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Tokyo Symphony Orchestra (TSO) concertmaster Issei Kobayashi and 3 members of the TSO formed a string orchestra with students from the Silpakorn University Faculty of Music and another music school in Bangkok. The concert included works by Bach and composers from Thailand and Japan.
Through the two days of intensive rehearsals led by Professor Tasana of Silpakorn University and TSO concertmaster Kobayashi, the musicians were able to communicate through music and the concert ended with a wonderful sense of unity. The concert was so successful that the original seating capacity was exceeded. Additional seats were offered.
This must be a valuable experience for the young musicians. The TSO members were also impressed by their serious approach to music.

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On the evening of 14th, four TSO musician visited the Immanuel Orchestra, a children’s orchestra that started in 2000 at a church in Klong Toi Slum, Bangkok’s largest slum, and held a workshop.
The four musicians practised with a small church full of children and gave them lessons on how to put expressions to the music and so on. It was impressive to see how hard the little children worked to play when the music started. And we felt possibility to music enrich their future.

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The woodwind quintet of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra (TSO) visited the Sriracha Japanese School in the port city of Sriracha, about 90 km south of Bangkok, and gave two concerts for grades 1 to 9 (Japanese junior high school students).
The children listened attentively to the music of well-known classical woodwind quintet composers such as Ibert and Farkas, as well as popular music from anime. Not only the music but also very interested in the introduction of instruments. The members wanted to visit the school again because of the very energetic children and their own popularity, who would come to the school to get autographs at lunchtime!

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The TSO woodwind quintet visited a Japanese school in Bangkok. Two outreach concerts were held, one at the junior high school and one at the primary schools. Continuing from last year, we enjoyed music with the children. This year, we performed ‘Believe’ with children chorus. Their energetic singing echoed in the huge gymnasium, which is not often seen in Japan.

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After visiting a Japanese school, in the evening they performed at the National Day organized by the Embassy of Japan, at the The Queen Sirikit National Convention Center. Here, in addition to classical pieces, we performed the locally familiar Japanese songs ‘SUKIYAKI’ and ‘Kimi wo nosete’ to celebrate opening act of the main stage.

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The final concert of the TSO’s Woodwind Quintet’s in this visit was an outreach concert for the fourth graders of the Bangkok Metropolitan Lumpini Primary School near the Japanese Embassy. This was the first concert we had ever given for Thai children. With the help of Japanese Embassy staff, all talks translated into Thai during the concert.
The children were also able to try their hand at playing the instruments and we felt that we were able to get closer to the children. The concert time was little bit long for the children because of the translation, but they seemed to enjoy the concert to the full.
The Tokyo Symphony Orchestra will continue to hold concerts like this where they can interact with local children.
(Some photos courtesy of the Embassy of Japan in Thailand Facebook page)

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RBSO (Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra) and TSO (Tokyo Symphony Orchestra) held a Friendship Concert on July 30th at the Great Hall of King’s College International School Bangkok. This concert was organized by both orchestras to celebrate the 72nd birthday of King Rama X of Thailand. Under the baton of Keitaro Harada, the joint orchestra performed pieces such as Waxman’s Carmen Fantasy (Violin: Mayuko Kamio) and Ginastera’s Estancia, ending with a lively atmosphere as the audience clapped their hands and the musicians stamped their feet.

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In partnership with Silpakorn University, five members of TSO were sent to the Silpakorn Summer Music School (SSMS) in Pattaya, Thailand.
Under the direction of Mr Hikotaro Yazaki, who has been involved with this music school for many years as its music director, 50 young people in their teens and twenties from Thailand and Malaysia etc, participated in the four-day music camp, including Mr. Tatsuki Sasanuma (Vc), Ms. Chizu Hisamatsu (Cb), Mr. Nobuo Ohno (Fg, alumnus of TSO) and Mr. Hironori Nakamura (Va, assistant principal of the NHK Symphony Orchestra). After a four-day music camp, they took part in a concert in Bangkok on 1 June (at the Pattaya SCB Training Centre) and in Bangkok on 2 June (at the Silpakorn University Auditorium).
One student who has attended every year said, ‘This year was especially enjoyable because the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra members came. The orchestra members also said that they ‘gained a lot from the honesty of the children and the interaction with the friendly local people’. The orchestra members also said that they ‘gained a lot from the children’s honesty and the interaction with the friendly local people.
The project made us feel the importance of being involved in this kind of music education as a professional orchestra.

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The first Bangkok concert of the Asia Project was held at the Thai Cultural Centre. It was said that tickets for classical concerts in Thailand rarely sell out, but thanks to publicity on social networking sites and other media, tickets were sold out and attracted a lot of local media attention, with Naoto Otomo (conductor), Mone Hattori (vn) and Hirooka, managing director, responding to the press before the performance began.
In Thailand, the concert began with Royal anthem of Thailand. The Sibelius Violin Concerto that followed captivated the audience with its passionate performance, prompting enthusiastic cheers from the audience. Ms Hattori also responded with two solo encores. And in the Brahms Symphony No. 1, the orchestra members felt a great response in conveying the group’s artistry and passion for music to the Thai audience, making it a deeply moving and memorable night for the orchestra. We will continue our activities to increase the number of classical music fans in Asia and to raise the level of music through exchanges.

＜A drink after work＞
March in Bangkok is the hottest month of the year with little rainfall. On this day, the temperature was over 30℃ and air conditioning was essential. In this situation, members of the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra greeted the musicians after their performance with “Singha Beer”, a typical Thai beer! Even at night, the temperature is still hot and the heat of the concert is cooled with a glass of chilled Singha Beer. The guests enjoyed the fleeting exchanges between those who had formed a partnership.

＜Strong support from the Embassy of Japan＞
The Asia Project’s activities in Thailand have been strongly supported by the Embassy of Japan in Thailand, including the use of the embassy hall for the partnership signing ceremony in February, the string ensemble’s performance at the National Day reception the following day, and a promotional stand. Ambassador Masato Otaka, who had just taken up his new post, also attended the concert. The Ambassador, who has a friendly personality, was kind enough to take our photograph in the lobby, and at the reception after the concert we were all moved to tears by the performance. We look forward to working with him in the future.

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On February 9 2024, five members of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra joined members of the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra (RBSO) for a string ensemble concert at the AUA Language Centre in Ratchadamri, near Lumphini Park.
TSO musicians were a little nervous at the beginning of the rehearsal, but as they faced the music together and shared their ideas, they became more comfortable with each other, foreshadowing the great things we will create together in the future.

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TSO string quintet visited a Japanese school in Bangkok and held two concerts in the morning and afternoon for 5th, 6th, and 9th graders. The concert began with Mozart’s “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik,” followed by a demonstration of the sounds and harmonic roles of the violin, viola, cello, and double bass. Students enjoyed a wide range of songs, from classic masterpieces such as Dvorak’s “America” to today’s popular songs. At the end, TSO string quintet performed a school song of Bangkok Japanese School together with all students accompanied by its teacher. Students was enthusiastically listening to the concert, and we received such a pleasant comment, “I wanted to listen more!” and “Will you come again?”

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On February 7, 2024, nine members of the TSO String Ensemble performed at the Emperor’s Birthday Reception organized by the Embassy of Japan at the Queen Sirikit Convention Centre in Bangkok.
The ensemble performed four pieces, including Grieg’s Holberg Suite “Prelude”, and “Pleiades” which is well-known in Thailand.
We also introduced TSO’s the Asia Project and the concert at the Thai Cultural Centre coming on March 22, 2024, which attracted a lot of interest.

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On February 6, 2024, a partnership signing ceremony was held in Bangkok, Thailand, between the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra(TSO), the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra (RBSO) and the Silpakorn University Faculty of Music. After historical film of the TSO, Ambassador Kazuya Nashida gave a speech, followed by message from TSO Managing Director Yoshitaka Hirooka on the purpose and significance of this project.
After the signing, the audience was treated by the performance of TSO string ensemble, which included the violin of Managing Director Hirooka himself and was also joined by Professor Damrih Banawitayakit of Silpakorn University and RBSO Concert Master Bing Han.