In today’s world, it seems that as violin music has fallen from the spotlight, it has diminished to a small clique of avid fans.

Fortunately it has not fallen any further than this! That small clique of fans keeps the embers lit so that we can all enjoy their talent.

A violinist today must struggle against not only the difficulty of playing this beautiful instrument, but also the difficulty to find an active, vibrant audience willing to support their talent.

One of those special artists who has found a large audience is Taro Hakase of Japan. This year he celebrates his 20th year as a performing artist. And today we had the pleasure to be entertained by him at NHK Hall in Shibuya.

Taro Hakase has found his niche and it is a young vibrant plethora of the masses. At first I thought it might just be the hype that brought so many people together. But after being a part of his show (from the audience ) I am convinced there is much more at work here.

Taro’s music spreads the gamut of formats and bounds across generes the way Superman leaps tall buildings in a single bound.
Through skillful arrangement of piano, bass, wind instruments, keyboard, percussion, synthesizers, and a dazzling light show, interspersed with crowd involvement, clapping, dancing, and yes even singing by the crowd, Taro takes the performance above and beyond merely ‘enjoying’ or ‘listening’ to music into that special destination known as entertainment! He is an extraordinary entertainer who knows it is more than just notes that strike a chord. In his own words, he wants to set your heart to vibrato.

In today’s concert he pitched his new CD and DVD heavily but with a flair for enthusiasm that made his blatent sales pitch almost humble and something you looked forward to between songs.

He must be doing something right! After two nearly non-stop hours of music and pure entertainment he had whipped the crowd into a frenzy–by the end of the concert he had every one of the 3,500 people in the packed house standing, clapping, dancing, and begging for more…He left the stage and walked back in with 60 kids playing his latest project, Himawari.

You can hear Himawari twice a day everyday on the NHK drama Teppan as this is the theme song for the program.

And in full disclosure I must mention that my son was one of the fortunate kids who managed to play in the surprise encore on stage in front of those 3,500 eager spectators.

A great entertainer. Taro Hakase.

Thank you Taro. And Merry Christmas!

D

The beautiful Tokyo Opera City!  (I had to duck several eager attendants who tried diligently to keep me from taking this photo…really a beautiful hall and the sound was wonderful.  But what were we doing in this hall?  How about I tell you the story about how we met  Tomas, a talented Czech violinist that we met by chance.

Tomas was here in Japan with the Slovakia Radio Philharmonic.  He originally hails from Czecho but moved to Slovakia last year to play in the Philharmonic.  And what talent he brings!  We met Tomas as he was wandering around the Shibuya area.  He stopped by and observed some kids and their violin lessons.  Naturally, we got to talking and learned about his trip and their schedule.

Those of you who know me know that I believe that life is not so much the destination as it is the journey. And on this journey called life I have had the great fortune to meet many talented and wonderful people. This was one of those awesome moments.

With his busy tour schedule he did not have much free time, but he gave us an open invitation to attend his final performance in Tokyo. We parted, but kept in contact via e-mail.  We tried to arrange time to meet in Tokyo before his peformance, but there just was no room in his schedule.

And so, a week after we first met, I packed up the family and we headed out to Tokyo Opera City to listen to the Slovakia Radio Philharmonic play their swan song to a packed house. Thanks to his invitation, we had wonderful seats! 

And what a performance it was! Every person in that hall was moved by the tremendous power and beauty of the full stage of 80+ members who poured their heart and soul into the music that evening. 80+ musicians eager to return home after more than 40 days on the road, happy to see such a packed audience, and feeding off the energy of the crowd, they played their best, most powerful concert of the tour. The show was at once a success.

The orchestra even wowed those in attendance with *two* encores and had the crowd clapping along for their final piece of truly entertaining melodies. Standing ovation and thunderous clapping.  The hall echoed with shouts of “BRAVO” from every corner!

After that tremendous show we met  Tomas for tea and dinner.  He also invited a few friends and the first clarinent also joined us.  We all enjoyed each other’s company tremendously over good food and great conversation.  Of course, I will have to mention his awesome friends in another post, but I’m sure you will enjoy that just as much!

But alas, as soon as we really grew to enjoy each other….the night was soon over.

Parting is always sweet sorrow…sad to be leaving, but glad to have met.

Through music, we are all connected. In music we transcend language. We enter the zone of pure thought. Pure emotions. Expressions through page after page of hundreds and thousands of notes from dozens of instruments blended together to bring us all together if just for an instant.

Individuals make a difference.

We must never lose the music in our lives or in our hearts. Play on Tomas. Play on.

Your fans, D, Family & Friends

I searched the web and found very little in English.  It turns out this dynamic violinist is blind, but by the manner of his stage entrance and exit, that was difficult to discern.  His expression of power, energy, finesse and passion are clearly embodied in his music. 

His devotion to his profession began at an early age when his father told the 7-year old Narimichi that he would never see again.  Despite what must have been anger at the poor fortune of having his eyes melt from a bad combination of incorrect diagnosis and inappropriate medication, he fondly recalls his time at UCLA Medical clinic where doctors determined his ailment.

A PDF that has an extract and talks about his book. “Bokuwa Namidano Denai Mede Naita” (I cried with my eyes, which cannot produce tears. Find it here.

The U.S. Amazon.com only lists a few of his CDs, You can find them by clicking on this search “Search Amazon for Narimichi Kawabata“. 
The Japan site: Amazon.co.jp has a more extensive list of books and CDs.  You will find them by clicking on this search “Search Amazon in Japan for Narimichi Kawabata“.

• Sarasate himself plays Zigeunerweisen (1904)
• Jascha Heifetz - Zigeunerweisen
• Kyung Wa Chung – Zigeunerweisen
• Izhak Perlman – Zigeunerweisen

• Szeryng playing Sarasate’s Zapateado (1960)