Jun Markl / Hague Residentie Orchestra, Ilse Eerens, Ryoko Aoki, Mario Caroli - Orchestral Works Vol.5 -Futari Shizuka -The Maiden from the Sea, Ceremony - Import CD

Credits:

Jun Markl / Hague Residentie Orchestra, Ilse Eerens, Ryoko Aoki, Mario Caroli

Description:

Toshio Hosokawa's Opera "Ninin Shizuka -The Girl from the Sea-" and "Ceremony" based on Noh Toshio Hosokawa, who has a strong interest in Noh, will perform his opera "Ninin Shizuka". Hosokawa has previously created operas that modernize Noh, such as "Hanjo," "Matsukaze," and "Umi, Silent Sea," but this "Ninin Shizu" is based on the Noh play of the same title, a Japanese story newly adapted by Oriza Hirata that overlaps the tragedy of a refugee girl who washes ashore in the Mediterranean Sea and Shizugozen. The work is a sister piece to "The Great Raven" (2014), which was commissioned by the Ensemble Intercontemporain and premiered in Paris in 2017. It was premiered in Paris in 2017, and its Japan premiere at Suntory Hall's "Summer Festival 2021" in August 2021 is still fresh in our memories. On the album, the premiere performer, Noh vocalist Ryoko Aoki, and soprano Ilse Ehrens sing mystically of an ethereal world. The flute concerto "Ceremony" was co-commissioned by the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich and Ensemble Kanazawa, composed between October 2021 and March 2022, and dedicated to the premiere performer Emmanuelle Pajou. Hosokawa regards the soloist as a "person" and the orchestra as "nature or the universe," and this time adopts a composition that symbolizes a shaman (sorcerer) and the world he calls upon. Through the flute, "breath = spirit or spirit soul" appears as sound, and a ritualistic music in five parts develops. The flutist plays while changing flutes, alto flutes, and piccolo, finally ending with the image of a "bird" that blends into nature. Composed during a pandemic, this work is also a prayer for an end to the disease.The Hague Residential Orchestra, conducted by his friend and mentor, Quasi-Merkle, will make full use of the composer's dramatic intonation and delicate timbre to convey the full range of his image. The concert will be accompanied by a Japanese commentary by the composer and the Japanese text of the lyrics. Toshio Hosokawa's opera "Ninin Shizuka - The Girl from the Sea" is one of the most important works in my musical life, and after its world premiere at the Philharmonie de Paris in 2017 with Ensemble Intercontemporain conducted by Matthias Pincher, I have performed it many times around the world. The script was written by playwright Oriza Hirata based on the Noh play "Ninin Shizuka" into a modern story, with me playing the role of Shizuka Gozen and the soprano playing Helen, a refugee girl. Many of Hosokawa's works are inspired by Noh, but the chant is used for the first time in "Ninin Shizu," and so far it is the only piece I have written. This work, in which the chant echoes in unison with the soprano and orchestra, is new music never heard before. The recording was made in March 2024 at the beautifully resonant Amare Hall with the Hague Residential Orchestra under the direction of Quasi-Merkle, with more strings than in the ensemble version of the first performance. It was a very happy time for me to perform with such a wonderful orchestra, and I still recall that time every time I listen to the recording. While listening to the profound sound that emerges from the silence, I hope it will also give you an opportunity to think about the sad events that still continue in the world. --Ryoko Aoki Naxos Japan