I attended the 176th Regular Concert of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Central Band at the Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre.
I was deeply grateful that the Central Band performed my earlier arrangement of Verdi’s Nabucco Overture on this occasion. For any wind band composer or arranger, having one’s work played by the Central Band is, needless to say, a tremendous honour.
Although my transcription calls for A clarinets and remains in the original key, I would be most delighted if their skilful performance and superb clarinet section conveyed how such a transcription can resonate in the present era.
The programme was further enriched by the premiere of Mr Satoshi Yagisawa’s new work, Echoes of Eternal Prayer, Mr Hideaki Miura’s brilliantly coloured new arrangement of Rachmaninoff’s Vocalise, and Mr Hirokazu Fukushima’s Overture Prayer will Shine as Time Goes by, which I had the privilege of hearing while seated next to the composer himself. What a truly rewarding programme and a fantastic performance!
