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TOKYO (21st May 2008)

represented by

Micaela Haslam, Jenny Bacon, Amanda Morrison, Heather Cairncross, Andrew Busher, Gerard O'Beirne



Tokyo from the top of Opera City

"Apart from the Japanese bowls, the 2nd most important thing to take home from Tokyo is loads of Meiji chocolate almonds. These are the most delicious chocolate almonds on the planet and you can buy them just about anywhere in Tokyo - station kiosks, 7/11 stores, department stores etc. I've come to realise that you just can't get them anywhere else (except Little Tokyo in LA), so I always stock up when I can. The difficulty is getting them into the suitcase before scoffing the lot!

Another thing we always enjoy is the Japanese penchant for adding an up-beat English slogan to a product. For example, Meiji chocolate almonds are "a splendid combination of chocolate and almonds". We found this restaurant in the Opera City complex...



Welcome to Casa

...and this fabulous shopping bag.

And finally, on the subject of "only in Japan", I just have to mention this luxurious toilet, complete with heated seat and (hopefully) self-explanatory "extras" arm...

...but I digress. Our 2nd performance included Music for 18 again, preceded this time by Drumming Part 1 and Proverb. Proverb is one of my favourite Reich pieces, but it's also one of the most difficult. It is so exposed and sustained for the sopranos, relentlessly high for tenor 1, and unbelievably tricky for the vibes - and there's nowhere to hide! Rainer and David played brilliantly (as always). We did OK, but I'd love to have had more than one performance. In all honesty, I think we could have done better, but the audience loved it which is the main thing.


Heather, Andy and I were delighted to see our old friends Yoichi Inoue (with his absolutely gorgeous daughter Mizuki) and Masa Kobayashi from our Swingle days. After the concert, we were all invited to a reception where Steve gave the most lovely speech about his years of collaboration with Ensemble Modern and Synergy Vocals. It's easy to take this work for granted, seeing Steve Reich as much as we do. I was really touched by his kind words and reminded of just how privileged we are to have his support, and that of the amazing Ensemble Modern. This was a lovely note on which to finish the trip."

Micaela