Naomi.Kudo: May 2008 Archives

Teenage pianist's performance earns kudos

on May 26, 2008 12:32 AM | Permalink

Teenage pianist's performance earns kudos
               
Montgomery Advertiser (AL)
May 1, 2004

   With eyes closed, no one would have imagined that the music coming from the piano on the Davis Theatre stage was played by a teenager. The maturity displayed by 16-year-old Naomi Kudo belied her age in both musical understanding and technical proficiency.

   As this year's winner of the Blount Young Artists Competition, Kudo was soloist for Tchaikovsky's first piano concerto in the Montgomery Symphony's final subscription concert of the season. On Monday she played the entire Tchaikovsky concerto, not just a single movement, and did so masterfully. In the biggest moments she drew sonority from the piano that carried easily over the full orchestra and played with dazzling technique. Her playing equaled that of much more established performers. More important, the musicianship she brought to this mammoth work was evident in carefully arched phrases, sensitive to the melodic content without sentimentality. With such powerhouse playing, the Monday night audience could not resist applauding when the first movement ended. Kudo then continued into the second movement, finding the right balance between the delicate, melodic main theme contrasting with the playful, capricious middle theme. The movement ended quietly, followed by the fiery, brilliant final movement. With virtually no pause after the final chord, the audience burst into an enthusiastic and extended standing ovation, richly deserved for this impressive young pianist.

   Under music director Thomas Hinds' conducting, the remainder of the program gave the orchestra a showcase of its own with music featuring contrasting and colorful pieces. Andre Caplet's arrangement of Debussy's "Clair de lune" was familiar and gentle, yet purists might have been indifferent to this transcription of a work written for piano. Not rhythm-less, but sounding nearly so, it created a different color and effect in sustained strings and wind instruments that are not the properties of the piano. The result was pleasant but anemic and weak.

   A relatively new piece by Toru Takemitsu called "Star-Isle," which followed, gave the orchestra a chance to explore massed sounds beginning with augmented brass balanced against other sections. If "Clair de lune" suggested absence of strict rhythm, "Star-Isle" literally avoided it. Devoid of a recognizable beat and melody, its musical language communicated a different message with close harmony and free flowing phases - and clearly the Montgomery Symphony felt and conveyed that message convincingly. Stretching the ear and mind, it was a welcome addition to the program and played well.

   Five sections of Tchaikovsky's music for "Sleeping Beauty" completed the program. This stirring, alternately lilting and dramatic music showed the orchestra's varied colors to great advantage, especially woodwinds, harp, and percussion. Nicely played, this was music to linger in mind long after the concert and to conclude the subscription season very effectively.

Continue reading Teenage pianist's performance earns kudos.

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Naomi.Kudo

on May 25, 2008 6:39 PM | Permalink

１９８７年にアメリカ合衆国ワシントンD.C.で日本人と韓国人を両親として生まれる。

４歳よりピアノを始め、シカゴ音楽院のエミリオ・デル・ロザリオ、バンクーバー音楽院の

李金星、東京芸術大学の笠間春子の各氏に師事。現在、ジュリアード音楽院でヨヘヴェド・カプリンスキーに師事。

１９９２年から２０００年までを福井県松岡町（現・永平寺町）で育つ。１９９９年に第５３回全日本学生音楽コンクールピアノ部門小学生の部全国大会第１位、併せて野村賞、都築賞を受賞。青森で開催された２０００年第１回ステファンスカ国際ピアノコンクール第１位、及びステファンスカ賞を受賞。２００１年ポーランドのドゥシニキ国際ショパン音楽祭、２００１年ハバロフスクで開催されたロシアの「２１世紀の新人たち」音楽祭、２００２年名古屋青少年音楽祭などに出演、ショパンの生家ジェラゾバボラでも演奏。２００３年いしかわミュージックアカデミーにてI.M.A.音楽賞を受賞。

全米ショパン協会奨学金を２００１年より４年連続受賞。２００３年第９回オバーリン国際ピアノコンクール第１位、２００３年第３０回フィショッフ国際室内楽コンクール第２位、２００５年全米ショパンピアノコンクール第２位。全米ショパン協会より２００５年第１５回国際ショパンコンクールに派遣され、ファイナリスト・ディプロマ受賞。他には２００４年度ダヴィドソン奨学財団特別賞と２００５年度全米芸術財団法人よりレベル1賞受賞。２００７年、２００８年連続ジュリアード音楽院のジーナ・バッカワー国際ピアノコンクールで１位、及びショパン賞を受賞。

テキサス州のフォート・ワース交響楽団とチャイコフスキー「ピアノ協奏曲第１番」、シカゴ交響楽団とマヌエル・デ・ファリャの「スペインの庭の夜」を１６歳で共演。この他、ワルシャワ交響楽団、リノ交響楽団、モンゴメリー交響楽団、フォート・コリンズ交響楽団、ノースブルック交響楽団、エヴェレット交響楽団、オーク・パーク交響楽団、アルス・ヴィヴァ交響楽団、福井交響楽団と共演。

アスペン音楽祭、シカゴのマイラ・ヘス・コンサートシリーズ、イタリアのストラディヴァリ博物館、パリのコルトー・ホール、ウィーンのミュージックヴェライン、２００３年シカゴ音楽院のガラ・コンサートなどで演奏。シカゴWFMTラジオには数回生出演をする。また、２００７年９月にはミシガン州ギルモア音楽祭の「ライジング・スター」シリーズでソロ・リサイタル、ニューヨークWQXRラジオで生放送されたジュリアード音楽院のバッカワー賞受賞コンサートに出演。同年１２月にはエマニュエル・アックス主催の「カーネギーホール・ワークショップ」に招かれ、カーネギーのワイル・リサイタルホールでマスタークラスやコンサートに出演。

２００８年、ギルモア新人賞を受賞。２００８年春のギルモア国際ピアノ音楽祭でリサイタルやコンチェルトを演奏。

Contact

Naomi.Kudo

on May 23, 2008 12:49 AM | Permalink

Please write or contact Naomi Kudo at the following:

me@naomikudo.com

naomi.kudo@yahoo.com

Thank you so much for visiting my site! Please come back to check for news, updates, and more. All questions, comments, thoughts, or inquiries are very welcome!!! I look forward to hearing from you.

With warm wishes,
Naomi

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