Yuki Negishi / Pianist / London, UK

The "Listen to Musicians" section is a section where professionals who usually play music on the stage go down the stage and speak in words.We would like to interview a guest, Yuki Negishi, who is active as a pianist in London, England. I would like to talk about the theme of "studying abroad in music."
(Interview: March 2009)


Yuki Negishi
Born in Tokyo in 1977.Lives in New York from 5 to 12 and a half years old due to his father's transfer. Enrolled as an honorary scholarship student at the Juilliard School Pre-College since the age of 10.After graduating from Toho Gakuen College of Music after graduating from Toho Girls' High School Music Department, he obtained the Dutch National Performer Qualification from the Amsterdam Conservatory, and graduated from the Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Performance and the master's program at the Royal College of Music. , Completed the artist diploma.He has received numerous awards, including the 7nd prize in the 2th Junes Musical International Music Competition.He has studied under Mikako Abe, Jan Maris Housing, Ruth Nai, Etsuko Tazaki, the late Takahiro Sonoda, the late Ms. Irina Zaritskaya, Dominique Merle, Murray Perahia and others.Performs 2008-2010 concerts a year in Europe and the United States. Released the first CD in XNUMX, and released a DVD in a dialogue and performance format with BBC presenter Andrew Green. In XNUMX, he will serve as a judge at the XNUMXst Sussex International Piano Competition (UK) with world-famous pianist Artur Pizarro and La Tarche, chief of the piano department of the Royal College of Music.Blüthner Resident Lecturer and Blüthner Artist.Lives in London.


Negishi I lived in NY from 5 to 12 years old because of my father's work, and when I was 5 years old, I started learning the piano from Japanese sensei. From the age of 10, I attended the Juilliard School Pre-College once a week as an honorary scholarship student for two years. I returned to Japan at the age of 1 and a half and graduated from Toho Gakuen High School and the same university.Upon graduation, I entered the Amsterdam Conservatory in the Netherlands and was enrolled for three years.After that, he moved to London, where he earned a master's degree and an artist diploma from the Royal College of Music.
 
Yuki Negishi's CD for sale in the UK
Negishi Of course, at the same time, there were people such as Midori Goto and Sarah Chang who are currently active on the front lines, so there were many such stimuli in Juilliard, but before that, the influence of my parents was great. Hey.I'm not a professional, but my parents loved music, and the environment was always playing music, and my mother sang songs.From that point of view, I also had a good sense of pitch and was playing the piano. When I was in NY, I had music around me.My dad took me to concerts at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall, and my family of four went out to children's concerts and evening concerts.So, in a sense, you're lucky, because you've had a lot of opportunities to come into contact with good music since you were little.I was able to listen to the performances of top musicians from overseas.And it was London where the top performers I longed for at the time lived.So, although vaguely, my dream since I was a kid was to live in London.

There must have been a Negishi rim.But I'm happy and it's fun every day.

Negishi Well, we have no connection to jazz. There is a famous jazz bar called Blue Note in NY, but since I was a kid, I didn't go to listen because it was late at night.So I didn't know the music of jazz.When I think about it now, the local school I attended on weekdays had a lot of music, so I think it had a big influence.There were musicals and presentations in the class, so I didn't feel like studying like a Japanese music class. Fortunately, I feel that the feeling that "music is fun" was connected after that.

Negishi After all, America is a country of musicals and movies, so in that sense, that music was closer than jazz.

Negishi: In the summer of my third year at university, I attended a summer class, which was a Dutch music festival.The reason I went there was that various famous professors from all over the world were gathering.Since I was thinking of studying abroad, I had many choices about which sensei to learn, so I chose that.It was sensei in the Netherlands that hit it off.I didn't decide at all, and there were other famous sensei, but that sensei was the one that suits me at that time.And he said, "Well, please come to Holland from the next year."After that, I prepared for study abroad for about a year and traveled.
 
Recital in Italy

Negishi Yes.When deciding, I didn't have to worry so much and decided quickly.The youth at that time, or the momentum (laughs).Also, I can speak English in the Netherlands.There is also Dutch, but it's very difficult, and Dutch people speak English, so for me it was attractive just to say "a country that can speak English".Even though I was studying other languages, I still didn't feel like it (laughs).

Negishi: It's Dutch, but he speaks English because he looks Japanese.Dutch people are flexible in that respect.

Negishi sensei, isn't it?Basically, music and the Netherlands weren't connected.I knew that the orchestra was wonderful, but I wasn't so familiar with it ...
 
With pianist Artur Pizarro

Negishi: There are no romantic composers in the Netherlands.I've written modern ones, but in a sense, the piano wasn't particularly strong.However, students from all over the world such as Germany, Scandinavia, Indonesia and Mexico gathered, and there was such an international atmosphere rather than the color of the school.There was a sensei called Bron sensei who often comes to Japan, so international students also came from Japan.There was also jazz, so it was a free atmosphere.Piano and violin are not strong in academics and practice, but it seems that they consisted of each sensei class.

Negishi It's a wonderful place.The Concertgebouw, an orchestra and a hall, is wonderful.It was right in my eyes and nose, so I went out after practice.It's also a calm and comfortable country to live in.

Negishi: Well, I can speak English, people are kind and safe, and the city is nice and easy to live in.It's not a big city like London.Perhaps from my experience, I also have the image of a place to step up to the next step.

Negishi London is a short distance from Amsterdam, and I was still in my early twenties when I was studying abroad in Amsterdam, so I wanted to study a little more.I also participated in the summer class every year, but in the third year of the summer class, there was a Russian sensei who played Chopin very nicely, and that sensei was taught in London. I knew.At that time, of course, sensei was important, but I was also thinking about where to live, so when I met that sensei, I said, "Oh, London!"I jumped at this with the feeling that I had no choice but to go.However, the year I took the Royal College of Music, that sensei died of heart failure.If this was my first study abroad experience, I might have been upset and returned to Japan.However, in my case, I wanted to live in London, and I had a school, so I decided to move.So, rather than going to sensei to learn, I went to London for the purpose of going to school.

With chamber music companions
Negishi That's right.The university chief gathered the deceased sensei students, discussed them, and sorted them out, but since I was a freshman, I was able to get a new sensei instead, who was an Australian. However, he was an experienced person who had been taught in England for many years.I was breathtaking and stayed with that sensei all the time while I was in school.

Negishi: It depends on what you want, but in my case, I wanted to master the piano or study, so school is important, but individual lessons with sensei are the most important, so it's important. is not it.

Negishi That's right.In my case, sensei, which doesn't fit, loses interest from the beginning (laughs).This sensei suits you when deciding where to study abroad!If you don't think strongly, I think you couldn't decide.

Negishi Yes.Nowadays, you can go anywhere, especially in Japan, there are too many choices, and the decision is probably sensei in the case of music.If it is research, it depends on the research content and the professor.

Negishi I graduated three years ago and have been staying there, but in the case of the piano, I can't enter the orchestra, so teaching the piano is the basis of my life.I have 3 students now, but that's the limit.I want to play, so I feel like I'm creating opportunities for playing while spending time practicing and traveling.

Negishi Half of them are Japanese adults.There are many Japanese companies in London.This is also related, but I met a person with a wide network, and through that person I was able to meet many Japanese students.The other half are local children, Germans and Dutch.It feels like a symbol of an international city.
 
Britain's oldest and largest barn

Negishi: Well, I'm doing it in a friendly manner.But I'm doing it diligently and not going deep.I think my main business is playing.

Negishi: This was another encounter, but when I was a student, I just wanted to have a chance to play, so I was playing at a lunchtime concert at a church in London.At that time, I met a German piano maker in the UK branch.As soon as I graduated, I started to take care of students, concerts, and CD releases.It feels like a half agent.Through that, I have the opportunity to have a concert.

Negishi It's a connection to connect from one to the next, isn't it?I think life is interesting.The great thing about London is that it has a lot of information from agents because it is home to top active musicians.There are many orchestras and halls, and there are many opportunities.In addition to the Chopin Competition and big competitions, there are also many small auditions.If you connect through a piano agent, you will connect more widely.

Negishi That's true.It's no longer the time when talent and career are all that is needed.People who value encounters with people and cannot do their best to be courteous will be disliked even if they are good at playing.Also, Japan attaches great importance to titles and careers, but in other countries it may not be relevant.Of course, international competitions are great, but nowadays there are a lot of them all over the world, and there are probably a lot of people who are number one.The classical music industry is saturated, isn't it?That's why the Internet is well developed, but even the top people are writing blogs, and it's becoming a matter of how to disseminate information.So, even if you pretend that "I have such a background! I have a talent!", It doesn't do anything.Even if you look at the English people around you, there are many people who have many opportunities to perform because they are good at disseminating information.
 
Taro Hakase at Vn's London performance

Negishi: The Japanese are the top in terms of reliability.It's the same with the sense of money, and even if you ask for something, the certainty that you will definitely get it done will lead to trust.It is often said.The disadvantage is that you may tend to be passive.Also, in my case, fortunately I haven't had a hard time learning a language, but I think that learning a language is really important.No matter how much you win the competition, you can't actually do it unless you actively contact various places, so language learning is absolutely necessary.

Negishi Of course, the content of the performance is important, but it's a positive attitude toward expression.Even if your English is not fluent, you should show your motivation and try to communicate.In other words, it's not passive, it's positive.

Negishi That's right.However, when I look at the Japanese people around me recently, they are all living strong.You may be accustomed to it, but I wonder if you will be courageous.Even if you are in Japan, if you don't go out positively, the world of art can only be done by a limited number of people, so you need to be positive, so that's common throughout the world.

Negishi I understand.I myself am the same.Aside from English, I'm not good at German and French, so I didn't study abroad there.You may have avoided it unknowingly.

Negishi: I was learning at university, but I learned English, so I guess I just went there ... (laughs).When I go to France or Germany, I can have a little conversation, but I don't understand the complicated story.When I think about studying it from now on, it's a little daunting (laughs).

Negishi When I see my friends studying abroad in Germany and France and living for many years, I really respect them.
 
DVD released in the UK
Negishi It may be a characteristic of growing up in the United States.At an American school, the education was "Raise your hand anyway, even if you make a mistake."In Japan and other countries, there may be an atmosphere that you can't raise your hand if you don't know the answer, but Americans are fluent and want to stand out (laughs).

Negishi: It would be nice if I could talk about silly things, but the country of America is (laughs).

Negishi Ultimately, the stronger the things you want to express and the more motivated you are, the stronger you will be when you cross the world.I think I'm looking at people from various countries, not just Americans. Just being told by sensei and taking it passively is all that is needed.I think it's important to try and contact various places, even if you try it yourself or refuse it.

Negishi There may be that too.The Japanese are serious in both good and bad ways.

Negishi I don't know if it's in Japan, but it's true in the city of London.This is my 9th year, and I still think so.

Negishi After all, what is important is ability, but there are really many people who have ability.I think it is important to have the ability to think about what to do in order to excel even a little.

Negishi: Rather than being excellent in everything, I think it's better to have individuality, or the stronger it is.Some of them are born, but I think there are some that you can learn as you grow up to some extent.
 
Stag hunting in scotland

Negishi That's right.When you hear the story of people in the industry, you've run out of classic CDs.There is nothing missing in this era.Therefore, I think that searching for what you can do will lead to individuality.The same is true for one concert program.It's great to play a song by a famous composer, but it's better to put in a new composer's song or add a little theme to it.Also, talking on the stage is good for customers.

Negishi: I think it's almost necessary now.In particular, Britain is a country where rock stars such as The Beatles appear and entertainers like it anyway, so there may be a tendency to seek entertainment.In Germany, there may be a tendency to want Bach and Beethoven to be played perfectly.In England, the word English is more cultural than in the United States.There are plenty of plays and stages, and with that background, you may be asked for other elements than just playing.

Recital at Hever Castle

Negishi Yes.Actually, I'm interested in it, and I'm always collecting information as a funny story!After all, the pronunciation is different first.America has a round pronunciation, but Europeans make American English a fool. When I was 18 years old, I went to Europe for the first time in a class, and everyone asked me, "Are you going back to America?"At that time, I was wondering, "Why do you say so much?" About 10 years later, Americans now say, "You've become British English."But did the British still live in America?I'm asked (laughs).I think I went to see the stage, but the pronunciation is big.It feels strange to play Shakespeare in American English.Just do it in British English with a little bit of crap, and you'll be fine.

Negishi That's a superficial difference, but the wording is also quite different.Even if they have the same meaning, they have different words, such as subway and trousers.After all, there are some differences.There's nothing wrong with that, but what's that?There is something like that.And, of course, it's not a word, but I don't understand because I didn't grow up here.Songs and jokes that were popular in middle school and high school.This can't be helped.

Negishi: I'm also a returnee, but it was said that the Japanese language was very strange. I didn't grow up in Japan when I was little, so it seems that I was speaking in a clever way.

Negishi I don't understand Japanese now either!I see the news on the net, but what is "Arasa" or "Alafor"?Like (laughs).I found out later by looking it up.

Negishi: It's been around since I was a kid, and it's an exaggeration, but for me it's life itself.I talked about languages, but it's another "musical language" and is one of the means of expression.You can express your emotions and experiences, and you can't separate yourself from yourself.Also, in a slightly bigger sense, I think it is one of the wonderful things that humankind has left behind.I think it should be comparable to, or even more than ballet, painting, novels, movies, and architecture.It's a traditional culture, and it doesn't disappear with fashion.

Negishi I think that any race in any country has the power to move.I think music has the power to save people even in recession, war, terrorism, and disasters.It has the power to give hope and the power to heal.
 
Graduation ceremony of the British Royal College of Music

Negishi After all, it is important to be proactive and to have a sense of purpose.I want you to have a big dream and a sense of purpose.Realistically speaking, I would try to find a good sensei that suits me, but even so, the belief that "I want to be such a performer" is the root.I would like you to follow that belief and participate in the seminars or go on a trip.After that, I think it will be easier if you learn a little language.

Negishi And no matter what you do, the attitude that you enjoy yourself is the best.