igmore HallWtosnr
tuer
I’ disciple HIRAlsasaCyradneLege
tional techniqupceexgnsi
esusician possLS“A complete m e. He will be my successor.”
PABLO CASA
stta
l
ca
siu
mdnat 7.30 pma
9002enuJ
Monday 836 Wigmore Street London W1U 2BP
Director: John Gilhooly
The Wigmore Hall Trust
Registered Charity No. 1024838
www.wigmore-hall.org.uk

Takeichiro Hirai (b.1937) is regarded as one of the mostdistinguished cellists of his generation. His appearance in London
after an absence of several years, comes as part of a European tour
which includes performances in Denmark, Spain, Romania,Bulgaria and France with his son Motoki Hirai.
Takeichiro Hirai is one of the last survivors who inherited the legacyof great masters from the late 19th and early 20th century, having
associated with Villa-Lobos, Shostakovich, Khachaturian, Britten,Kreisler, Cortot and Segovia. He has also collaborated with artists
such as Menuhin, Stern, Horszowski and Serkin. Since hissensational debut in 1961 playing 4 concertos (Dvorak, Schumann,Lalo and Boccherini) under Pablo Casals conducting, Hirai has
been performing regularly across the globe, appearing as a soloist
with the world’s leading orchestras and as a recitalist in venues
such as Wigmore Hall (London), Salle Gaveau (Paris), Musikverein(Vienna), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), and Carnegie Hall (NY).
Hirai has been honoured with many prestigious awards including thefirst prize at the Japan Music Competition (1954), the Prix
Extraordinaire at the 1st Pablo Casals International Competition inParis (1957) and the Composer's Union Prize at the Tchaikovsky
International Competition (1962).
Takeichiro Hirai studied the piano and composition with his father, therenowned composer Kozaburo Hirai, before starting his cello studies
under Hideo Saito at the Toho Conservatory of Music in Tokyo. In 1957,Hirai, at the recommendation of Gregor Piatigorsky, went to Puerto Ricoto study with Pablo Casals for five years. In 1961 at a press conferencein New York, Casals noted: ‘I have taken him with me throughout all ofEurope, and I have taught him all that I know. He will be my successor!’
In 1979, he played three concertos (Haydn, Saint-Saens and Dvorak) with the Tokyo PhilharmonicOrchestra in a single concert as both cellist and conductor to huge critical acclaim. In 1988 Hirai wasinvited by Nancy Reagan as special guest artist at the First World Cello Congress held in Washington, D.C.
where he was a soloist as well as member of the cello quintet which involved Tortelier and Rostropovich.
Besides his prolific activities as a cellist, Takeichiro Hirai is an avid composer of symphonic works,
chamber music, choral music and lieder. He has been the chairman of the Association of Composersand Authors in Japan since 2003. He has made over 30 critically acclaimed recordings with labels
including Sony, RCA and EMI.

THE STRAD (LONDON)LE FIGARO (PARIS)

Widely acclaimed as one of the most imaginative pianists of
his generation, Motoki Hirai appears regularly in the music
capitals of Far East, America and Europe as a soloist andrecitalist. In the UK he has performed in St. George’s, Bristol,and London venues including the Wigmore Hall and theSouth Bank Centre. Highlights of the 2009/10 season andbeyond include piano concertos with Czech Virtuosi inPrague and Bruno, as well as concert tours across Europeand Japan.
Motoki is equally at home with chamber music and lieder.
As a composer, Motoki has been commissioned to write
new works which have premièred in prestigious venues
such as the Tokyo Opera City, NHK Hall, Wigmore Halland the Chelsea Flower Show 2008. His music has also
been used in films such as ‘Voice’ (2004) and ‘The
Emperor’s Tram Girls’ (2005). As part of 2005 EU-Japan Yearof People-to-People Exchanges, Motoki gave a highly
successful solo recital on Europe Day at St. John’s, Smith
Square in London, premièring of his own works alongsidestandard repertoire, which was repeated in Tokyo, supported by
the European Union.
Born into a highly gifted musical family, Motoki studied pianoand composition with his grandfather, the eminent composer
Kozaburo Hirai, and violin with his grandmother. Since his first
professional appearance at the age of 13 playing his own piano
compositions to great critical acclaim, he has been highly active in both performance and composition.
After reading philosophy and aesthetics at Keio University in Tokyo, Motoki came to London in 1996
to study at the Royal Academy of Music.
Over the years, Motoki Hirai has given freely of his time to perform for the promotion of world peaceand for people in need worldwide in association with international organizations such as the British
Red Cross, the Motor Neurone Disease Association and UNESCO. As an artistic emissary of theJapanese government, Motoki has visited countries such as Sri Lanka, Portugal, Malaysia andDenmark since 1994. He has broadcast internationally on radio and television (Classic FM, BBC andITV) and has made a number of recordings on CD. His most recent release is the new re-mastering ofthe works for solo piano ‘MOTOKI HIRAI Piano Works’ (2006/2009) supported by Steinway & Sons,
which received much critical acclaim.

THE GUARDIANSUNDAY TIMESCAIX D’HERVELOISBEETHOVENSCHUMANN

Takeichiro HIRAIBACHGRANADOSCASALS
Kozaburo HIRAI(arr. T. Hirai)
DAVIDOV

Suite No.2 in D minor
Cello Sonata No.5 Op.102/2
Fantasy Pieces Op.73

Fantasy for Cello Solo ‘Hokusai’ UK Premiére
Arioso from Cantata BWV156
Andaluza from 12 Spanish Dances Op.37/5
Song of the Birds (Catalan Folk Song)
Narayama from ‘Lieder’ EU Premiére
At the Fountain Op.20/2

With support from:Special thanks to: Embassy of Japan, Japan Society, Japanese Chamber of Commerce & Industry,
Nippon Club, Eikoku News Digest, Claudio Records, Steinway & Sons.
Online:Tickets: £22, £18, £14, £10
How to Book
In person: 7 days a week; 10am – 8.30pm. Days without an evening
concert 10am – 5pm.
No advance booking in the half hour prior to a concert.
Telephone: 020 7935 2141
7 days a week; 10am – 7pm. Days without an evening concert
10am – 5pm.
There is a £1.50 administration fee for all telephone bookings,
which includes the return of your tickets by first class post.

www.wigmore-hall.org.uk
7 days a week; 24 hours a day.
There is a 50p administration fee foronline bookings, which includes thereturn of your tickets by first class post.

Facilities for Disabled People:
Please contact
House Management on
020 7258 8210 for full details.

Concert Management: Lisa Peacock T: 020 7602 1416 E: lisapeacok@aol.com • European Tour Co-ordination: mu:arts (www.muarts.org.uk)
Design and Print: DPWH Design T: 07949 238 416