English Blog
It was my first tme to hear a cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan, a 2011 XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition winner. I have heard a great reputation about him, and I was so looking forward to it. He chose to play Saint Saens concerto, and after finishing it, he played Armenian composer’s unaccompanied sonata. He played it to […]
I went to the last performance of this production today. It is just great! James Conlon gave us a wonderful pre-concert talk on the opera. I learned several new facts around Mozart’s opera, and it made sense during the performance. Conlon is a great speaker. For instance, the famous overture is linked to the ending […]
It is a very strong movie in many ways. Clint Eastwood is a director of “American Sniper,” starring Bradley Cooper as Chris Kyle, the most lethal sniper in the U.S. military history, a nicknamed “Legend”. He had a special mind to complete his 4 tours to Iraq, and survived through many dangerous moments. His mind was very focused […]
Seymour Bernstein started playing the piano as a little boy (that is not actually so special because most of professional pianists start our training pretty early), and he showed his exceptional talent in his early years. Interestingly when he turned 15 he was already teaching piano to others. He enjoyed an amazing performing career, but he […]
“Delicatessen” has a long history. It is a center of Jewish Culture, and reflects the heart of a vital ethnic history in America. I am a Japanese, and my food preference is almost opposite of Delicatessen food (!), but it is very fascinating. Almost exotic to me. Jewish people are serious about Deli food. In Houston, […]
Sebastien Vallee and I will perform all French program including Faure, Franck, Gounod, Hahn, St. Saens, Debussy, and many others. French is Sebastien’s native language, and it is so beautiful to hear his French. The program is divided into several sets, Seasons of Life, Farewells, The Mystery of Death, Dreams of Love, and Galant Love. […]
This movie was nominated for The Best Foreign Film at Oscar this year. “Wild Tales” depicts an extreme-ness in our lives. We experience some parts of tales in this movie, but seldom go that extreme. It is a super comedy. The reality suddenly turns into the unreal. It is funny and scary. The director is […]
Sir Schiff chose to perform the late sonatas by Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, and Schubert. I just performed all Schubert program a night before this concert, and I was in a perfect mood. The first piece was Mozart sonata in B-flat major, K. 570. As a good piano student (!), I played this one when I was […]
I was very lucky to attend the dress rehearsal of “Alice in Wonderland”, a new production on Ursuk Chin’s composition/Librettist David Henry Hwang, a West Coast premier. Susanna Malkki is a conductor, and she does an amazing work. For her innovative multimedia event, director/designer/video artist Netia Jones has created “Alice in Wonderland” into a glittering, crazed […]
I went to see LA opera: The Ghosts of Versailles by John Corigliano and William M. Hoffman on Wednesday February 18, and it was just great! The story is very silly and non-sense, but it is so fun. And I was so impressed by the staging. It is so colorful and imaginative. I am sure […]