Composer

No ensemble has visited the University of Iowa more often than the Grammy Award-winning Minnesota Orchestra—but it’s been 43 years since the ensemble’s last performance on campus. We are delighted to welcome them back under the baton of Thomas Søndergård for a concert featuring violinist Benjamin Beilman, an adventuresome and passionate performer with a rich and deep tone. The program includes music by Tōru Takemitsu, Karol Szymanowski, and Hector Berlioz. Members of the orchestra will also engage with student musicians across the UI School of Music.

EPSG:4326

Minnesota Orchestra

University of Iowa

Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique was rooted in his passion for an actress who, for years, paid him no attention. His unanswered obsession led him to compose an autobiographical symphony that tracks the highs and lows of his emotional state, and one that redefined the parameters of what an orchestra could do.

Søndergård Conducts Symphonie fantastique

Orchestra Hall

Japanese conductor Nodoka Okisawa was mentored by longtime BSO Music Director Seiji Ozawa, who appointed her the first principal guest conductor of the Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto (formerly Saito Kinen) Festival. She makes her BSO debut, leading a program that is the first in our series of concerts examining the last three symphonies of Antonín Dvořák, whose work Ozawa especially loved. She is joined by beloved violinist Midori, a longtime Ozawa collaborator. The great Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu, whose work Ozawa and the BSO promoted, was one of the first composers to gain a reputation in the West with his Requiem for strings — a work deemed a masterpiece by Igor Stravinsky.

Dvořák Symphony No. 7 and Violin Concerto with Midori

Boston Symphony Orchestra

Classical music and film art: Since the creation of moving pictures, they have repeatedly entered into a productive symbiosis. The music of the late Romantic period, in particular, shaped the soundscape of Hollywood—partly because many of its great representatives fled Nazi Germany to the American West Coast. Hardly any living film composer stands as closely in this tradition as John Williams, who, in his music for "Star Wars," influenced by Korngold and Stravinsky, brought the Wagnerian concept of leitmotifs to unprecedented popularity—and in doing so, sometimes veers dangerously close to Picasso's maxim that "great artists steal."

2nd  Symphony Concert

Music and Congress Hall Lübeck

Klassiker der Filmmusik von Wagner bis »Star Wars«

Klassische Musik und Filmkunst: Seit der Entstehung der laufenden Bilder sind sie immer wieder eine produktive Symbiose eingegangen. Gerade die Musik der Spätromantik prägte die Klangwelt Hollywoods – auch da viele ihrer großen Vertreter vor dem Nationalsozialismus an die amerikanische Westküste geflohen waren. Kaum ein noch lebender Filmkomponist steht so in dieser Tradition wie John Williams, der in seiner durch Korngold und Strawinsky geprägten Musik zu »Star Wars« das wagnerianische Konzept der Leitmotive zu ungeahnter Popularität brachte – und sich dabei mitunter gefährlich nahe an Picassos Motto orientiert, dass »große Künstler stehlen«.

Die »James Bond«-Filme lassen die Unterhaltungsmusik ihrer jeweiligen Entstehungszeit anklingen, während Tōru Takemitsu in seinen »Three Film Scores« die typische Wiener Melange aus Walzerseligkeit und Schwermut aufgreift. Immer wieder fand und findet aber auch klassische Musik ihren Weg in den Film – sei es Schostakowitschs berühmter Walzer Nr. 2 in Stanley Kubricks »Eyes Wide Shut« oder wenn in Francis Ford Coppolas »Apocalypse Now« ein vietnamesisches Dorf zu den Klängen von Wagners »Walkürenritt« bombardiert wird. Das 2. Sinfoniekonzert spürt dieser gegenseitigen Inspiration von Film und Klassik in all ihren Facetten nach.

2. Sinfonie­konzert

Music and Congress Hall

Take a six-string world tour with Puerto Rican guitarist Leonela Alejandro, winner of the 2024 Guitar Foundation of America International Concert Artist Competition. Delight in her endearingly powerful and energetic stage presence as she performs solo guitar works featuring Brazilian beats, laidback jazz club vibes, and everything in between.

Leonela Alejandro

Colburn School

 Take a six-string world tour with Puerto Rican guitarist Leonela Alejandro, winner of the 2024 Guitar Foundation of America International Concert Artist Competition. Delight in her endearingly powerful and energetic stage presence as she performs solo guitar works featuring Brazilian beats, laidback jazz club vibes, and everything in between.

Passport to Sound: Guitarist Leonela Alejandro Live

About the program  Dmitri Shostakovich is always an exciting acquaintance, which has taken on a new twist here, as his five preludes for piano from 1919-21 are performed at this concert in an arrangement for piano and cello by composer Lera Auerbach (born 1973).

Marianna Shirinyan & Torleif Thedéen

Mogens Dahl Koncertsal

UC Berkeley Symphony Orchestra

UC Berkeley Department of Music

Colourful, festive, refined – Camille Saint-Saëns’ “Organ Symphony” surprises us not only with its unexpected use of the organ, but also with its delicate sound textures. Kazuki Yamada, chief conductor of the orchestras in Birmingham and Monte-Carlo, conducts the work in his debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker; the organ part is played by Sebastian Heindl.The symphany will be preceded by two different kinds of water music: Ottorino Respighi’s gaudy, shimmering tone poem Fontane di Roma and Tōru Takemitsu’s mystical I Hear the Water Dreaming, featuring our solo flautist Emmanuel Pahud.

Saint-Saëns’ “Organ Symphony” and Respighi’s “Fontane di Roma”

Berliner Philharmonie

In 2025, the Dresdner Musikfestspiele brings the NHK Symphony Orchestra, renowned throughout the world as one of Asia’s leading orchestras, to Dresden for the first time, where it gives two performances. Under the baton of its chief conductor Fabio Luisi, the former general music director of the State Opera of Saxony in Dresden, it will join forces with the outstanding Japanese violinist Akiko Suwanai to interpret Alban Berg’s astoundingly beautiful and moving Violin Concerto »Dem Andenken eines Engels« (To the Memory of an Angel) on the evening before the Festival’s official opening night.

Suwanai – NHK Symphony Orchestra - Luisi

Frauenkirche Dresden

Some music just captures a certain mood. Debussy basks in silvery moonlight and conjures a melody to haunt your dreams. Rachmaninov loses himself in a painting and takes a surprisingly passionate journey into darkness. Guest conductor Nodoka Okisawa savours both tonight in a concert which just brims with atmosphere, whether it’s the delicacy of Tōru Takemitsu’s How Slow the Wind or Helen Grime’s musical skyscape for Håkan Hardenberger. The world’s greatest classical trumpeter? We think so – but hearing is believing…

RSNO Season 24-25: night-sky-blue

Usher Hall

»My music is something like a signal into the unknown. What's more, I imagine and believe that my signal meets other signals and that the resulting physical changes create a new harmony.« The two »Signals« by the Japanese autodidact Tōru Takemitsu (both commissioned in 1987) are characterized by the alternation of question and answer, similar to the model of early Venetian church music. And so the wind ensemble is spatially separated from one another for the musical dialogue. »Nature and Duke Ellington were my teachers,« he is said to have once said; and we also hear the latter - alongside Takemitsu's other teacher, Messiaen - in the »Signals from Heaven«.

Cambreling – Takemitsu, Mozart, Dvořák, Shchedrin

Laeiszhalle Hamburg

Enjoy works by Takemitsu, Debussy, Copland and Schumann. Michael Blum is a second-year master's student in piano performance, studying with Bradford Gowen.

Student Degree Recital: Michael Blum M.M. piano recital

University of Maryland

The thread of romance intricately connects each of the works on these captivating performances. Canadian composer Kevin Lau’s Kimiko’s Pearl takes inspiration from a powerful ballet about hope, resilience, and transformation. The romantic eloquence of Saint-Saëns’s First Cello Concerto weaves a narrative of passion and virtuosity, and Ravel’s balletic Daphnis et Chloé portrays the timeless Ancient Greek love story between a shepherd and a nymph.

Romantic Treasures

David Pecaut Square

The stage is set for our favourite organist, who is also in great demand on the international scene: In the last organ concert of this season, Christian Schmitt will play our large concert hall organ – accompanied by our solo flutist Daniela Koch and our deputy solo violist Branko Kabadaić. The concert begins with a fascinating etude for organ pedal, which Christian Schmitt premièred in Zurich in 2023 – and about which the composer Maximilian Schnaus writes: »The musical idea illuminates the peripheral areas of the organ sound and the peripheral areas of our perception.« Liszt studied Bach’s organ works and passions intensively, particularly during his time in Weimar – and his affection for this Baroque master found intimate expression in the Andante »Aus tiefer Not«, written in 1859. Paul Hindemith wrote this touching funeral music on a concert tour in London on 21 January 1936 within a few hours after King George V had died there on the previous day. Bach’s masterful Sonata in G major captivates with its skilful interweaving of voices between the two instruments. For César Franck, it was clear: »Mon orgue? – C'est un orchestre!« And that is exactly how his magnificent musical creations sound – including the »Grande pièce symphonique«, completed in 1862, which even bears the required orchestral gesture in its title. Tōru Takemitsu, the cosmopolitan and influential composer from Japan, created an almost revolutionary work in 1971 with his flute piece »Voice« – because the human voice is included here in an interesting way. To wrap things up, the concertino by Cécile Chaminade, written in 1902, impresses with its breathtaking virtuosity, passionate gestures, shimmering harmonies and yearning melodies.

Organ concert: Schmitt Koch Kabadaić

Bamberg Concert Hall

UC Davis Symphony Orchestra

University of California, Davis

The selections on this program are by composers who conscientiously worked to break the mold of the orchestral forms of their time: Debussy rendezvoused with poets and artists who influenced the young composer to somehow bring impressionism into music. For Takemitsu, Western music was itself an escape from post-war occupied Japan and he experimented with it. Shostakovich, in over 15 symphonies, sought to imbibe each with the most intense feelings of their time, from revolution to despair and resilience.

Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts

In Debussy’s Afternoon of a Faun, a solo flute player in the orchestra evokes the imagery of the mythical Pan and his enchanting flute. Pan is the Greek fertility god, represented with horns, legs, and ears of a goat, and is associated with flocks and herds and music. When he wakes up from a nap he tries to remember his dream, only to fall asleep again, hoping to meet his nymph friends in his next dream.

In his Requiem for String Orchestra, Takemitsu used early 20th-century tonalities by Western composers such as Arnold Schoenberg and made his own experimental mark on 20th-century art music. Coincidentally, Igor Stravinsky heard this Requiem and sang its praises to American and European classical artists.

UC Davis Symphony Orchestra: “Delicate and Contemplative”

Mondavi Center

Sunday Matinee

Odense Concert Hall

Join us for an afternoon of timeless masterpieces and captivating compositions, presented by Mi-Eun Kim, MIT Piano Faculty. The program features the works of Haydn, Bach, and Liszt, along with a selection of evocative 20th-century pieces. The program includes Haydn’s Sonata in E-flat Major, Bach’s English Suite No. 3, and Liszt’s Rhapsodie espagnole. In a nod to the MIT climate project, Ravel’s Oiseaux triste, Messiaen’s Prélude No. 2, and Takemitsu’s Rain Tree Sketch II explore humanity's role as both listeners and creators, offering a profound reflection on our connection to nature through music.

Mi-Eun Kim Faculty Piano Recital

Thomas Tull Concert Hall

London Sinfonietta bring the wild beauty of nature to life through music that’ll leave you in awe. Debussy’s shimmering reflections, Xenakis’ untamed energy, and a world-class trio of clarinet, cello and piano create an immersive experience that’s both powerful and deeply moving.

After Dark: Music In Nature's Glow

University of Southampton Highfield Campus

Space travel meets Art in a program which is interpreted in live painting by artist Adrian Arias*.

A Dark Matter

Berkeley Hillside Club

Noe Valley Ministry

The title of this cello and piano duo programme has a distinctly nocturnal ambience in which sit larger pieces by Debussy and Britten.

Laura van der Heijden cello; Jâms Coleman piano

Wigmore Hall

Gabriel Fauré, who was sent to train as a church organist at only 9 years old, must have provided music for countless funerals. But he said he composed this Requiem “for pleasure.” This would be a Requiem to bring comfort to those who mourn, a series of heavenly tableaux rather than fire and brimstone, and one of his most beloved works. Tōru Takemitsu’s Requiem for String Orchestra expresses a more intense vein of grief. And finally, a riddle — Elgar’s “Enigma” Variations.

Fauré Requiem

Benaroya Hall

Musica Nova

University of Rochester

Saint-Saëns wrote his Second Piano Concerto in three weeks, leaving very little time to prepare for its premiere. With its dazzling stylistic changes, it has grown to become the most popular of the composer’s piano concertos.

Saint-Saëns’ Second Piano Concerto

The Bridgewater Hall

### Joie de Vivre - Auckland Philharmonia

**Date and Time:** Thursday, 12 September 2024, 7:30 PM  
**Venue:** Great Hall, Auckland Town Hall

#### Event Overview:
Join the Auckland Philharmonia for an enchanting evening of music titled "Joie de Vivre." This concert promises a delightful blend of French and Japanese compositions, showcasing the profound influence of French music on Japanese composer Tōru Takemitsu.

#### Program:
- **Ravel:** *Le Tombeau de Couperin*  
  A timeless homage to Ravel's Baroque predecessor, filled with subtle melancholy beneath its serene exterior.
  
- **Saint-Saëns:** *Piano Concerto No.2*  
  A showcase of dazzling virtuosity, performed by the brilliant Swiss pianist Louis Schwizgebel.
  
- **Takemitsu:** *Three Film Scores for Strings*  
  Music by Kurosawa’s favorite composer, known for its visionary and powerful qualities.
  
- **Poulenc:** *Sinfonietta*  
  A witty and charming piece, interspersed with moments of wistful reflection.

#### Featured Artists:
- **Conductor:** Nodoka Okisawa  
  Renowned for her expertise in this repertoire, Okisawa will lead the Auckland Philharmonia through this captivating program.
  
- **Piano:** Louis Schwizgebel  
  The sparkling Swiss pianist known for his astonishing virtuosity.

#### Additional Information:
- **Pre-concert Talks:**  
  Enhance your concert experience by attending the pre-concert talk at 6:45 PM in the Concert Chamber. Gain fascinating insights into the composers, music, and musicians from knowledgeable guest speakers.
  
- **Ticket Information:**  
  Save at least 10% off public ticket prices when you book four tickets to one or more concerts with Auckland Philharmonia. Tickets are available through Auckland Philharmonia and Ticketmaster.

#### Support:
This concert is supported by the Notes Fund, with special thanks to Gene Dillman.

#### Directions & Parking:
For your convenience, detailed directions and parking information are available. 

#### Subscribe:
Stay updated with the latest news, events, and offers from Auckland Philharmonia by subscribing to their newsletter.

Don't miss this opportunity to experience an evening of exquisite music with the Auckland Philharmonia. Book your tickets now and immerse yourself in the "Joie de Vivre."

Joie de Vivre

Auckland Town Hall

Signature Performance: EMF Classical Guitar Summit

Temple Emanuel

Berlioz paints a portrait of obsessive love with opium-fueled visions of cinematic realism, featuring haunting ballroom waltzes, a march to the guillotine, and maniacal witches’ dances. Opening the program, Debussy’s tone poem heaves with hazy sensuality, and violinist Carolin Widmann explores nature and love in works by Takemitsu and Chausson.

Berlioz' Symphonie fantastique

Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall

Martin Helmchen, “who brings both freshness and expressive depth to everything he plays” (Chicago Classical Review), takes on Beethoven’s First Piano Concerto, a work of youthful bravura and pensive elegance. To open the program, Kazuki Yamada conducts Takemitsu’s shimmering How slow the Wind and Franck’s D Minor Symphony, featuring a mix of soaring lyricism and brooding intensity.

Helmchen Plays Beethoven

Symphony Center

River Rhapsodies VI

Clinton School of Public Service

We cover a wide range of new and older music. The two wind quintets almost stand as exemplary of two generations of
Danish music: the elegant, neoclassical and impressionistic style of Jersild and a straightforward and raw, modernist simplicity of Abrahamsen.

Mozart's Spring

Southern Danish Conservatory of Music

Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony crowns an evening of music that speaks directly to the world around us, in the first London appearance by conductor Kahchun Wong.

Wong conducts Shostakovich

Barbican Centre

Curtis Institute of Music students perform over 100 free recitals during the school year, held on most Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings. Admission requires advance registration and is complimentary.

Tchaikovsky, Bach, and Takemitsu

Curtis Institute of Music Lenfest Hall

Trio Ondine

Los Angeles Harbor College

Pacific Unitarian Church

We mark the anniversary of our first-ever concert with a celebration of the eclectic, provocative, surprising and beautiful music we have commissioned and performed throughout our history. Performing a mix of new commissions and classic chamber repertoire written specially for the ensemble over the years, we will be joined by special guests for a festive evening of new music. 

Decades

Southbank Centre

Elegant flutist Brandon Patrick George, a “knockout musician with a gorgeous sound” (Philadelphia Inquirer) is joined by harpist Parker Ramsay, hailed as “remarkably special” (Gramophone) with an artistry that is “marked by a keen musical intelligence” (Wall Street Journal) for an unforgettable duo recital. Together they perform a lyrical program spanning centuries and continents.

Brandon Patrick George, flute (Baltimore Debut) Parker Ramsay, harp (Baltimore Debut)

Music Director Juraj Valčuha leads Brahms’s extraordinary A German Requiem. Written during a time of personal grief for Brahms, the Requiem offers music of time-altering beauty as a balm of comfort, peace, and uplifting hope to those experiencing grief and loss. The concerts open with Tōru Takemitsu’s emotionally powerful Requiem for strings.

Takemitsu + Brahms’s Requiem

Jones Hall

Mai Matsumoto, Violin

The Juilliard School

Seiko Matsuzaki presents a solo piano concert.

Seiko Matsuzaki Piano Recital

Boston Conservatory at Berklee

Join us for an unforgettable musical journey under the baton of the renowned Greek conductor Constantinos Carydis with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks. This exceptional concert series will take place at the Munich Gasteig HP8, Isarphilharmonie, with performances scheduled for Thursday, 30th November 2023, and Friday, 1st December 2023, both starting at 8:00 pm. Attendees are invited to an introductory session at 6:45 pm before each concert.

The program promises an exploration of musical landscapes, featuring works that celebrate the beauty and poetry of rural life and the majesty of Rome. The evening will commence with Nikos Skalkottas' "Four Images," taking you through the picturesque scenes of Greece with harvest, sowing, grape harvest, and wine pressing. Following this, Joseph Canteloube's "Chants d’Auvergne for soprano and orchestra" will enchant you with the folk songs of the French Auvergne region, beautifully arranged to highlight their natural poetry.

After an interval, the concert will continue with Ottorino Respighi's "Fontane di Roma" and "Pini di Roma," two pieces that celebrate the legendary beauty of Rome through opulent instrumental color. Tōru Takemitsu's "Air for flute solo" will also be featured, adding a contemporary touch to the evening.

The talented Louise Alder will grace the stage as soprano, alongside Henrik Wiese on flute, showcasing their exceptional skills and contributing to the evening's magic. This concert series not only promises a night of exquisite music but also offers a glimpse into the rehearsals and preparations, with open galleries featuring the performers and the conductor, Constantinos Carydis.

Don't miss this opportunity to experience the sublime beauty of these musical masterpieces performed by one of the world's leading orchestras. Tickets are available online, and further details can be found on the event calendar. Join us for a celebration of music that transcends time and place, under the guidance of Constantinos Carydis and the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks.

Constantinos Carydis

Isarphilharmonie

In a concert filled with thrillingly contrasting landscapes, Geoffrey Paterson makes his eagerly awaited return to Ensemble 10:10 bringing three classic pieces from three giants of the recent past – Takemitsu, Birtwistle and Ligeti (whose 100th anniversary we celebrate this year). Tansy Davies and a new work from Royal Philharmonic Society prize-winner Michael Betteridge bring us up to the minute

Ensemble 10:10

Yoko Ono Lennon Centre

October 2023 Concert

Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew

Devyn Sowry (B.M. '24) presents a flute recital.

Student Recital: Devyn Sowry, Flute

Bart Feller, Flute

NoonArts & Lectures presents Black Cedar, a duo of wood flutist Kris Palmer and acoustic guitarist Steven Lin, which will present music from a range of traditions including German baroque, Serbian folk and Indian classical as well as works inspired by Japanese Haiku poetry. 

Black Cedar presented by NoonArts & Lectures

First Unitarian Church of San José

Recital: Percussion Ensemble

Aspen Meadows Resort

Denève leads the Orchestra in an evening full of celebratory and popular tunes, from Viennese waltzes to Bernstein’s Mambo, featuring repertoire by Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Piazzola, and more.  

The Philadelphia Orchestra's distinctive sound returns to Bravo! Vail for its annual residency in July. The Fabulous Philadelphians are admired for a legacy of innovation and known for their keen ability to capture the hearts and imaginations of audiences.

A Night in Vienna

Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater

The BBC Philharmonic return, conducted by Joshua Weilerstein, beginning with Beethoven’s Overture for Egmont, encapsulating the story of the Dutch Count who defied a Spanish attack, securing freedom for his country. We then take a visit to Spain courtesy of Ravel in the frenzied dance rhythms of his Alborada del Gracioso. Our whirlwind tour then calls in on Japan in Takemitsu’s Towards the Sea II before returning again to Europe for Bartók’s Romanian Folk Dances, before our final piece by the African-American composer William Dawson where we return to ideas of freedom and salvation in the opening movement of his Negro Folk Symphony.

Manchester Classical - Freedom and Salvation

Dean of the Bard College Conservatory of Music and UNESCO Global Goodwill Ambassador, Tan Dun, has made an indelible mark on the world’s music scene with a repertoire that spans the boundaries of classical music, multimedia performance, and Eastern and Western traditions. His compositions often feature water as a musical instrument.

Water Spirits

Bard College

Joshua Arkangel (M.M. '23) presents a contemporary classical music recital.

Student Recital: Joshua Arkangel, Contemporary Classical Music

Brittany Young (M.M. '23) presents a violin recital.

Student Recital: Brittany Young, Violin

“In our March concert, it’s all about paper. To be precise: Music and paper. Cellulite paper, plastic paper, canvas. Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu wrote many works, amongst them music to 90 films.
His “3 film scores” resemble three pristine Japanese haikus. Poetry in sound. Romantic. Melancholic. Visual. A Valse. A funeral procession. Another Valse.

Sight and Sound

Civic Center Music Hall

Don’t miss two debuts and music new to Orchestra Hall in this soul-stirring mid-February concert. French pianist Alexandre Kantorow, 2019 winner of the International Tchaikovsky Competition, makes his first appearance on the Orchestra Hall stage, performing Tchaikovsky’s Second Piano Concerto. Japanese conductor Kazuki Yamada makes his debut leading the Orchestra in Tōru Takemitsu’s breathtaking piece, How Slow the Wind, also receiving its first performance here, before taking the Orchestra and audience on an all-time favorite of classical music, through Dvořák’s New World Symphony.

Dvořák's New World Symphony

The 8-voice, all-male, a cappella ensemble Cantus is known for its trademark warmth and blend, innovative programming and riveting performances.

Cantus

Seventh-day Adventist Church

Elegant for three

Bochumer Symphoniker

The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra is, so to speak, the artistic breeding ground for many of the world's top conductors: Greats such as Adrian Boult, Simon Rattle, Sakari Oramo, Andris Nelsons, and Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla spent crucial years of their careers leading this ensemble. Since April 2023, Japanese conductor Kazuki Yamada has been at the helm of the English musicians—and that's promising!

Composer

Tōru Takemitsu

Events

Upcoming events

May 31, 2026

Elegant for three · Bochumer Symphoniker

4 - 7 Jun, 2026

NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra / Frank Peter Zimmermann / Kazuki Yamada · Elbphilharmonie

Past events

Nov 15, 2025

Minnesota Orchestra · University of Iowa School of Music

13 - 14 Nov, 2025

Søndergård Conducts Symphonie fantastique · Minnesota Orchestra

About

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