On Saturday, February 15, 2025, Cello Meets Tea Ceremony was held at Suntory Hall’s Blue Rose.
The performance came to a successful close.
I am deeply grateful to the many guests who joined us, to the staff and everyone at the Japan Cello Society, and above all to my wonderful fellow performers, Hiroki Kadowaki and Yoshitaro Tsukuda.
I was truly fortunate to work with such wonderful colleagues, and the six months we spent preparing for the performance were both enjoyable and deeply rewarding. The three of us contributed ideas on an equal footing and took time to shape them together, and I believe that process made it possible to create the sense of focused tension that characterized the performance.
For approximately thirty minutes, from the “Oshirabe + Tuning” immediately before the performance through the end of “Bunraku,” the stage was filled with a quiet, dignified tension.
After the performance, the three of us took part in a talk about how three members of the same generation had come together and how we had developed the program. It seemed that the audience enjoyed this part as well.
At the tea service following the performance, around sixty guests joined us for usucha. In contrast to the tension of the performance itself, the atmosphere was warm and relaxed as we shared matcha while explaining the temae and various aspects of Chanoyu.
After the performance, the General Manager of Suntory Hall kindly told me that this may have been the first time that a temae and tea service had been presented at Suntory Hall in this particular form. She also pointed out an unexpected connection between the character 寿 (kotobuki) in the hanging scroll displayed on stage and Kotobukiya (寿屋), the former name of Suntory. Without our having planned it, a number of unexpected connections seemed to have emerged throughout the event.
Because of the schedule, the stage changeovers both before the performance and afterward for the tea service had to be completed within a very short time. Thanks to the remarkable skill and professionalism of the hall staff, however, everything was ready in time. It was another moment that reminded me just how many people’s support goes into making a performance possible.
This project began with a casual conversation a year earlier, and I never imagined that it would eventually take shape in this way. Despite the unprecedented nature of the project, the Japan Cello Society gave us the opportunity to develop and perform it, for which I am sincerely grateful.
I hope this collaboration will continue to develop and lead to new connections in many different places. With that hope in mind, I will continue to devote myself to my work.
Photos (except the final group photo): Takashi Fujimoto
