Classical Music Japan 2024

The Italian pianist Giorgia Tomassi received first piano lessons from her mother. This was to be the start of a long-lasting, deep involvement with music that would lead to her maturation as an artist at the Accademia Pianistica di Imola under the guidance of the Maestro Franco Scala. She won 1st Prize at European Music for Youth Prize Frankfurt (February 1987). Her passionate yet poetically lyrical nature must have proved equally fascinating to the public and jury of the “Arthur Rubinstein” competition held in Tel Aviv in 1992 where she won 1st Prize with a unanimous vote.

Shigehiko Kawaguchi, who has won several awards, including the highest prize at the Bruges International Competition of Ancient Music (2016) and the second prize at the 1st Chopin International Competition of Period Instruments (2018), is active both in Japan and abroad as the hope of the Japanese keyboard instrument. The fourth release on his independent label is a remarkable piece using the mini-piano, an instrument that was born in Japan but is now rarely seen or even known. Unlike toy pianos, the mini-pianos that were originally made in Japan from the end of the Taisho era (1912-1926) to the first half of the Showa era (1926-1989) had a real stringed structure, but their unique mechanics required a lot of ingenuity and time and effort to produce, and their sales numbers did not grow as expected.

NoXaS Saxophone Quartet was established in 2007 and since then has distinguished itself as a high-quality ensemble with several collaborations with elite Norwegian musicians and ensembles. Its main objective is to perform the best possible repertoire for this type of ensemble format while simultaneously building up a new repertoire together with composers and other performers. Through this work, NoXaS has cemented its position as a significant asset to the Norwegian music scene.

Leading Australian guitarist Ken Murray performs the music of celebrated composer Christopher Sainsbury in this musical journey across the Australian landscape.

Dai Fujikura is a London-based composer that was born in Osaka, Japan in 1977. He moved to the UK at fifteen and studied under Sir George Benjamin.

The daughter of a Japanese pianist and a Swedish architect, Ingrid Fuzjko Hemming grew up with her mother in Japan from the age of five. She was already winning prizes in piano competitions as a schoolgirl, including the NHK Mainichi and the Bunka Radio Broadcasting Company competitions. She returned to Europe at the age of twenty-eight and studied first at the Royal Music Institute in Berlin (today’s University of the Arts) and then in Vienna.

Almost Classic from the Poing ensemble presents works by Olav Anton Thommessen, Gustav Mahler and Eivind Buene.

This 2-CD single-layer SACD compilation album contains 22 tracks selected from the titles that have been produced as single-layer SACDs from Deutsche Grammophon's analog period recordings as a Japanese original project. DISC1 contains symphonies and orchestral pieces. DISC2 contains concertos, chamber music, instrumental music, and vocal music from a wide range of classical music genres. Available for the price of one SACD. Celebrating Deutsche Grammophon's 125th anniversary.

Yumiko FUKAO has released the recording of Déodat de Sévérac’s complete collection of piano works. This is the first time that a Japanese pianist records the entire collection of Sévérac’s music in Japan.

Yumiko FUKAO has released the recording of Déodat de Sévérac’s complete collection of piano works. This is the first time that a Japanese pianist records the entire collection of Sévérac’s music in Japan.