is a

timpanist Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally ...

percussionist A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

xylophonist The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in the ...

and

marimbist The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...

. He became a naturalized American citizen and lives in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

Career

Tatsuo Sasaki received a

Fulbright Scholarship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

Juilliard The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

while he was a senior at Tokyo University of Arts and Music and studied timpani with

Saul Goodman James Morgan Jimmy McGill, better known by his trade name, business name Saul Goodman, is a character (arts), character created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould and portrayed by Bob Odenkirk in the television franchise ''Breaking Bad (franchi ...

, the timpanist with the New York Philharmonic. He received several lessons from noted xylophonist, Yoichi Hiraoka in New York and performed recitals in New York city. In 1966, Sasaki was accepted by The American Symphony directed by

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and his appeara ...

as a percussionist. In 1967 he was invited by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and performed as the assistant timpanist and percussionist for two years. Sasaki returned to Japan in 1969 and became a member of the

Japan Philharmonic The (JPO) is a Japanese symphony orchestra based in Tokyo, with administrative offices in Suginami. History The orchestra was established on June 22, 1956, as the exclusive subsidiary orchestra under the Nippon Cultural Broadcasting. Akeo Watan ...

. He served as a faculty at Sakuyo Conservatoire as percussion instructor and gave his first solo recital in Tokyo in 1972. Later that year, Sasaki was invited to the Orquestra Sinfonica Brazileiro and relocated to Rio de Janeiro as a principal timpanist. After 18 months in the Orquestra, Peter Eros, music director of

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, the ...

, invited Sasaki to his orchestra in the US. Sasaki moved to San Diego in the fall of 1973 and served as principal timpanist for the San Diego Symphony and

San Diego Opera The San Diego Opera Association (SDO) is a professional opera company located in the city of San Diego, California. It incorporated in 1965, presenting operas under the name of the San Diego Opera.SDU (University of San Diego) and

Grossmont College Grossmont College is a public community college in El Cajon, California. Its name originated with the silent film actor and producer William J. Gross, who was enticed by Ed Fletcher to invest the purchase of land, part of which was called Grossmo ...

. Sasaki was featured as a

xylophone The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in the ...

soloist with the San Diego Symphony, the Glendale Symphony and others. He performed ''Fantasy on Japanese Wood Prints'' composed by

Alan Hovhaness Alan Hovhaness (; March 8, 1911 – June 21, 2000) was an American-Armenian composer. He was one of the most prolific 20th-century composers, with his official catalog comprising 67 numbered symphonies (surviving manuscripts indicate over 70) and ...

directed by Andre Kostelanetz; ''Marimba Concerto'' by

Robert Kurka Robert Frank Kurka (December 22, 1921 – December 12, 1957) was an American composer, who also taught and conducted his own works. Biography Kurka was born in Cicero, Illinois. He was mostly self-taught as a musician. He studied for short period ...

,; ''Concertino for marimba'' by

Paul Creston Paul Creston (born Giuseppe Guttoveggio; October 10, 1906 – August 24, 1985) was an Italian American composer of classical music. Biography Born in New York City to Sicilian immigrants, Creston was self-taught as a composer. His work ten ...

, ''Suite No.2'' by

J.S.Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suite ...

, and other pieces.
After retirement from the orchestra, Sasaki concentrated his work on the

marimba The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...

through his teachings, masterclasses, and conducting marimba ensembles in Tokyo and Nagoya.
In 2009 Sasaki formed "The Marimba Duo" with noted marimbist/music arranger/music publisher Michiko Noguchi in Tokyo. The Marimba Duo released several CDs and performed concerts.

Recorded CDs

* ”Xylophone Artistry” (Solo) Musical Heritage Society, US * 2009 ”Riverdance” (The Marimba Duo) Kleos, US * 2011 ”Tempest” (The Marimba Duo) Kleos, US * 2017 “Back to Bach” (The Marimba Duo + Marimba Ensemble) Kojima Recording, Japan

References

News paper article

* O Globo/Projeto Aquarius 1972.12.18 * The San Diego Union/Classic Xylophonist Scores B-7 1975.2.4 * Evening Tribune,San Diego/the Sounds of Summer 1975.8.29 * The San Diego Union/Food and Homemking C-1 Classical Summer Picnic Dinner Has Symphony Music For Dessert 1976.8.12 * Los Angeles Times /Musical Reviews : Glendale Grab Bag at Pavilion 1977.1.17 Part 4-13 page

External links

Marimbist,Xylophonist,Conductor : Tatsuo Sasaki on YouTubeThe Marimba Duo (Tatsuo Sasaki and Michiko Noguchi) on YouTubeYuYu interview Tatsuo and Shigeko Sasaki
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sasaki, Tatsuo Japanese percussionists Marimbists Xylophonists Timpanists Classical percussionists 1944 births Living people American percussionists American classical musicians of Japanese descent Musicians from Okayama Prefecture Japanese emigrants to the United States