On October 14th, we recorded a joint concert at the Odawara Sannomaru Hall. This concert consisted of two parts: a violin concerto by Somora Tibor and a concerto by the Budapest Vonosh Trio. Aki Fujii was the guest pianist and many guests enjoyed the performance.
Violinist Somora Tibor is from Budapest, Hungary. Born into a gypsy music family with a 150-year history, he has performed in chamber music concerts and music festivals in major cities around the world. He is currently active in Japanese music activities.
Our guest, Aki Fujii, is a pianist with a wide repertoire from baroque to contemporary music, and has been with us since we recorded a CD album of Chopin's Etudes on an 1843 Pleyel. In recent years it has been used extensively across borders, including the complete series of Bach's harpsichord concertos and recordings of works by contemporary composers from Brazil and the UK.
The Budapest Vonosh Trio, which hosted this concert, is a string trio consisting of the aforementioned violinist Tibor, violist Hidetoshi Shirai and cellist Aya Shirai. With Hidetoshi Shirai, who studied at the Hungarian Liszt Conservatory, and Aya Shirai, who returned to Japan completely after her collaborations with the Savaglia Symphony Orchestra and the Budapest City Zugrow Symphony Orchestra in 2020, this trio will create a unique sound that is unique to Budapest. It attracts fans.
Odawara Sannomaru Hall is a new facility completed in September 2021. Overlooking Odawara Castle, its modern design is impressive. In addition to a large hall and a small hall, it features an exhibition gallery, a practice studio, an open space, a children's area, and more, making it a popular base for artistic, cultural, and creative activities in the Odawara area.
The small hall where the performance took place featured a large, deep soundboard that reached to the ceiling and a deep and spacious stage that I thought had good reverberation for a chamber music performance. Unfortunately, there was no hanging microphone system, but I set up a tripod in the front row of audience seats and used it as the main microphone.
【Program】
Saint-Saas: Violin Sonata in D minor
Rachmaninoff: “Romance” from two pieces in salon style
Sarasate: Zapateado
Kodai: Intermezzo
Ponce: Starlit
Brahms: Piano Quartet
～Encore～
Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 1
The audience enjoyed the sound of the strings through a balanced program, interspersed with small pieces full of beautiful resonance, sandwiched between the first piece, the Saint-Saas Sonata, and the last piece, the Brahms Quartet.
This is the first time that the Budapest Vonosh Trio and Mr. Fujii have worked together, but the intensity of the music and the timing of their breathing were superb, and I look forward to the opportunity to work together again.
We would like to present some of the recordings.
Saint-Saas: Violin Sonata in D minor Op.75 (3rd movement, 4th movement)
Brahms: Piano Quartet Op.25 (3 movements, 4 movements)
Comments