[Hamamatsu City Museum of Musical Instruments Collection Series 48] Sounds of the Forest - The Charm of German Late Romanticism and Brahms

Introduction

The intimate sound beloved by the great composer Brahms is brought to life through the Hamamatsu Museum of Musical Instruments' collection of period instruments and performances by virtuoso early music composers! The Violin Sonata in G major, also known as "Rain Song," the Clavier Pieces, Op. 119, showcasing Brahms's meticulous sonic shaping in his final years, and the Horn Trio, a masterpiece for the Waldhorn (natural horn), also known as the "forest horn," for which Brahms himself performed and even wrote original etudes.

This long-awaited album brings together these essential chamber works, essential for understanding Brahms!

Media Reviews and More

"Hamamatsu Museum of Musical Instruments Collection Series 48" presents the works of the great composer Brahms, presented in their original compositions and performed by virtuoso early music composers, from the Hamamatsu Museum of Musical Instruments. The Horn Trio, performed on period instruments (natural horns), is particularly fascinating, as Brahms was also a horn player. (C)RS

About the Artist

[Kikuko Ogura (Fortepiano)] She attended Tokyo University of the Arts and completed her graduate studies in piano. She graduated with honors from the Amsterdam Conservatory. She won first place in the piano category at the 3rd Japan Mozart Music Competition. She won first place in the ensemble category at the 1993 Bruges International Early Music Competition. She also won first place in the fortepiano category and the audience award at the same competition in 1995. While hosting various concert series, she is active in a wide range of repertoire, including solo, chamber, and concerto pieces, from Baroque to modern and contemporary music. Her performances in numerous collection series and lecture concerts hosted by the Hamamatsu Museum of Musical Instruments have also received high praise. She has released over 40 CDs, many of which have been recommended by various newspapers and selected as special selections by Record Geijutsu magazine. Her CD "English Sonatas" won the Grand Prize in the Recording Category at the 2012 Agency for Cultural Affairs Arts Festival. His publications include the color illustrated "History of the Piano (with CD)" (Kawade Shobo Shinsha), the revised sheet music "Giustini: 12 Sonatas, Volumes 1 and 2" (KAWAI Publishing), the co-author of "Easy-to-Understand Pianist's Breathing Technique" (Yamaha Music Media), and the editor of "Easy-to-Understand! 4-Panel Piano Music History, Volumes 1 and 2" (Yamaha Music Media). He lectured on "Musicians Mozart Encountered" on NHK Radio 2's "Art: Its Charm" (broadcast July-September 2014). He is currently hosting the highly acclaimed concert series "Kikuko Ogura's Room with Mozart's Clavier." He is also a part-time lecturer at the Department of Early Music at Tokyo University of the Arts.

[Kenji Kiriyama (Violin)] He began playing the violin at the age of three through gifted education. He attended Tokyo University of the Arts and completed his graduate studies at the same university. He graduated from the University of Music in Frankfurt am Main. In 1998, he won first place at the 12th Early Music Competition in Yamanashi and the 10th Tochigi Kuranomachi Music Festival Award. In 1999, he won first place in the solo category at the Bruges International Early Music Competition. In 2005, he served as a judge for the Early Music Competition in Yamanashi. He currently serves as concertmaster for the Matsumoto Bach Festival Ensemble and violist for the Erdödy String Quartet. He is an associate professor at Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts and a lecturer at Ferris University. He has released numerous CDs, starting with the Record Geijutsu Special Selection album "Chaconne" (CAIL-728). In 2009, he published the score for "Mendelssohn: Complete Violin Sonatas," co-edited with Hiromi Hoshino, through Bärenreiter.

[Satoshi Tsukada (Natural Horn)] Graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts. Upon graduation, he joined the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, where he remains to this day. In 1991, he studied at the Amsterdam Conservatory in the Netherlands as an overseas trainee of the Affinis Cultural Foundation, where he studied horn with V. Zalzo. He also studied natural horn with C. Morley and flute traverso with K. Hünteller. In 2001, he returned to the Netherlands as an overseas artist trainee of the Agency for Cultural Affairs, where he studied natural horn with T. van der Zwart. As a natural horn player, he participates in an ensemble of original Japanese instruments and leads the chamber ensemble "La Bande Sampa," whose repertoire primarily consists of divertimento pieces from the Mozart era. He is also the director of "Menuet der Flugel," which produces classical performances.