Noriko's Small Room Part 2 | How to become a marimba soloist

Hello everyone viewing JPCMAG. I'm Noriko Tsukagoshi, a marimba player. 
With the new year upon us, many people are heading towards their dreams and goals with a new mindset.
I have many goals, but I also dream of having a place where I can actually meet and talk with you someday!

Well, the theme this time is "How to become a marimba soloist" 
What a big theme for the second time!
I don't know the exact answer, but since it's one of the most common topics I receive, I thought I'd share some of my experiences and feelings in the hope that it will be of some help. 

“How to become a marimba soloist Vol.1”

What is the most important thing for a soloist? I often get asked this question.
I feel like there are so many things I need to do, so I worry about this and that...
What I feel is the overwhelming amount of practice and study,
And I feel that it is essential to have the mental strength and guts to see it through.

A musician's job is to perform concerts upon receiving requests to perform, but when it comes to being a soloist,

• Accepting requests for solo concerts
• Invited as a soloist for concertos, etc. by organizations such as professional orchestras
• Be invited as a guest on TV or radio music programs

There are various other types of content, but most of them involve accepting requests for solo concerts.

We have received talks from music halls, municipalities, foundations, event companies, etc. all over the country, and many of these concerts will be two-hour concerts. Sometimes it's a 60 minute concert, sometimes it's a 90 minute concert, sometimes I'm asked to do more MC work, sometimes I'm asked to do less.
We may also accept requests without any MC.
We create a program so that the customer can enjoy the requested time, but rather than just doing what we want to do, we carefully consider the content according to the intentions and requests of the organizer, and then add things that only we can do and add our own individuality to create a program that is "one of a kind."

As soloists, the guests come under their own names, so substitutes are not effective. There should never be a situation where you say, ``I could have used another performer.''

We receive various wishes and requests from the organizers. We are very grateful for that, and it is because of their opinions that we are able to create a concert that perfectly suits the direction of the concert and the audience.
The important thing is that a soloist must have a wide and deep knowledge, repertoire, and ideas to meet these demands; without that, it will not be possible to even put together a program.

This is a big difference between a self-planned concert or a concert between friends!

Now that the program has been decided, we begin practice, and I think it's fair to say that stoicism here will determine the success of the actual performance.
Even if it is a very famous piece that is often performed, as I mentioned earlier, it is not enough to say that it could have been performed by another performer.
"This person's performance is completely different."
"A performance that only this person can do"
In order to create a performance that will make people think, we begin searching for the meaning of each note from the beginning.
And since most concerts are two hours long (with an intermission in the middle), there will be a large number of songs.
For example, when you play in front of people for exams or competitions, you probably practice a lot, but if the performance time is 10 minutes, the amount of performance will be about 10 times as long.

Furthermore, the frequency of requests we receive is at most 50 per year.We will perform 60 concerts.We hold a recital of a different program once a week or every other week.When you think of such an image, how much practice and training do you need?I hope you can imagine how much time you need to study.

The big difference from exams and competitions is that there are customers, and they spend their precious money and time coming to listen to the concert, expecting it to be great.

“You are paying the money in advance.” 

“They spend their time, which is the most precious thing that money can’t buy.” 

And,

“If you perform even once and don't live up to expectations, you might not come again.”

A sense of tension and responsibility,

If I keep that in mind, I feel like I can immerse myself in my practice even if I have little time to sleep or eat.

As I said in my first column, when I was a student, I didn't aim to become a marimba player, but rather wanted to get a job and work for a company, but no matter what, I always try to do my best at what I have to do in front of me right now! That's what I thought.

If you are a student, your job is to study.

In addition to weekly lessons at school, I continued to attend private lessons as well, and attended master classes and academies overseas two or three times a year.
If I was given a concerto assignment, I would try to play all the movements in the next week's lesson, and since I was a student, I would always practice five or six pieces at the same time.
I think I studied about 20 to 30 songs a year.

I also frequently attended concerts by top not only percussionists but also other musical instruments, and by seeing and hearing other arts such as painting, theater, dance, and kabuki, I studied hard to broaden my horizons and hone my sensibilities.
all those thingsShaftHowever, I feel that this has led me to the present day where I make a living performing as a soloist.

I have friends who are soloists who play a wide variety of instruments, including string instruments, wind instruments, singing, Japanese instruments, and composition, and all of them are exceptionally hard workers.
Also, I have friends in the entertainment world who memorize scripts and perform in a ``one-of-a-kind'' way, even though they have schedules that would be unimaginable under normal circumstances. I have a friend who is a painter, a friend who is a dancer...
I also always keep this in mind, as I feel that people who are active on the front lines have something in common: people who are caring for those around them, and who are like a bundle of caring people, without ever revealing the difficult situations during the preparation period that make you want to give up.

This story is getting a little long, so I'll continue the story next time!

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Noriko TsukagoshiProfile

Marimba player Shinko Tsukagoshi Official Website
You can check various information about Mr. Tsukagoshi, such as his profile, schedule, diary, etc.!