is a
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
conductor and
violist
; german: Bratsche
, alt=Viola shown from the front and the side
, image=Bratsche.jpg
, caption=
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, hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow
, range=
, related=
*Violin family ...
.
Biography
He has a long-established reputation as a remarkable conductor and one of the nation’s most renowned violists. In addition to his post as Music Director and Conductor of the
Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, he is also the Principal Chief Conductor of
Kyushu Symphony Orchestra in
Fukuoka, Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.
Ohyama has long been in demand as a violist and has performed throughout the United States and abroad as recitalist and chamber musician at festivals including
Casals Festival
The Casals Festival is a classical music event celebrated every year in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in honor of classical musician Pablo Casals.
Background
The festival was founded in 1956 by Pablo Casals. It was promoted by Teodoro Moscoso and Davi ...
,
Kuhumo International Festival (
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
),
Johannesen International Music Festival (
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
),
Okinawa Moon Beach Music Festival (
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
),
Brescia
Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...
and
Bergamo
Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...
Festivals (
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
),
Chamber Music Northwest Chamber Music Northwest (CMNW) is an American non-profit organization in Portland, Oregon that is dedicated to the performance and promotion of chamber music. The organization's main presentation is its annual five-week Summer Festival, that occurs ...
,
Sarasota Music Festival and
Caramor Chamber Music Festival. He has collaborated with many of the soloist around the world, including
Lynn Harrell
Lynn Harrell (January 30, 1944 – April 27, 2020) was an American classical cellist. Known for the "penetrating richness" of his sound, Harrell performed internationally as a recitalist, chamber musician, and soloist with major orchestras o ...
,
Gidon Kremer
Gidon Kremer ( lv, Gidons Krēmers; born 27 February 1947) is a Latvian classical violinist, artistic director, and founder of Kremerata Baltica.
Life and career
Gidon Kremer was born in Riga. His father was Jewish and had survived the Holoc ...
,
Radu Lupu
Radu Lupu (30 November 1945 – 17 April 2022) was a Romanian pianist. He was widely recognized as one of the greatest pianists of his time.
Born in Galați, Romania, Lupu began studying piano at the age of six. Two of his major piano teach ...
,
Lynnette Seah,
Isaac Stern
Isaac Stern (July 21, 1920 – September 22, 2001) was an American violinist.
Born in Poland, Stern came to the US when he was 14 months old. Stern performed both nationally and internationally, notably touring the Soviet Union and China, and ...
, and Alexander Souptel.
In 1974, he won the
Young Concert Artists International Auditions
Young Concert Artists is a New York City-based non-profit organization dedicated to discovering and promoting the careers of talented young classical musicians from all over the world. The competition, founded in 1961, allows artists from all over ...
which led to his New York City recital debut at
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...
. In 1979, he was named Principal Violist of the
Los Angeles Philharmonic
The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...
under
Carlo Maria Giulini, a position he held for 13 years. In 1981, he began conducting the Youth String Orchestra of the Crossroads School for Sciences and Arts. In 1983, he was appointed Music Director and Conductor of the
Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra. In 1986, Ohyama was appointed Assistant Conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Maestro
André Previn
André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...
. He held this position for four years and conducted the Philharmonic in many concerts, including subscription concerts at the
Los Angeles Music Center
The Music Center (officially named the Performing Arts Center of Los Angeles County) is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. Located in downtown Los Angeles, The Music Center is composed of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion ...
, the
Hollywood Bowl
The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018.
The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...
and the
Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute.
He has also held the positions of Principal Conductor of the
Round Top Music Festival in
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, Music Director and Conductor of the
Northwest Chamber Orchestra in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, Music Director and Conductor of the
Cayuga Chamber Orchestra
The Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, founded in 1976, is based in Ithaca, New York. Each season includes an Orchestral Series, a Chamber Music Series, and special holiday and educational programs.
History
The Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, formally designa ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, Artistic Director of the Santa
Fe Chamber Music Festival and of the
La Jolla Chamber Music Society’s
SummerFest La Jolla. He was a professor of music in the
University of California
The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...
school system for over 30 years.
In 1990, Ohyama made his European conducting debut with the Orchestra of the Opera de Lyon and in two concerts with the
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, that performs and produces primarily classic works.
The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable ...
at the Royal Festival Hall in London. Since then, he has made conducting appearances with the
San Diego Symphony
The San Diego Symphony is an American symphony orchestra, based in San Diego, California. The orchestra is resident at Copley Symphony Hall. The orchestra also serves as the orchestra for the San Diego Opera.
History
On December 6th 1910, th ...
,
Baltimore Symphony
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore SO has its principal residence at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, where it performs more than 130 concerts a year. In 2005, it bega ...
,
Singapore Symphony Orchestra
The Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is a symphony orchestra based in Singapore. Its principal concert venue is the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay. The orchestra also gives concerts at the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, and performs abou ...
, New Mexico Symphony, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Brandenburg Symphony Orchestra (Germany), Hale Symphony (England), Sapporo Symphony, Kyoto Symphony and Toho Music School Orchestra (Japan), New York Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Milwaukee Chamber Orchestra, Royal Academy Sinfonietta (England), as well as conducted the San Francisco Symphony for its Wet Ink Festival. He also took the Asia America Symphony Orchestra on a tour of Japan in 1992.
He studied at the
Toho Gakuen School of Music
is a private music school in Chōfu, Tokyo, Japan.
History
Toho Gakuen was founded in 1948 in Ichigaya (Tokyo) as the Music School for Children, and two years later moved to Sengawa (current address at Wakabacyo, Chofushi, Tokyo) and opened th ...
in Japan.
Reviews
"Heiichiro Ohyama's programming continues to be a model of sense and sensibility...he knows the secret of instilling a familiar piece with new life, and conducts it as if it's the first time anyone in the hall has really heard it."
''-
Santa Barbara News Press''
"The concert was led by Heiichiro Ohyama with characteristic vigor and grace."
''-
Santa Barbara Independent''
"Mr. Ohyama also led the seemingly underrehearsed orchestra in Rossini's "Italiana in Algeri" Overture.
''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
. Thursday, February 15, 2007''
References
Bio at the site of Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ohyama
1947 births
20th-century conductors (music)
21st-century conductors (music)
Japanese classical violists
Japanese conductors (music)
Japanese male conductors (music)
Living people
Toho Gakuen School of Music alumni
20th-century violists
21st-century violists