MITO CHAMBER ORCHESTRA (MCO) IN EUROPE 1998

The Mito Chamber Orchestra (MCO) was formed at the recommendation of Hidekazu Yoshida, director general of the Art Tower Mito (ATM), which was established in March 1990 to celebrate the centennial of Mito's becoming an official municipality. The idea was to attach an exclusive musical ensemble to the new facility. Mr. Yoshida was able to attract Seiji Ozawa, the famed conductor, as musical adviser, and together they selected the members of the new MCO from the ranks of soloist performers and members of renowned orchestras around the world.

MCO's members meet in Mito twice yearly, in the spring and autumn, coming from all corners of the earth. After undertaking intensive rehearsals, they put on a total of eight regular performances yearly. Most recently, the 31st and 32nd regular performances were held in November 1997.

The MCO has been acclaimed for its high quality right from the beginning, and the group has already released four CDs. Also, for the first time, they performed at venues outside of Mito in 1997, with a concert in the Osaka Festival Hall in June and in the Tokyo Suntory Hall in November. The latter concert was particularly noteworthy, as the MCO was chosen to perform the culminating climax of the Suntory Hall's 10th anniversary concert series. With requests flowing in from around the country to perform locally, the MCO has come to serve as Mito's cultural ambassador, having expanded its sphere of activities in the seven years since its inception.

MCO's activities will soon extend beyond the shores of Japan, giving its first European tour in June 1998. The group has been invited to perform at several celebrated musical festivals abroad, including the Wiener Festwochen in Vienna, the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Florence and the Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele in Ludwigsburg, Germany. Altogether it will perform at five different locales, with Hamburg and Zurich also included. The MCO members will assemble in Hamburg on May 28, and after rehearsals will embark on their concert tour throughout June 10. Upon finishing the Florence concert, the group will fly back to Japan and perform the same pieces in Mito that it had presented in Europe at the 33rd regular performance scheduled for June 13 (Sat) and 14 (Sun).

MCO's performances abroad will surely not end with this tour, but ought to continue in the future. The 1998 European tour only marks the beginning.

Performance Itinerary

Date	City Country	Venue	Sponsored by
June 2 (Tue)	Hamburg Germany	Musikhalle Grosser Saal	Hamburg PRO ARTE
June 3 (Wed)	Zurich Switzerland	Tonhalle	Tonhalle-Gesellschaft
June 4 (Thu)	Wien Austria	Musikvereinsaal	Gesellscaft der Musikfreunde in Wien Participation in Wiener Festwochen
June 6 (Sat)	Ludwigsburg Germany	Theater im Forum	Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele Participation in Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele
June 7 (Sun)	Florence Italy	Teatro Communale	Teatro Communale Participation in Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Tonhalle, Zurich

Performance Program
Franz Schubert: Death and the Maiden (arranged for string orchestra by Mahler)
Toru Takemitsu: Umi e II (To the Sea II)
Igor Stravinsky: Pulcinella suite


Mito Chamber Orchestra is greatfully supported by a substantial contribution from Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

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