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Orchestra Concert on August 28th (Sun), Announcement of Saito Kinen Orchestra Member Change.

To our regret, Julia Pilant (horn), Ryosuke Tomono (horn) and Marc Goldberg (bassoon) who were scheduled to perform for the Orchestra Concert at 15:00 today, will not be able to perform due to health conditions.

The appearance of Ms. Pilant and Mr. Goldberg on August 29th (Monday) for "Chamber Concert II", is to be announced.

Following artists will be playing in Orchestra Concert in lieu of the SKO members announced above.

Horn:
Atsuya Senda (Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps)
Haruka Fujii (Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps)

Bassoon:
Toshiki Shiotsuka (Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps)

We are sorry for those who were looking forward to attending Orchestra Concert with the originally announced SKO members. We appreciate your understanding.

* There is no refund of tickets for this orchestra member change.

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2022OMF "Le nozze di Figaro" was a great success! !

Mozart's timeless masterpiece "Le nozze di Figaro" was performed at the festival for the first time in three years. Maestra Nodoka Okisawa lead the performances by conducting world-renowned singers and the incredible Saito Kinen Orchestra. The production, directed by Laurent Pelly and Laurie Feldman, was a spectacular success and was enjoyed by full houses at every performance.

The friendly atmosphere behind the scenes brought together all the international cast members and production team. "The production and team were really great, and every moment from rehearsals to the performances was fun. I never want to leave Matsumoto!" said one of the casts. It was a great team.

After the many curtain calls, the cast and Mo. Okisawa said to the production team, "We want to express our gratitude." Suddenly, they broke out singing a Japanes folk song "Furusato"! Additionally, the singers, chorus, and staff all gave a warm round of applause and praise to Suzanne Mentzer, a veteran Mezzo-Soprano who is retiring from opera stage after this production.

We hope that this production, which celebrated the 30th anniversary of OMF, will be a memorable work for many people. Thank you very much to everyone who came to visit us!

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Aug. 27 (Sat) Opera Mozart: "Le nozze di Figaro" Announcement of cast change.

Due to the illness of Cheyanne Coss, Karin Tsunezuka will perform as Barbarina on Aug. 27th performance.
We appreciate your understanding.

* There is no refund of tickets for this cast change.

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Karin Tsunezuka　Soprano

Karin Tsunezuka holds BA and MA, opera course of Kunitachi College of Music, and graduated from Nikikai Opera Training Institute. She sung: Donna Anna Don Jovanni, Lauretta Gianni Schicchi, Pamina Die Zauberflöte, Concepción L'Heure Espagnole, Flowermaidens Parsifal, Ilia Idomeneo. She also performed soloist role in Bach’s Matthäus-Passion, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor, Beethoven’s Symphony No.9, Verdi’s Requiem, Rutter’s Manificat etc. She studied in France from 2015 through 2017.

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Dutoit and SKO performance, the auditorium was packed!

The first Orchestra Concert of the season was a huge success! An Orchestra Concert with an live audience was finally possible after 3 long years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The long-awaited performance began with Toru Takemitsu's "Ceremonial -An Autumn Ode-", which is the same piece that opened the festival in 1992. After 30 years, it was a great pleasure for the Saito Kinen Orchestra to be able to perform this memorable piece at Kissei Bunka Hall.

The second piece was Debussy's "Images" Pour Orchestre. During rehearsals, Mr. Dutoit worked on this piece with particular care to express the colors and transparency of the piece. What kind of "image" did you see through today’s uncompromising performance?

After a break, the concert completed with Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps. It was not possible to play this song in the pandemic last year as the music requires 105 orchestra members. Maerstro Dutoit and SKO worked together wholeheartedly to deliver the best performance. he Festival Director Seiji Ozawa enjoyed the concert in the auditorium as well and came onto the stage with Mo.Dutoit at the end of the curtain call to greet everyone. Thank you very much for coming! Don't miss another great performance on the 28th of August.

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Aug. 28 (Sun) Orchestra Concert Tickets for the Day Information

Orchestra Concert Tickets for the Day Information
Aug. 28 (Sun) performance

Venue: Kissei Bunka Hall
Tickets for the Day Sales Start: 13:30
Ticket Price: Seats S 22,000 (Only 2) / A 18,000 yen (Only 4) (All seats reserved)

Door Open: 14:30
Start: 15:00

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Aug. 27 (Sat) Opera Mozart: "Le Nozze di Figaro" Tickets for the Day Information

Opera Mozart: "Le Nozze di Figaro" Tickets for the Day Information
Aug. 27 (Sat) performance

Venue: Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre Main Hall
Tickets for the Day Sales Start: 13:30
Ticket Price: Seats S 25,000 / A 21,000 yen (All seats reserved/Only few tickets available)

Door Open: 14:30
Start: 15:00

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Aug. 26 (Fri) Orchestra Concert Tickets for the Day Information

Orchestra Concert Tickets for the Day Information
Aug. 26 (Fri) performance

Venue: Kissei Bunka Hall
Tickets for the Day Sales Start: 17:30
Ticket Price: Seats S 22,000 / A 18,000 yen (All seats reserved)

Door Open: 18:30
Start: 19:00

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Dutoit x SKO rehearsal has started!

Maestro Dutoit and Saito Kinen Orchestra have started rehearsing! "I am finally here after traveling 36 hours from Argentina", Maestro Dutoit greeted SKO cheerfully at the beginning of the rehearsal.

Once rehearsal is started with Stravinsky's "Le Sacre du Printemps", Mo. Dutoi's atmosphere changed from friendly to serious. "Le Sacre du Printemps" is already a grand piece, but the music 105 SKO members create is just awing. You have to come and experience the powerful synergy between the Maestro and the orchestra yourself in the concert hall!

A few S and A tickets are available on Aug 26th performance. 28th is sold out.

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Opera “Le nozze di Figaro”, opening performance received with thunderous applause! Director Seiji Ozawa enjoyed the performance!

After almost a month of intensive rehearsals, Opera Mozart: “Le nozze di Figaro” at last celebrated the first performance! It was very touching for the artists and staff to see Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre filled with an audience after three years. Thank you everyone who came to celebrate the moment with us. Everyone involved with the production was overwhelmed with your enthusiasm and endless applause.

The Festival Director, Seiji Ozawa, also enjoyed the opening performance. Seiji has thought highly of operas, as well as the symphonies, thanks to Maestro Karajan who taught Seiji that “Opera and symphony are wheels of a car”. Seiji delightedly moved his body to the fantastic voices, praised Maestra Nodoka Okisawa who led the team to perform at a higher level, and was very happy to see SKO members again after a year.

With all the encouragement from the Director, the festival is more than eager to deliver a great experience to you! Only a few tickets are left for Opera Mozart: “Le nozze di Figaro” on the 24th, tickets are sold out on the 27th. Experienced singers described that "This Figaro is fantastic and is nothing like the Figaro you have known", don't miss out this opportunity!

Director Seiji Ozawa watching Opera Mozart : “Le nozze di Figaro” final rehearsal.

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Aug. 24 (Wed) Opera Mozart: "Le Nozze di Figaro" Tickets for the Day Information

Opera Mozart: "Le Nozze di Figaro" Tickets for the Day Information
Aug. 24 (Wed) performance

Venue: Matsumoto Performing Arts Centre Main Hall
Tickets for the Day Sales Start: 15:30
Ticket Price: Seats S 25,000 / A 21,000 yen (All seats reserved)

Door Open: 16:30
Start: 17:00