Bach Collegium Japan – Bach | Music | Conducting | Ensemble Direction | Violoncello da spalla | Viola da spalla | Conducting

Gamut Bach Ensemble

In March 2005, I organized a Bach ensemble and performed 4 cantatas in a concert in Tokyo. It was a group consists of the supportive and willing members of Bach Collegium Japan and my friends from Geidai (Tokyo University of the Arts)— I can say it was an ideal ensemble in the realistic realm, or perhaps it was beyond my plausible ideal… In some sections I had those players whom I’d pick for my fantasy Bach ensemble! And despite my shortcomings as a director, we as a team did put together a successful and memorable concert. I believe I had learned and grown as an organizer and conductor through the […]

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The Compleat Violoncellist

1件のコメント / Bach, Blog, Football, Music / Koji Otsuki

My fixation on the cello playing stems from my fascination with basso continuo. It’s not that continuo part is extremely important in baroque music — of course it is — but what fascinates me most is how continuo playing can dictate the outcome of a whole performance. The leader of the continuo group is like the quarterback of the offensive side of a football team; not only that he/she can drive the whole ensemble forward, but also that he/she can make the soloist(s) perform so much better, in the same way a good QB can make the offensive skill position players play lights-out. My mentor Hidemi Suzuki is, by far,

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Violoncello piccolo da spalla

3件のコメント / Bach, Blog, Marlboro Music, Music / Koji Otsuki

(Originally posted on October 30, 2010) This is a dream instrument for any violinists and violists who want to play the cello. And this is the dream instrument for a guy like me who wants to do Bach cantatas that call for this instrument. It is, for me, a quite essential instrument! Sure, you can go buy a chin-cello to play some cello pieces if you are a violinist/violist. But this instrument has an E string that chin-cello doesn’t have, and it is more like a smaller cello while the chin-cello is just like a huge viola. This instrument is often called the violoncello piccolo [da spalla (shoulder)], or the

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September in Japan

About myself, Bach, Blog, Fishing / Koji Otsuki

(Originally posted on October 3, 2010) I was in Japan during the most of September. It was nice to be back in Japan for a while— seeing familiar faces and having some Japanese goodies were priceless. But some would wonder (well, I did) why I wanted to go to Japan when not going to Japan might have been a smarter choice from a couple of standpoints; one: I just went through a financial hardship after my wrist fracture and I would need to save the money I just earned during summer; and two: I’m preparing for my first qualifying exam and I should be studying for it if I wanted

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