A Back Stage Look at our Japan Concert Rehearsal

Hours before the concert, a mix of nerves and great excitement fill the concert hall. With performers ranging from professionals, young adults and children, our levels of musicality differ as well. Nevertheless, their parts in a united voice for peace are equally strong. 

New Information on our upcoming concert in Hiroshima

Here are a few photos as our talented group prepare for this special night. 

We invited two high school choirs to join us at the concert - our first, Sotoku High School of Hiroshima's Glee Club

Our special thanks go to our music directors, without them this concert would not have been possible. Here, conductor Shinpei Ito leads the Glee Club

The choir from Asaka Reimei High School in Fukushima is known to be one of the finest in the country. 

Leo Konno leads the Koto ensemble, using a jushichi-gen, or 17 string bass koto, while the rest of the ensemble accompany him with standard 13 string instruments.

Yokohama International School's Koto Ensemble performed a piece called "Ablaze," composed by Tadao Sawaii, who wrote it for his wife Kazue, expressing his excitement and anticipation for their future.

Our orchestra is always a great symbol for our mission; many different instruments harmonizing together beautifully.

There were so many parts to this piece by the Suginami Amanuma Elementary School's Japanese Traditional Drum Ensemble. The ensemble learns to play in three styles; Mikoshi (represents the portable shrine), Yose-Taiko (welcomes the audience, and Genki-Uchi (lively and energetic chiildren). 

Conductor Reona Ito has worked with us before at our International Peace Day Concert in Philadelphia. His leadership and superior musicality has always been blessing to us! Here he directs our youth orchestra for the finale piece.

Three of our feature performers; cellist Ohad Bar-David, Japanese drummer Masahiro Uemura and Conductor Reona Ito, practice together one final time before the show. 

We have to commend our music directors for their dedication and patience working with their students for our concert! Here Tokyo International School Choir and Director Miguel Arambulo practice their songs on stage.

All our performers join together to rehearse the finale piece - it's been a long day and the concert hasn't even begun!

After all the hard work of the rehearsal, our talented young artists performed brilliantly that night for a splendid concert. This evening was more than just an opportunity to perform on a premier stage - it was a great learning experience for these students. Joining together in our finale piece, artists of all ages and backgrounds lent their voices and talent to our message for peace worldwide. We hope that each performer felt the power of this piece and can begin to understand that music, as a universal language, can act as a starting point for change.

Photo Credits: 

Young Violin Player to Take On Peace-Making

Article Contributed By Kristin Kownacky

Our Audition For Junior Ambassador 2015 is Open Now!

Confidence exuding, violinist Brenden Zak, age 16 at the time, walked out on to the vast Verizon Hall stage at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. With the bright lights blinding, anticipation almost tangible, Brenden stood before an audience of close to 1,000 people.

With the piece that won him the competition, Brenden performed as the first Junior Peace and Music Ambassador of the Harmony For Peace Foundation at its annual International Peace Day Concert in September.

Brenden playing the violin in Washington Square Park
in Philadelphia.

A few months later, Brenden sat at a coffee shop on a windy day in Center City, Philadelphia, with the same considerations on his mind as any seventeen year old; plans for the summer, college applications and balancing the high and realistic expectations for the next few years.

Yet in the time since the concert, Brenden had the chance to reflect on his role, what it had in store for him in the future and why he auditioned in the first place.

“At the beginning, it was mostly a selfish reason. It was a competition to win, an opportunity to perform at the Verizon Hall. Yet after writing my message of peace, and then actually being a part of the concert, I realized how special these ideas are. So while I started off just as a performer, I began to understand that this is a fundamental part of being a musician; constant learning and sharing,” he said.

After winning the competition, Brenden was a feature performer at the International Peace Day Concert, a grand event in Center City promoting unity, friendship and understanding among nations and cultures through music, held in observation of the United Nations’ International Day of Peace. Performing alongside cross-cultural professional artists, Brenden described a new experience, unique to his past concerts.

“Unlike other performances or concerts where it is about the music, this was more about bringing together people, seeing all different performers and styles and to share. The experience is not easy to capture in words,” he said.

To embrace diversity and celebrate unity, the concert featured special artists cellist Ohad Bar-David, erhu player Jiebing Chen, percussionist Hafez Kotain and violinist Hanna Khoury, who fused their unique cultural techniques and styles into one cohesive piece – symbolic for friendship and understanding among cultures and nations. 

Their cross-cultural performance inspired Brenden to consider his own direction and future in music. He himself incorporated Western fiddle music into his violin piece as a musical experiment.

“To understand other cultures and to develop this understanding into music – it’s what music is all about. Music is a universal language. Everybody speaks it. To be a cross-cultural performer – that would absolutely be something amazing I would like to do,” he said.

In addition to performing on grand stages or venues, Brenden wants to perform to small groups of cultural communities or children, bringing something new into their lives, yet also talking with them and learning about their own experiences. As an established professional musician, he would like to hold classes around the world, listening to and teaching music of all cultures and heritages.

This summer Brenden will be attending the Perlman Music Program in Long Island, NY, an intense seven week camp for “young string players of rare and special talent.” A trip to Iceland with his Temple Music Prep may also be in the works.  

As Harmony For Peace Foundation’s Junior Ambassador, Brenden has been tasked with using these experiences as opportunities to share his own message of peace with his fellow musicians and peers.

“[Peace is] truly understanding someone, getting to know someone’s culture, country and even what they went through growing up … what they like, dislike, what they want out of life,” he said.

Working to become a cross-cultural artist, Brenden can use his talent as a way to make a difference in the world, focusing on individual choices and perspectives.

“I think that music can destroy prejudices and help develop equal opinions of everyone. Music can definitely inspire change.”