Art work: HIROSHI SENJU

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Naoto Otomo, conductor　Roppongi Male Chorus ZIG-ZAG　Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra

7:30 pm House Opens / 8:00 pm Concert Starts on Friday June 8, 2018 CARNEGIE HALL Stern Auditorium/ Perelman Stage

Shigeaki Saegusa “The Last Message” for male chorus and orchestra

The last message is a prayer of life.

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Roppongi Male Chorus ZIG-ZAG Concert at CARNEGIE HALL

Presented by Roppongi Male Chorus ZIG-ZAG

Hans Walter Bähr, a German editor, appealed to the bereaved of soldiers of various nations who had died during the Second World War. Bähr’s request was to send letters and notes written by soldiers and other victims of the war, so that he could convey their voices to the world. In response to his request, more than 20,000 letters written between 1939 and 1945 were submitted. In 1961, out of the vast number received, Bähr selected letters written by 202 soldiers from 31 countries and edited them into a book titled Die Stimme des Menschen (The Voice of Mankind). This book was an earnest personal record of the hope and agony of the soldiers at the front, presenting vividly to readers the cruel reality of the war through their desperate voices. The letters ring with the themes of resisting force, protecting humanity, and preventing the endless cycle of the cruelty of war, as well as the endurance of family love.

I encountered Bähr’s book translated into Japanese by Mr. Kenji Takahashi under the title of Ningen no Koe (The Voice of Humanity) when I was studying music at the Tokyo University of the Arts. Since then, I have wanted to record these voices in my music for future generations. More than fifty years later I am now in the midst of this work.

● Naoto Otomo, ConductorBorn in 1958, Naoto Otomo graduated from the Toho Gakuen School of Music having studied conducting under Seiji Ozawa, Kazuyoshi Akiyama, Tadaaki Odaka and Morihiro Okabe. His studies took him to Tanglewood where he worked with conductors such as André Previn, Leonard Bernstein and Igor Markevitch. While still a student at Toho Gakuen, Naoto Otomo was named Assistant Conductor of the NHK Symphony Orchestra, and upon the recommendation of its members, made his debut with the orchestra at the age of 22. During his career, Naoto Otomo has regularly made appearances with major orchestras both in Japan and overseas. Having previously held the posts of Conductor of the Japan Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra and Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra, Permanent Conductor of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Principal Conductor, Permanent Conductor as well as Music Director of the Kyoto Symphony Orchestra, he is currently Music Director of the Gunma Symphony Orchestra, Honorary Guest Conductor of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Conductor Laureate of the Kyoto Symphony Orchestra, and Music Advisor to the Ryukyu Symphony Orchestra. In 2004, he was appointed as the first Music Director of the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan concert hall, a post he held for

8 years. He also led the Osaka Philharmonic on a tour of Europe in 1986, and his tours with the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra to Southeast Asia in 1992, Portugal in 1994 and 1996, and Europe in 2001 were all extremely successful.Outside Japan, Naoto Otomo has appeared with the Colorado Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra; in July 2001 he led the Philharmonia Orchestra on their tour to Japan, in March 2012 he conducted the opening concert of the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra, and in June 2012 he appeared as a guest conductor with the Lorraine National Orchestra. He was invited to George Enescu International Festival in 2013 where he conducted String Octet in C Major, Op.7. Critics acclaimed “this octet has been performed several times, but this is by far the best,” and “the performance by a Japanese orchestra gives hope to western music.” There is much anticipation of future work in both Europe and the United States.Naoto Otomo’s career also includes collaborations with numerous soloists including: violinists Gil Shaham, Augustin Dumay, Frank Peter Zimmermann, Joshua Bell, Jean-Jacques Kantorow and Shlomo Mintz; violists Gérard Caussé and Yuri Bashmet; cellists Mario Brunello and David Geringas; pianists Radu Lupu, André Watts, Bruno-Leonardo Gelber, Ivan Moravec, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Cyprien Katsaris, Jean-Phillipe Collard, Cristina Ortiz, and Hélène Grimaud. His work with tenor José Carreras was also highly praised, and he regularly receives requests from many of these artists for further collaborations.Following his opera debut in 1988 with Weber’s Der Freischütz at the Nissay Theatre, Naoto Otomo has also been active in opera; he has conducted productions such as Gluck’s Orfeo and Eurydice, Verdi’s Rigoletto, Mozart’s The Magic Flute and Shigeaki Saegusa’s Chushingura.In February 2006, Otomo led the Tokyo Symphony in a production of Ai-En ‒ To Die for Love ‒ (composed by Minoru Miki, libretto by Jakucho Setouchi), and in June of the same year, he led a joint production between the Tokyo and Kyoto Symphonies to perform Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder in the cities of Tokyo and Kyoto. Other notable productions include Jr. Butterfly, composed by Shigeaki Saegusa and performed in August 2006 at the Puccini Festival in Italy which was also revived at the same festival in 2014, the world premiere of Saegusa’s KAMIKAZE in January 2013, as well as Akira Senju’s new opera, Taki no Shiraito in January 2014, all of which attracted great interest.Otomo has also conducted Toshiro Mayuzumi’s Kojiki (Days of the Gods) and Elgar’s The Kingdom, The Apostles and The Dream of Gerontius as part of the Tokyo Symphony’s subscription concerts; his conducting the Japanese premiere of Mayuzumi’s opera Kojiki (Days of Gods) as part of the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan 50th Anniversary Festival drew much attention and was critically acclaimed.Naoto Otomo’s repertoire ranges from classical to contemporary works, and since his first recording at the age of 20, his work has been featured on numerous albums. His latest work, a recording with the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra of Holst’s orchestral suite The Planets, has been released in Japan by King Records.Creating new music scenes in which classical and music from other genres collaborate, Otomo does not shy away from stage productions that stray from established genres and forms of expression; he is truly an innovative music producer.In recent years, Otomo has also been actively involved in education, and his contributions include the organization of the international music seminar “Music Masters Course Japan” alongside fellow conductor Alan Gilbert.Naoto Otomo is the recipient of the 8th Akio Watanabe Music Foundation Award (2000) and the 7th Hideo Saito Memorial Fund Award (2008).

● Tokyo Phiharmonic OrchetsraIn 2011, the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra celebrated its 100th anniversary as Japan’s first symphony orchestra. With about 130 musicians, TPO performs both symphonies and operas regularly. TPO is proud to have appointed Maestro Myung-Whun Chung, who has been conducting TPO since 2001, as Honorary Music Director, Maestro Andrea Battistoni as Chief Conductor and Maestro Mikhail Pletnev as Special Guest Conductor. TPO has established its world-class reputation through its subscription concert series, regular opera and ballet assignments at the New National Theatre, and a full, ever in-demand agenda around Japan and the world, including broadcasting with NHK Broadcasting Corporation, various educational programs, and tours abroad. TPO has partnerships with Bunkamura Orchard Hall, the Bunkyo Ward in Tokyo, Chiba City, Karuizawa Cho in Nagano and Nagaoka City in Niigata.

● Shigeaki Saegusa, ComposerBorn in Tokyo in 1942 and graduated with an M.A. from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts, Saegusa’s principal opera works are as follows: Ryurenpu --Tale of a Five-Headed Dragon in 1978, oratorio Yamato Takeru (Toshiba EMI) in 1989, opera The Story of a Thousand Memories in 1991, and opera Chushingura (Sony Classical International) in 1997. The opera Jr. Butterfly was performed in Tokyo in 2003 and repeated in Kobe in 2005 as a ten-year memorial after the Kobe earthquake. Jr. Butterfly was also performed at the 52nd Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago, Italy in 2006 where Puccini had lived and composed his feature operas.In addition to operas, Saegusa composed the Rock Mass Radiation Mass in 1981, The Symphony in 1983, violin concerto The Legend of Snow (Toshiba EMI) in 1992, and Requiem - Libretto by Ayako Sono (Sony Music Japan International) which premiered in Tokyo in 1998 and was later performed with the Cuba National Symphony and Roppongi Male Chorus Club in Havana in 2005. Cantata Tengai --The Prayer of a Free Person (Sony Music Japan International) premiered in 2000. He has also made musical arrangements including: The Beatles Memories (Fun House) in 1992 and Japanese folk songs Nostalgy (Fun House) for twelve cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic in 1994.In 1991 Saegusa was commissioned to complete the Sinfonia Concertante in A for violin, viola, violoncello and orchestra (Toshiba EMI) by International Foundation Mozarteum in Austria, which was W.　A. Mozart’s unfinished work.Saegusa has composed the music for feature films including: Doran (Uprising) directed by S. Moritani in 1980, Typhoon Club directed by S. Somai in 1984 and Gundam—Shah, the Revenges directed by Y. Tomino in 1988. As music for TV programs, he composed theme music for the drama series Taiheiki in 1991 and Hana no Ran in 1994, both of which were broadcasted by NHK.Saegusa has been awarded prizes such as Best Music Award at the 33rd Asia-Pacific Film Festival in 1988, CESARE ZAVATTINI award at the 42nd Festival Internazionale del Cinema di SALERNO in1989, and Best Music Award of Feature Film Music at the Japan Academy Awards in 1989. In 2007, he was awarded the Tachibana Akiko Prize and the Medal with Purple Ribbon [conferred by the Japanese emperor].His first mono-opera Grief and piano concerto Philosophy of Squid premiered in 2008. In the same year, he was awarded the Puccini International Award as the first

Japanese prize winner by the Puccini Festival Foundation. In 2010 the opera Chushingura Gaiden [side story of Chushingura] and The Last Message for male chorus and orchestra were performed as world premieres in Tokyo. He was awarded the Shin Watanabe Prize in 2011. His latest opera KAMIKAZE premiered in Tokyo in January 2013. In 2014 the opera Jr. Butterfly was re-performed at the 60th Puccini Festival in Italy with an Italian cast and Italian lyrics. In January 2016, the opera Jr. Butterfly with Italian lyrics was performed in Japan with an Italian cast. In October 2017 his first opera buffa The Mad Day in Midsummers with libretto by Mariko Hayashi and directed by Yasushi Akimoto premiered in Tokyo.In 2017 he received the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette by the Japanese emperor.

© Rowland Kirishima© Rowland Kirishima

In 2009, on the basis of Takahashi’s translation, Jun Maki, a copywriter, compiled thirteen letters from twelve countries into the lyrics for my composition The Last Message.

This work was premiered by the Roppongi Men’s Chorus Club together with the New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Naoto Otomo, at Suntory Hall in Tokyo in 2011, and re-performed in 2012 and 2013 at the same venue. In 2011, this work was performed at Victoria Hall in Geneva with Swiss Romado, conducted by N. Otomo as an event of International Red Cross and Red Crescent congress. In 2013, the work was performed with Volgograd Philharmonic conducted by N. Otomo in Volgograd, Russia and with the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra conducted by Seikyo Kim at Philharmonia, St. Petersburg, Russia as a memorial concert of for the Anniversary of the beginning of the Siege of Leningrad.

I sincerely hope that the thoughts and feelings of the soldiers guide us through my musical work to strive more diligently for the creation of a peaceful world.

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“The Last Message” Commissioned for the Tenth Anniversary of The Roppongi Men’s Chorus Club with Orchestra　　　 Shigeaki Saegusa

● Roppongi Male Chorus ZIG-ZAGIn 1999, about 20 people, laymen as singers but well known professionals in their own fields, got together to perform at an AIDS charity benefit concert.Soon thereafter, the group was formally constituted as the Roppongi Men’s Chorus Club unti l November 2015.Members hail from wide range of backgrounds: politicians, businessmen,academics and cultural figures, ranging in age from 21 to 85. They perform and raise money at various charity events for causes such as the Children’s Earth Fund, the Afghanistan Ambulance Fund, Indian Ocean Tsunami aide and assist the victims of 311 the Great East Japan Earthquake.Activities also extend outside of Japan. The first tour in 2003 went to Vienna, Graz and Berlin. The tour to Cuba followed in 2005. In 2006 the chorus performed in Honolulu, Hawaii,and they made their opera debut at the Puccini Festival in Italy in August of this same year. In 2007, they performed at Salle de Garnier in the Monte Carlo Opera House, attended by Prince Albert of Monaco. The performance at Sala Sao Paulo, was recognized as an official program of “100 Years of Japan & Brazil Friendship”in 2008. In 2009, they performed at Madeleine Cathedral in Paris and at National Opera in Bordeaux as an official program. In 2010, Milano Duomo has invited the chorus to perform at their Cathedral. The chorus sang at the mass of St. Pietro in the Vatican the following day. In 2011, they performed The Last Message composed by Shigeaki Saegusa in Geneva as an official concert for The International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. In 2013, Volgograd Oblast organized their concert in Volgograd city. In 2014, they appeared on re-performance of Saegusa’s opera “Jr. Butterfly” at the 60th Puccini Festival in Italy.In January 2015, the chorus performed their original musical Waist Size Story in Tokyo. On September 8, 2015, they have performed The Last Message at the Philharmonia in St.Petersburg as a memorial concert for the Anniversary of the beginning of the Siege of Leningrad.The chorus has appeared on TV commercials, recorded theme songs for television shows and international events, in the process releasing eight CDs, each of it has been met with critical and commercial success.In February, 2016, the chorus has changed their name “the Roppongi Male Chorus Zig-Zag” and restarted their activities. There are more than 90 members, who come together to declare the beauty which music provides throughout our lives.

Representative Members: President: Shigeaki Saegusa, ComposerVice President: Hiroyuki Watanabe, president, Lead-off Japan Co.,LtdVice President: Etsuo Nakahara, Managing Director, Clinique DUBOIS

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