Folk Fusions – Japan Meets Eastern Europe by Takemitsu, Kanai, Liszt, Dvořák, Alkaen (2024/2024), Musiikinjohto Nodoka Okisawa, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff, United Kingdom

In a programme inspired by folk music, we’re delighted to welcome Japanese conductor Nodoka Okisawa to the podium. Jazz and blues style writing, meets funeral music and an unusually melancholic yet cheerful waltz in fellow Japanese musician, Toru Takemitsu’s 3 Film Scores. Developing her own unique compositional voice, Kikuko Kanai was one of the first Japanese women to compose Western classical music, whilst retaining her Okinawan musical heritage. Devoted to transcribing folksongs, she used these as the basis for her own works, including her Okinawa Fantasy Suite. Equally renowned for the use of his native folk music within his works, Franz Liszt was not only an influential composer, but the consummate concert pianist, so it’s no wonder his piano concertos are amongst his most performed works today. With exquisite romanticism, transformative melodies and fiery cadenzas, his second concerto is brought to life by award winning Jordanian-Palestinian pianist Iyad Sughayer. Native Czech grittiness, fanciful programmatic titling and his love of Karel Erben’s folk ballads shine in Dvořák’s The Wood Dove, with its vivid and evocative orchestrations leaning into transformative melodies - light meets shade, grief meets love, chorales meet dances – simply put, symphonic story telling at its best.