ATM ENSEMBLE

ATM ENSEMBLE

How wonderful it would be to form an ensemble from a bunch of musicians who normally act as soloists and/or adept members of other ensembles. That dream was realized with the formation of the ATM Ensemble in 1990 when Art Tower Mito (ATM) opened.

Ever since its formation as ATM's home ensemble, the group has continued to convey to us the appeal of chamber music, thanks to its rich musicality. The flexibility of its membership is another of its attractions, as it frequently welcomes guests to enable duets (for duo sonatas with violin or cello) up through octets (for string octet pieces, etc.). It is no exaggeration to state that the group thus virtually covers the whole chamber repertoire.

Taking advantage of these special qualities, the ATM Ensemble has put on many novel and sophisticated performances so far. Of the 14 concerts presented already at ATM, the ones that evoked the greatest public reaction have included the following: the 6th concert (Dec. 15, 1992), focusing on 19c and 20c French composers, such as Debussy (1862-1918), Roussel (1869-1937), Ravel (1875-1937), and Fauré(1845-1924), with Naoko Yoshino, Yumiko Sakuma, and Masaharu Yamamoto as guest performers; the 8th concert (Feb. 14, 1994), dwelling on the theme of "love" as portrayed by Dvorák (1841-1904) and other composers, with Kei Itoh as guest; and the 12th concert (Feb. 16, 1998) featuring late chamber works by Schubert (1797-1828), with Takashi Hironaka as guest.
Besides the guest performers already mentioned, the ATM ensemble has welcomed a whole litany of other musicians, including Teiko Maebashi, Kazuoki Fujii, Yukio Yokoyama, Ken Wakabayashi, and Harumi Hanafusa. In the last concert performed, the 14th (Mar. 6, 1998), the guitarist Shin'ichi Fukuda was the guest performer.

The journey of the ATM Ensemble, in pursuit of new possibilities of pleasure and amusement, will hopefully go on forever.

MEMBER PROFILES:

Koichiro Harada (violin)
Having formed the Tokyo Quartet in 1969 and playing the first violin in that group for a dozen years, Mr. Harada has always been at the forefront of chamber music in Japan. He is now actively engaged as an educator, producing the NADA series of chamber music, teaching students as a professor at the Toho Gakuen College of Music, and teaching at the Aspen Music Festival. He has also started conducting in the past few years, leading the New Japan Philharmonic, the Kioi Sinfonietta and other groups to great acclaim.

Tomoko Kato (violin)
Having gained international recognition after capturing second place in the 1982 Tchaikovsky Competition (Concours International de Musique P. I. Tchaikovsky) in the former U.S.S.R., Ms. Kato has led a career as a soloist and a chamber performer. Her CD with pieces by Kreisler (1875-1972), Franck (1822-90), and Ysäe (1858-1931) has been extremely well received. She now belongs to the Lilia Ensemble, the Ensemble Echo, and other groups, continuing her active interest in chamber music.

Mie Kobayashi (violin)
Placing second in the 1988 Spohr Violin Competition (Concours International de Violon Ludwig Spohr), as well as becoming the first Japanese to win the Long-Thibaud Violin Competition (Concours International de Piano et Violon Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud), Ms. Kobayashi belongs to the younger generation of active violinists. In April 1991, she gave a solo recital at Art Tower Mito. In 1994 and 1995, then, she performed a recital series at the Casals Hall in Tokyo, receiving great critical acclaim. She has already put out three CDs of violin music.

Yasushi Toyoshima (viola)
Mr. Toyoshima plays both the violin and viola, and is engaged both as a soloist and as a member of such ensembles as the Halley String Quartet. In 1991, he won the Monbusho Geijutsu Sensho (Minister of Education, Science, Sports and Culture Artistic Selection Prize) for a recital of concerti that he planned himself. He has been enthusiastically involved in recitals and recordings since that time.

Noboru Kamimura (cello)
In 1977, Mr. Kamimura won the Cassado Cello Competition (Concorso Internazionale di Violincello ) in Italy. He has performed concerts in various European cities to great applause. His 1986 solo recitals of the six Unaccompanied Cello Suites by J.S. Bach (1685-1750), given in Tokyo and Kyoto, were highly successful. He has also released a CD of that set if pieces. His other CDs, all highly rated, include a collection of short pieces called the "Noh Recital" and another including the two Cello Sonatas by Brahms (1833-97).

Hakuro Mori (cello)
Mr. Mori has been active on the performance scene since his student days at Juilliard in New York. He has played with many different ensembles, including the Theater Chamber Players at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., the Sea Cliff Chamber Players, and the Cantilena Piano Quartet. Since returning to Japan in 1985, Mr. Mori has served as solo cellist with the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra, and has been a member of the Tokyo Piano Trio, the Kiri Piano Quartet, NADA, and others. He is also an associate professor at the Toho Gakuen College of Music.

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