I have finally finished playing all the 2011 CHANEL Pygmalion Days solo concerts. The last one was on Nov. 19th, with a guest performer, Ko Taniguchi. And this past week, I performed in a chamber music series directed by Heiichiro Ohyama. It was so exciting to encounter new audiences in my homeland, Japan, through the Chanel Pygmalion Days concerts.
This year has been a great challenge for me to constantly arrange concert programs, while simultaneously dealing with all the disasters in Japan occurring in Japan without respite. I am truly grateful for the huge support I received from my friends and teachers in New York City and San Francisco.
Also, I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to perform for the refugees of those catastrophes, and I pray that my music helped my ravaged nation’s morale and healing. Moreover, despite all the grief and destruction of lives and property, I encountered moments of courage, sacrifice, and humanity that I never new existed.
