Shigeyoshi Suzuki

As the mysterious opening bars of the Kyrie gradually emerge into the light, we know that this recording of Mozart’s glorious Great Mass in C minor is a special one: the tempi perfect, the unfolding drama of the choral writing so carefully judged, and, above it all, the crystalline beauty of soloist Carolyn Sampson’s soprano, floating like a ministering angel. Masaaki Suzuki’s meticulous attention to detail, so rewarding in his remarkable Bach recordings, shines throughout this disc, the playing alert, the choir responsive, the soloists thrilling. And there is the bonus of an exhilarating Exsultate, Jubilate with Sampson on top form.

Born in Kiso-Fukushima, Nagano Prefecture, Japan.
Mr. Suzuki grew up in a musical family where his father was a violin craftsman, his mother a piano teacher, and his uncle, the founder of the world renowned “Suzuki Method”. He learnt piano and violin as a child and also played guitar during high school. He played piano in the Waseda University Modern Jazz ensemble.

Zigeunerweisen, from Japanese B-movie auteur Seijun Suzuki, was his self-funded return to moviemaking after a long hiatus. This film was the first of what would later be known as the Taisho Trilogy. This series of movies is set during Japan's Taisho period, a time in the 1920s and 30s similar to America's Roaring Twenties. The title refers to a haunting classical violin piece with a famous recording error. This movie is the story of a love triangle between Aochi, a professor of German, Nakasago, his nomadic colleague, and Sono, the object of the two men's affections. Throughout the course of the story, Nakasago goes on several excursions, leaving his wife and child behind to await his return. While on one of Nakasago's tours, Aochi and Nakasago sleep with each other's wives. These infidelities cause both men to reevaluate themselves and their relationships with the women they love.