programs are an original social contribution activity designed to give young people who later will be seeking to carve out a new future in the field of music the opportunity to come into contact with first-class music.
The 2018 TDK Outreach Mini-Concert was held at Onarimon Junior High School in Tokyo’s Minato-ku on Friday, September 28. This annual outreach program, which started in 2003 and was taking place for the fifteenth time in 2018, involves members of the orchestra being cosponsored by TDK going to a school to perform, give talks on music, and engage in other activities.
In 2018 Onarimon Junior High School was chosen to host the program from among other schools in Minato-ku, where TDK’s headquarters were located for five years and eight months from March 2013 to November 2018.
Five members of the London Symphony Orchestra’s Brass Quintet visited the school for the occasion.
A total of around 300 people assembled in the school’s gymnasium, including about 180 first- and third-year students of the school, 70 sixth graders from the neighboring Onarimon Elementary School, and 50 parents and other related persons, and the performance took place in a warm and welcoming atmosphere.
The quintet played seven pieces altogether, including “None Shall Sleep” from the opera Turandot by Giacomo Puccini and “When I’m Sixty-Four” by John Lennon and Paul McCartney.
Between the numbers, the members gave self-introductions and introduced their instruments. Their explanations were easy to understand not only for people with an interest in music but also for those who were not so familiar, so the program enabled everyone to enjoy this musical experience.
As a first trial, the 2018 outreach program was also beamed live to Akita Prefecture in northern Japan, which has close connections to TDK. A total of 170 students from Chokai Junior High School and Chokai Elementary School in Yuri-Honjo City gathered at the Shisuikan hall in the city to listen to the mini-concert performed by world-class artists.
After the performance, two students each at the Tokyo and Akita venues asked questions, to which the members gave thoughtful replies.
As a token of gratitude, the students themselves then gave performances. At the Tokyo venue, the students of Onarimon Junior High School sang a special version of the school song, and from the Akita venue, students of Chokai Junior High School played flutes and drums.
The quintet artists made such comments as “We can’t communicate by words, but your feelings of fondness for your beloved schools comes across well” and “I was captivated by Japan’s traditional stirring sounds. ” For the students as well, the time shared with first-class artists was an unforgettable experience.
Just before the main performance on Saturday, September 29, students were invited to see an open rehearsal held at the Suntory Hall in Akasaka, Tokyo, with some of them also being invited to the main performance.
Targeting students who are studying music, TDK has been implementing this program since 2001 with the aim of supporting young people who are seeking to carve out a new future for music with their own talents by providing them with an experience that will be useful in their musical activities from now on.
In the rehearsal prior to the main performance, the conductor and orchestra members carry out a final check on how pieces are to be expressed. TDK provides music students with an opportunity to observe this valuable scene, in which both sides are unyielding in their stands right to the end.
The rehearsal was attended by 230 students chosen by lottery, and 30 of them were also invited to watch the main performance. The invitation to the main performance was based on the idea of enabling students to listen to the main performance of pieces that had been worked out in the rehearsal so that they might make use of the experience in their future musical activities.
In addition, prior to the rehearsal, Professor Junichi Konuma of Waseda University Graduate School, a music critic, delivered a pre-lecture explaining the key points of the open rehearsal.
In the open rehearsal, the students watched avidly as Sir Simon Rattle, the conductor and music director of the London Symphony Orchestra, communicated with the orchestra members to accomplish certain sounds. Furthermore, the expressions on their faces clearly showed that the 30 students selected for invitation to the main performance were delighted to have the rare opportunity to listen to a performance by one of the world’s leading orchestras.
In a questionnaire after the program had been completed, many students made such joyful comments as “In the rehearsal just before the main performance, I was surprised to see that there was also a relaxed atmosphere, with orchestra members drinking water and chatting with people in the corner” and “I was able to feel once again, for the first time in ages, that music is wonderful. I was really happy to be able to come to the open rehearsal. Thank you.”
| Name | TDK Orchestra Concerts Featuring the London Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Sir Simon Rattle |
|---|---|
| Sponsors | Kajimoto, Fuji Television Network |
| Cosponsor | TDK Corporation |
| Support | British Council |
| Orchestra | London Symphony Orchestra |
| Conductor | Sir Simon Rattle |
| Dates and program | Monday, September 24, 2018; 18:00 Suntory Hall Leonard Bernstein: Symphony No. 2 “The Age of Anxiety” (piano: Krystian Zimerman) Antonin Dvorak: Slavonic Dances, op. 72 Leos Janacek: Sinfonietta |
| Tuesday, September 25, 2018; 19:00 Suntory Hall Helen Grime: Woven Space Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 9 in D major |
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| Saturday, September 29, 2018; 14:00 Suntory Hall Maurice Ravel: Ma Mere l’Oye Karol Szymanowski: Violin Concerto No. 1 (violin: Janine Jansen) Jean Sibelius: Symphony No. 5 in E-flat major, op. 82 *Performance for invitees |
Born in Liverpool, England, Sir Simon Rattle studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, since when he has been engaged in creative activities consistently right up to the present day, as the principal conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra from 1980 to 1998, the artistic director of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra from 2002 to 2018, and the music director of the London Symphony Orchestra since September 2017. As well as touring around the world with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, he has made numerous highly acclaimed recordings and also promoted new fields, such as the establishment of an educational program. He has received many prestigious awards in recognition of these activities. Over the years he has built strong relations of trust with many leading orchestras around the world, such as the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Philadelphia Orchestra, and has made notable achievements in the field of opera as well.
Established in 1904, the London Symphony Orchestra is managed by the orchestra members themselves in accordance with the entrepreneurial spirit of wishing to deliver wonderful music to as many people as possible. It is the United Kingdom’s foremost and one of the world’s leading orchestras. The LSO has a traditional sound and presents many memorable performances with top-class artists. Sir Simon Rattle, who became the LSO’s music director in 2017, has likened conducting the LSO to “driving a high-performance sports car that can turn on the head of a pin.” The LSO is the resident orchestra at the Barbican Centre in London, where it performs about 70 concerts a year, and regularly visits key music cities around the world as well. It is also deeply involved in education and a leading force in media; its own LSO Live record label has been hugely successful. The LSO is also famous for its performances of film music, such as Star Wars.