Cellist and Suntory Hall President, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, opens this year’s CMG with Naoko Yoshino (harp) and Hiroko Suseki (piano), in a programme of popular pieces ranging from Schubert to Piazzolla.

Cello: Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, Harp: Naoko Yoshino, Piano: Hiroko Suseki

SAT, JUN 3 | 13:00 > Book Now
[Part 1 Cello and Harp]
Schubert: Arpeggione Sonata in A Minor, D. 821
Casals: Pastoral
Granados (arr. Cassadó): Intermezzo from Goyescas
Debussy (arr. Feuillard): No. 8 “La fille aux cheveux de lin” from Preludes, Book I
[Part 2 Cello and Piano]
Schumann: Five Pieces in Folk Style, Op. 102
Dvořák: Rondo in G Minor, Op. 94
Ravel (arr. Bazelaire): Piece in the Form of a Habanera
Piazzolla: Le Grand Tango

The Elias String Quartet, founded in 1998, celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. They first embarked on the complete Beethoven string quartet cycle in 2011-2015, which was documented in a dedicated website, the Beethoven Project. Since then they have performed the cycle over ten times, including at London’s Wigmore Hall. This is their Japanese debut.

Elias String Quartet (Violin: Sara Bitlloch / Violin: Donald Grant / Viola: Simone van der Giessen / Cello: Marie Bitlloch)

Ⅰ SAT, JUN 3 | 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: String Quartet
No. 1 in F Major, Op. 18, No. 1
No. 3 in D Major, Op. 18, No. 3
No. 15 in A Minor, Op. 132

Ⅱ MON, JUN 5 | 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: String Quartet
No. 2 in G Major, Op. 18, No. 2
No. 11 in F Minor, Op. 95, “Serioso”
No. 13 in B-flat Major, Op. 130 *
* 6th Movement: “Allegro”

Ⅲ WED, JUN 7 | 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: String Quartet
No. 5 in A Major, Op. 18, No. 5
No. 9 in C Major, Op. 59, No. 3, “Razumovsky No. 3”
No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 131

Ⅳ SAT, JUN 10 | 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: String Quartet
No. 12 in E-flat Major, Op. 127
No. 7 in F Major, Op. 59, No. 1, “Razumovsky No. 1”

Ⅴ MON, JUN 12| 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: String Quartet
No. 6 in B-flat Major, Op. 18, No. 6
No. 16 in F Major, Op. 135
No. 8 in E Minor, Op. 59, No. 2, “Razumovsky No. 2”

Ⅵ WED, JUN 14 | 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: String Quartet
No. 4 in C Minor, Op. 18, No. 4
No. 10 in E-flat Major, Op. 74, “Harp”
No. 13 in B-flat Major, Op. 130, “Grosse Fuge”

A series of relaxed 60-minute chamber music concert on weekday afternoons, introduced from the stage by the musicians. Following on from last year’s success in combining Western and Japanese instruments, sho player Mayumi Miyata and harpist Naoko Yoshino will explore the theme further.

Vol. 1 Brahms in the Bloom of His Youth
MON, JUN 5 | 13:00-14:00 > Book Now
Violin: Daichi Nakamura, Cello: Rei Tsujimoto, Piano: Takashi Sato
Brahms: Scherzo in C Minor, WoO 2
Brahms: Six Songs, Op. 3, Excerpts (arr. for Cello and Piano)
Clara Schumann: Piano Trio in G Minor, Op. 17, Excerpts
Brahms: Piano Trio No. 1 in B Major, Op. 8 (Revised Version)

Vol. 2 Special Harp-and-Sho Collaboration
THU, JUN 8 | 13:00-14:00 > Book Now
Harp: Naoko Yoshino, Sho: Mayumi Miyata
Satie: Gnossienne No. 1 and No. 3 (Harp)
Traditional Japanese Gagaku: Oshikicho no Choshi
Robert HP Platz: senko-hana-bi
Osamu Kawakami: Ctenophores
Debussy: No. 1 “En bateau” from Petite suite (Harp and Sho)
Fauré: Pavane, Op. 50 (Harp and Sho)
Toshio Hosokawa: Utsurohi

Vol. 3 Russian Cello Sonatas
WED, JUN 14 | 13:00-14:00 > Book Now
Piano: Michie Koyama, Cello: Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi
Schnittke: Cello Sonata No. 1
Prokofiev: Cello Sonata in C Major, Op. 119

Aoi Trio, alumni of Suntory Hall’s Chamber Music Academy, explores Beethoven’s piano trio Op. 1, No. 3 alongside trios by Debussy and anniversary composer Rachmaninoff.

Aoi Trio (Piano: Kosuke Akimoto, Violin: Kyoko Ogawa, Cello: Yu Ito)

FRI, JUN 9 | 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: Piano Trio No. 3 in C Minor Op. 1, No. 3
Debussy: Piano Trio in G Major
Rachmaninoff: Trio élégiaque No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 9 (1907 Version)

These Saturday morning concerts showcase the achievements of the current fellows of the Suntory Hall Chamber Music Academy. Each performance will be preceded by a short introduction of the pieces from the players.

String Quartet: Quartet Infinito (Mako Ochiai, Kentaro Konishi, Moeko Kikuta, Soichiro Matsutani) / Quartet Felice (Kei Saotome, Yohei Shimizu, Soichiro Kawabe, Mami Warabino) / Quartet Primavera (Mio Ishikawa, Yukari Oka, Toko Tago, Kei Oe) / HONO Quartet (Honoka Kishimoto, Shuga Hayashi, Kenshi Nagata, Yoshiyuki Kanie) (Ⅰ, Jun 10) / Crear Quartet (Ryota Higashi, Sara Furuichi, Hiroko Yamanashi)
Piano Trio: Trio Andantino (Seira Jono, Yuho Takagi, Yurika Watanabe) / Portus Trio (Junnosuke Kikuno, Michiko Yoshimura, Aika Kimura)

Ⅰ SAT, JUN 10 2023 | 11:00 > Book Now
［Special Guest］Bassoon: Michaela Špačková

Ⅱ SAT, JUN 17 2023 | 11:00 > Book Now

In this introductory CMG concert, selected fellows of the Suntory Hall Chamber Music Academy and Academy alumni Aoi Trio will come together to perform excerpts from masterpieces for piano and strings. (75-minutes without interval; Suitable for ages 6 and over.)

Aoi Trio (Piano: Kosuke Akimoto, Violin: Kyoko Ogawa, Cello: Yu Ito)
[Suntory Hall Chamber Music Academy Selected Fellows] Quartet Infinito(Mako Ochiai, Kentaro Konishi, Moeko Kikuta, Soichiro Matsutani), Violin: Ryota Higashi, Viola: Soichiro Kawabe / Sara Furuichi, Double Bass: Mayumi Morita (Guest Artist)

SUN, JUN 11 | 11:00 - 12:15 (without intermission) > Book Now
Dvořák: String Quartet No. 12 in F Major, Op. 96, “American”, Excerpts
Shostakovich: Piano Trio No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 67, Excerpts
Brahms: Piano Quartet No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 60, Excerpts
Schumann: Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44, Excerpts
Mendelssohn: Piano Sextet in D Major, Op. 110, Excerpts

Horn player extraordinaire and CMG favourite, Radek Baborák, teams up with leading woodwind players for an evening of chamber music for winds.

Horn: Radek Baborák, Flute: Misato Takimoto, Oboe: Kanami Araki, Clarinet: István Kohán, Bassoon: Michaela Špačková
[Suntory Hall Chamber Music Academy Selected Fellows] Violin: Seira Jono, Viola: Kenshi Nagata / Toko Tago, Cello: Yuho Takagi, CMA Ensemble

SUN, JUN 11 | 18:00 > Book Now
Reicha: Wind Quintet in D Major, Op. 91, No. 3
Mozart: Horn Quintet in E-flat Major, K. 407
Taffanel: Wind Quintet in G Minor
Paganini: Concertino (Bassoon, Horn and String Orchestra)
Mozart: Adagio in C Major, K. Anh. 94 (580a)
Donizetti (arr. Leloir): Oboe Sonata in F Major (arr. for Horn and Chamber Ensemble)

Making his CMG debut, innovative pianist Tomoki Kitamura and colleagues present chamber versions of two major symphonies by Beethoven and Shostakovich.

Piano: Tomoki Kitamura, Violin: Sunao Goko, Cello: Gen Yokosaka, Percussion: Futoshi Shimizu / Tomohiro Nishikubo / Rika Fujii

TUE, JUN 13 | 19:00 > Book Now
Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36 (arr. for Piano Trio)
Shostakovich (arr. Derevianko): Symphony No. 15 in A Major, Op. 141 (arr. for Piano Trio and 13 Percussion Instruments)

CMG welcomes the professors and soloists of the renowned Kronberg Academy from Germany, an award-winning course for string players. Together with Professors Mihaela Martin (violin), Nobuko Imai (viola), and Frans Helmerson (cello), current students and prominent alumni will present two thrilling programmes.

［Principal Professors］Violin: Mihaela Martin, Viola: Nobuko Imai (Ⅱ, Jun 17), Cello: Frans Helmerson, ［Alumni］Violin: Kaoru Oe / Fumika Mohri, Cello: Dai Miyata (Ⅰ, Jun 15),［Students］Viola: Hayang Park / Sara Ferrández, Cello: Alexander Warenberg, Piano: Julius Asal

Ⅰ THU, JUN 15 2023 | 19:00 > Book Now
Dohnányi: Serenade in C Major, Op. 10
Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4
Dvořák: Piano Quintet No. 2 in A Major, Op. 81

Ⅱ SAT, JUN 17 2023 | 19:00 > Book Now
Mozart: Piano Quartet No. 2 in E-flat Major, K. 493
Mendelssohn: String Quintet No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 87
Brahms: String Sextet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 36

An evening of Brahms’ late chamber music on historical instruments, performed by violinist Shunske Sato, cellist Hidemi Suzuki, and fortepianist Shuann Chai on Suntory Hall’s Érard piano.

Violin: Shunske Sato, Cello: Hidemi Suzuki, Fortepiano*: Shuann Chai
* Instrument: Érard (1867 / Owned by Suntory Hall)

FRI, JUN 16 | 19:00 > Book Now
Brahms:
Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Major, Op. 100
Cello Sonata No. 2 in F Major, Op. 99
Piano Trio No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 101

The closing concert of CMG 2023 brings together many of the festival artists – spanning the generations – for a chamber music extravaganza. The programme will be revealed on the day of the concert.

［Suntory Hall Chamber Music Academy］Violin: Koichiro Harada / Kikuei Ikeda, Viola: Kazuhide Isomura, Cello: Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi / Hakuro Mori, Piano: Shigeo Neriki, String Quartet: Quartet Primavera (Mio Ishikawa, Yukari Oka, Toko Tago, Kei Oe) *, HONO Quartet (Honoka Kishimoto, Shuga Hayashi, Kenshi Nagata, Yoshiyuki Kanie) *
* Chamber Music Academy Selected Fellows
［Kronberg Academy］Violin: Mihaela Martin / Kaoru Oe / Fumika Mohri, Viola: Nobuko Imai / Hayang Park / Sara Ferrández, Cello: Frans Helmerson / Alexander Warenberg, Piano: Julius Asal
Violin: Reiko Watanabe, Bassoon: Michaela Špačková, Harp: Naoko Yoshino, Aoi Trio (Piano: Kosuke Akimoto, Violin: Kyoko Ogawa, Cello: Yu Ito)

SUN, JUN 18 | 14:00 > Book Now

Students of special needs schools are invited to the Blue Rose (Small Hall) so that they can feel and enjoy chamber music in an intimate setting.

Violin: Reiko Watanabe, Bassoon: Michaela Špačková, Piano: Akira Eguchi

THU, JUNE 15 | 10:15 > Private Event