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Masato Suzuki (Conductor, Piano, Harpsichord, Organ, Composer) |
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Born: April 8, 1981 - Den Haag, the Netherlands |
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The Dutch-born Japanese conductor, composer, pianist, harpsichordist and organist, Masato Suzuki, received following higher education in Japan and The Netherlands: Bachelor Degree in Composition at Tokyo National University for Fine Arts and Music; Master Degree in Early Music at Tokyo National University for Fine Arts and Music; Organ at Royal Conservatory in The Hague; Improvisation at Royal Conservatory in The Hague (Cum laude). He studied composition with Masayuki Nagatomi, Atsutada Otaka and Hiroshi Aoshima, Conducting with Yukio Kitahara, Organ with Masaaki Suzuki (his father), Jos van der Kooij, Makiko Hayashima, Keiko Utsumi, Harpsichord with Bob van Asperen, Piano/Fortepiano/Chamber Music with Michio Kobayashi, Korad Richter, Akira Miyoshi, Toru Kimura, Jakob Stämpfli, Tomoko Kato, Stanley Hoogland, Satoru Sunahara, Roger Vignoles.
Masato Suzuki lives in Voorburg, The Netherlands and is performing world wide from Tokyo till Mexico City. He is the music director and the co-founder of Ensemble Genesis. With its concert master, Yukie Yamaguchi, and brilliant players such as Andreas Böhlen or Takashi Kaketa, the ensemble offers a wide cross-genre programme from early music through contemporary music with original instruments. After their successful opening series, “Four Seasons”, they were featured by NHK, the national television programme in Japan in a unique programme of Biber, Paul Hindemith, Feldmann or Niigaki, the composer in residence of the ensemble. Their recent performance, “Eurydice’s grief” (2011, co-production with Yokohama City) was highly acclaimed for its complex creation with music, dance, image, light and electronics sound.
In 2008, Masato Suzuki founded German-Japanese Lied Forum together with Dominik Wörner (bass-baritone) and Goro Tamura (Art director). They created an entirely new “Lieder Abend” with Johannes Brahms’ song cycle Die Schöne Magelone in Tokyo, where the Märchen story was narrated by an actor and song texts were projected onto the linen on the stage with the 15 new oil paintings so that non-German listeners could perfectly follow the story without being disturbed by digital supertitles. After the success of their second project Winterreise, his wish to combine visual elements with music became more and more stronger and he exercised the same idea in the opera L’incoronazione di Poppea at New National Theater in Japan, his first opera performance as regisseur. Goro Tamura and he were co-regisseur for Wagner opera projects at Spring Festival in Tokyo in 2011 and 2012.
As a regular player and soloist of Bach Collegium Japan under the direction of Masaaki Suzuki, Masato Suzuki participates in concerts, tours and recordings of the whole cantatas by J.S. Bach (BIS) since 2002. He also reconstructed lost movements of Cantata BWV 37 or BWV 190, which were also recorded in the series.
Masato Suzuki is the principal organist of Ensemble Vox Luminis since 2009, who won the Grammphone Award of the year 2012 with its recording of Heinrich Schütz' Musicalische Exequien (Ricercar). Since 2013, he is the principal conductor of Yokohama Sinfonietta.
Masato Suzuki is performing regularly in such festivals as Musikfest Bremen, Edinburgh Festival, Utrecht Oude Muziek, MA Festival Bruges etc, also as chamber music player in such ensemble as Sette Voci, Ensemble Vin Santo or Maro World. He has no barrier in his repertoire which extends to playing on historical Kabuki-Theatre (Twelfth Night, Yukio Ninagawa project, 2006), performing The Art of Fugue (BWV 1080) in a Live House (2009), conducting Gluck’s Orfeo and Euridice translated into historical Japanese by Ogai Mori (2012) or collaboration with Saburo Teshigawara and Rihoko Sato (2013). In August 2013, he gave a recital in MA Festival in Bruges, which was acclaimed as “enough to call the festival succesful”.
As a composer, he started his career with a unique recital of his own pieces mixed with J.S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations (BWV 988) performed by him. His Apokalypsis II was premièred by Sette Voci conducted by Peter Kooy. His De Profundis Clamavi for choir a cappella is annually performed by Bach Collegium Japan as a memorial to the terrible Tohoku earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011, at Chofu (2012) and at The Saint Thomas Church in New York (2013).
He is the organist at Tokyo Oncho Church and Japanese Reformed Church in The Netherlands. He also gives regular master classes for organists.. |
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Compositions |
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Safran for choir and piano (text by Michizo Tachihara), commissioned by Chor Frosch
YOKOHAMA for organ and its combination mechanism, commissioned by Yokohama Minato Mirai Hall
Apokalypsis I for soprano, two violins, violoncello, percussion and piano, for his bachelor recital
Apokalypsis II for eight voices, commissioned by Peter Kooy and Sette Voci
Apokalypsis III for tenor, recorder, violin and organ, for his recital at St. Bavo Church in Haarlem
Apokalypsis IV for positive organ solo, for his recital “B→C” at Tokyo Opera City Recital Hall
Apokalypsis V for four instruments, commissioned by Musiker Witz
De Profundis Clamavi on Psalm 130 for choir a cappella, commissioned by Tokyo Musik Kreis
Three fugues on Genevan Psalms, commissioned by Shinko Church
An Anna Blume for tenor and violin on the text of Kurt Schwitters, for his recital “Suzuki Masato exhibition” |
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"Blinding lucidity” - Herald Scotland
“Ultra-crisp articulation” - The Scotsman |
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Sources:
Masato Suzuki Website
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (August 2014) |
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Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works |
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Conductor |
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Works |
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Peter Kooy |
Organ |
BWV 225-230, BWV Anh 159 |
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Lionel Meunier |
Organ |
Member of Vox Luminis:
Motets of Bach Family, including:
Johann Christoph Bach: Motet Der Gerechte, ob er gleich zu zeitlich stirb
J.S. Bach: Motet Ich lasse dich nicht, BWV Anh 159
Johann Christoph Bach: Motet Merk auf, mein Herz und sieh dorthin, BWV Anh 163 |
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Masaaki Suzuki |
Harpsichord, Organ |
Member of Bach Collegium Japan:
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 19:
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 21:
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 27: BWV 5, BWV 80, BWV 115
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 32: BWV 111, BWV 123, BWV 124, BWV 125|
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 33: BWV 41, BWV 92, BWV 130
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 34: BWV 1, BWV 126, BWV 127
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 36: BWV 42, BWV 103, BWV 108, BWV 6
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 39: BWV 28, BWV 68, BWV 85, BWV 175, BWV 183
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 40: BWV 79, BWV 137, BWV 164, BWV 168
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 41: BWV 56, BWV 82 (Soprano version), BWV 84, BWV 158
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 42: BWV 13, BWV 16, BWV 32, BWV 72
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 43: BWV 110, BWV 57, BWV 151
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 44: BWV 43, BWV 88, BWV 146
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 45: BWV 39, BWV 129, BWV 187, BWV 1045
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 46: BWV 102, BWV 45, BWV 17, BWV 19
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 47: BWV 36, BWV 47, BWV 27
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 49: BWV 188, BWV 156, BWV 159, BWV 171
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 50 (2011): BWV 49, BWV 145, BWV 149, BWV 174
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 51: BWV 195, BWV 192, BWV 157, BWV 120a
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 52: BWV 29, BWV 112, BWV 140
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 53: BWV 9, BWV 97, BWV 177
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 54: BWV 14, BWV 100, BWV 197, BWV 197a
Sacred Cantatas Vol. 55: BWV 30, BWV 69, BWV 191
Secular Cantatas Vol. 2: BWV 208, BWV 134a
Secular Cantatas Vol. 3: BWV 173a, BWV 202, BWV 36c, BWV 524
Secular Cantatas Vol. 4: BWV 205, BWV 207
Secular Cantatas Vol. 5: BWV 213, BWV 214
Secular Cantatas Vol. 6: BWV 198, BWV 53
Secular Cantatas Vol. 7: BWV 212, BWV 209, BWV 203
Secular Cantatas Vol. 8 (2016): BWV 206, BWV 215
Secular Cantatas Vol. 9 (2016): BWV 201, BWV 207a
Secular Cantatas Vol. 10 (2017): BWV 30a, BWV 204
CV-1 (2011, Video): BWV 29 [1st recording], BWV 120 [2nd recording], BWV 30 [1st recording]
BWV 232
Lutheran Masses Vol. 1 (2013/2014): BWV 235, BWV 236, BWV 240, BWV 241, F. Durante-J.S. Bach: BWV Anh 26, BWV 242, BWV 238, BWV 237
Lutheran Masses Vol. 2 (2014/2015): BWV 234, BWV 233, M.G. Peranda: Missa in A minor
[V-13] (2019): BWV 244 [2nd recording]
[V-14] (2020): BWV 245 [4th recording] |
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Recordings of Bach’s Instrumental Works |
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Conductor |
As |
Works |
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Masaaki Suzuki |
Harpsichord |
[O-4] (2013): Concerto for 2 harpsichords, strings & continuo No. 3 BWV 1062; Concerto for 2 harpsichords, strings & continuo No. 2 BWV 1061; Orchestral Suite No. 1 BWV 1066, arranged for 2 harpsicords by Masato Suzuki; Concerto for 2 harpsichords, strings & continuo No. 1 BWV 1060
[O-5] (2018): Concerto for harpsichord, strings & continuo No. 1 BWV 1052; Concerto for harpsichord, strings & continuo No. 5 BWV 1056; Concerto for harpsichord, oboe, strings & continuo No. 8 BWV 1059R, reconstructed by Masato Suzuki; Concerto for harpsichord, strings & continuo No. 2 BWV 1053
[O-6] (2019): Concerto for harpsichord, 2 recorders, strings & continuo No. 6 BWV 1057; Concerto for harpsichord, strings & continuo No. 4 BWV 1055; Concerto for harpsichord, strings & continuo No. 7 BWV 1058; Concerto for harpsichord, strings & continuo No. 3 BWV 1054 |
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Links to other Sites |
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Masato Suzuki (Official Website) [Eng/Jap/Ger/Dut/Spa] |
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