Top Story: 10.September
Young Artist has a Story to Tell -
Interview with Shunsuke Sato
This week I have pleasure to introduce you Mr Sato (21), one of the most promising young violinists in Japan. He
has got recognition from audiences, orchestras, and music critics.
Since his debut as a soloist in Philadelphia Orchestra, he has appeared in various events across the globe. He has played as a solo for example, in
famous Carnegie Weill Hall, New York City.
Recently he was awarded with prestigious Idemitsu Music Award. He plays Stradivarius of 1716 which was provided by Nippon Music Foundation.
Mr. Sato lives in Paris and studies violin under his teacher Gerard Poule. This week he flew to USA, to Philadelphia for two concerts. Philadelphia has a special meaning for Mr. Sato since he grew up his early years there. "It's nice to come home from time to time", he says.
When achieving so much in early age, it would be easy to imagine that person becomes obnoxious or overbearing. But Mr. Sato is a humble young man and has a lot to give for his audience. He is meticulous about his answers and throws off a gentle humor here and there. Around him there is an aura of a exceptional artist who simply loves his work.
He speaks three languages fluently, English, Japanese, and French, and has a fundamental knowledge of German. In his free time he likes to study languages and especially the language history. He also loves going outdoors and having a walk in the forest.
You can listen MP3 clips of his live recordings at his official web site: http://www.shunsukesato.com. Unfortunately I'm not in position to convey a personal messages to Mr.Sato. Please contact him through his official web site.
Shunsuke:
I have little dramatic awakenings or defining moments to speak of regarding my musical path. My mother was a pianist, which created an environment where I was naturally and regularly exposed to music from a very early age. To be led onto a musical path was perhaps also natural, to such an extent that I frankly have given it little thought - maybe I never needed to.
You studied under Shiro Sumi from very young, is it correct? How did you met him and what kind of teacher he was?
I was surely and sadly too young - around 3 or 4 - to ever recall clearly my lessons with Mr. Shiro Sumi or to fully appreciate them. I am certain their importance echoes in my playing even today. But even as a small child he impressed himself on me as an exceptionally gentle and patient man, soft-spoken and much too humble. After leaving Japan for the States at the age of 4, my mother continually sent recordings of concerts to keep him updated on my progress. He passed on 3 years back, and I remember him fondly and warmly as ever.
Did your parents and family support your playing?
In my aspirations my parents always ensured that I had the best there was. My mother - to this day the toughest and most honest critic I know - has my second and very discerning pair of ears; my father always has a piece of encouragement ready. I suppose a spoiled brat as myself is the only reasonable consequence of such a pair.
How did your career take you to New York?
-Shunsuke Sato
It was not exactly my career which took me to New York - but rather it was a teacher, himself a graduate of the Juilliard School in New York, who ultimately introduced me to Ms. Dorothy DeLay, the late renowned pedagogue. With this a whole knew chapter began. There I signed with my first management, YCA, which opened further doors still. It also need not be stressed that Ms. DeLay's teaching had profound effects on my thinking and playing.
Tell me a bit of your studies in L'Ecole Normale de Musique and about the person called Gerard Poulet. How is it going? Has there been some obstacles and if there was, how have you been overcoming them?
Mr. Gerard Poulet is one of the great French violinists of firmly established European renown. The experience of being in the presence of a great artist and man as him is not to be explained away in a word or two. He has given me enormous confidence and inspiration in my playing, and the vitality and curiosity with which he approaches life and music are highly contagious.
I live in Paris alone, and this itself I think was the most challenging obstacle. Not in the sense of taking care of daily chores and such (though these are indeed neck-paining nuisances), but rather of utilizing the solitude for introspection, and discovering who I am, personally and musically.
You gave a debut recital in New York in 2000. Tell me your feelings and atmospheres of that remarkable day of your career. How do you conquer your tension before performance?
I remember curiously very little of what happens onstage. Each performance starts anew from zero, and ends leaving little other than fleeting impressionistic snapshots and a sweaty dress shirt. It may seem much like a dream or trance, and it is in many regards. Pre-concert nervousness is of course quite natural, and I think also healthy and useful. I may compare this "tension" - I prefer the word "excitement" - to a rocket's fuel: it needs to burn and accumulate energy to take off into space. Unforeseen happenings, like snapping a string in mid-performance which unnerve the audience, can in fact be a real thrill for the performer! So there is in effect no real "best" or "worst" concert - each is a sort of world in itself. Oddly enough I do remember sour notes rather well...
Tell me a bit of your typical day. When do you get up, and how do you spend your day?
A good day kicks off with an equally good cup of coffee! Practice usually follows, while my mind is still freshly awake. Lunch falls around 1 PM, unless an unusually inspired (or unusually bad) practice session drags it on. A siesta to refresh and to recharge comes after (aren't the Spanish just brilliant), and then an afternoon attempt at the fiddle again. The evenings I keep free for relaxation. There are the rainy and blue days when the violin transforms into a large brick - at such times I simply leave it aside, and wait till for the sun.
Tell me a bit of your violin, the Great Stradivarius of 1716.
I can truly say this 1716 Stradivarius is one of the best instruments I have ever played on. A great instrument as this does in fact teach the player enormously through its inexhaustible range of color - it reveals to you a whole new world of sounds. Its tone is focused and rich, its condition impeccable, it's quite impossible to want more. It simply is a gorgeous violin.
Your debut recording under Nami Records was released January 2005. Congratulations, by the way for Idemitsu Music Award.
Thank you! As it was my first recording inexperience gave me some initial uneasiness to overcome, but with the backing of an excellent engineering staff, the sessions went splendidly. It was truly rewarding to hear of the recording's fortunate success in the Japanese market. Keep your heads up too for my second recording, this time of short pieces, with piano - it'll be recorded this coming November.
In your web site you have MP3 clips of your live performances. One includes your play in Mallorca, with pianist Yuko Mizutani. Please tell me about this visit in Spain.
Yuko and I met about 4 or 5 years ago at a festival in Mallorca island (where, incidentally, also was my first encounter with my teacher Gerard Poulet), and became quite good friends thereafter. We kept in touch, and in 2004 she was kind enough to invite me to some local festivals about the island.
I found the Spanish public to be keen and sympathetic, and was very happy when she wrote me just few weeks back about some concert possibilities next year, again in Mallorca. Spain seems to be the new hotspot for music and culture - and with its year-round, lovely weather and good food, it isn't at all a bad place to be.
What is your favorite song for violin? Which piece do you enjoy most to play as a solo?
The musician's heart is infamously fickle, and mine's no exception. My favorite work is most often the work I happen to be studying at that particular moment. For example it now Edward Grieg's 2nd Sonata. This sort of "infatuation" gives birth to a great drive to learn, consume, and finally love the work. Besides, there's so much beautiful music out there - they're waiting to grab your heart given the slightest occasion!
What do you do when you are not playing?
Being in France lets me put to use of one of my most favorite hobbies: language. The study of histories of languages interests me in particular - English for that matter is one incredibly intriguing language, having undergone dramatic changes and influences from innumerable sources throughout its history. Computer programming used to be a passion, in the bygone days of (for those who may know) BASIC and C++ languages. The skill did come in very handy when I set about making my own homepage. Being outdoors and going for walks brings me great peace of mind too.
What is your dream in 5 years. What do you want to do after five years? Where do you want to be in world?
I would very much like to remain in France for at least a few more years to come, absorbing all I can during the while. And who knows - I may end up settling there given the chance! Musically speaking, my hopes are simply to find daily joy and inspiration, be it 5 or 10 or 50 years to come.
What would be your advice for beginner violinist?
Listening to all kinds of music is important. A musician should always strive to stretch his curiosity beyond his particular instrument and listen to as many artists and interpretations as possible. This will broaden his horizons as well as sharpen his aural sensitivity.
Imagination is also indispensable. Creating stories to a piece of music can help develop this faculty. The introduction is, perhaps, a green pasture on a rainy day; in these measures, soldiers march to battle; in this section, a boat is out at sea on gentle, rolling waves; on this note, sigh of relief, of despair. Always have a story to tell, a message to convey, something to say.
But above all, love has the last word. Loving is the ultimate prerequisite to any worthwhile achievement. Love music, love your music - and the rest will come.
Visit Official Site of Shunsuke Sato: http://www.shunsukesato.com
Comments
Music | See also: Takagi Masakatsu, Sato Shunsuke, Koshi Miharu, Keiko Matsui, Yoshinori Sunahara
Tes oreilles ont du bourdonner.... je rentre de Philadelphie où nous avions une réunion de professeurs de Central. J'ai appris que tu résidais à Paris. Je suis actuellement à Biarritz par conséquent si par hasard tu passe par ici je me ferai un plaisir de t'inviter et de te faire visiter le pays basque. Bien amicalement.
Chantal Vagassky