After exploring the modern art museum in the morning (& learning about so many -new to me - Japanese artists - along with the familiar Lichtensteins & Warhols), I ventured to Ueno to check out the old black market - called the ‘Arcade’. It was HUGE. 
I cannot believe that I would find something that trumps Camden Town - but this is it. Great deals, weird imports & quirky characters. I spent about three hours just wandering around the stalls & window shopping (if you can call it that in an open-air market..).
TOnight, I pulled a ‘Jackie’ & splurged on a solo ticket to a piano recital (Satsuki Kobayashi - I took her family name as a sign that I should splure for the ‘Usual Suspects’ reference) that was being held in the home of the Tokyo Symphonic Orchestra - in beautiful Ueno park
. The recital hall itself was the perfect size & suited the pieces by Schumann - I have a soft spot for this composer since my deletante teen years playing piano…he was a pretty messed up character, tried to kill himself by drowning in the Rhine, was dissed by the Brits, critiqued Chopin - I consider him the Thelonius Monk of his time. If it weren’t for his wife (& Monk pretty much only talked to his wife & ignored his bandmates, too), his music might not have lived on….& maybe Brahms edited a few works here & there to keep Shumann’s rep in tact…A really interesting life story if you’re interested in madness/music/genius/etc. (His wiki page has some decent links here).
Anyway, the recital was bittersweet - the pianist’s performance was amazing - makes me regret Bobby Fishering on my piano days at 17, though. The recital hall was perfect - modern wihtout being stark & impersonal; quirky without being too futuristic…It must be mentioned that this is just one of the innumerable buildings in Tokyo that are above=average architectural gems. It’s not just the art galleries that stand out - many office towers, shopping complexes, metro stations & of course temples & shrines are designed so thoughtfully & carefully that its easy to overlook the ‘average’ Tokyo structures even if these ones’d be shining stars in Toronto.
The recital hall was a mix of poured concrete (don’t cringe, it jutted out from the side stage walls with extra-large impressions that were fern & bark-like), marble & steel (behind the stage it was a massive leaning step-ladder shaped zig zig thingie).
Kobayashi’s playing honoured Shumann’s weird ways. The sometimes dissonant & unfamiliar bass was mellow & the off-kilter ambling rhythms stepped forward just right during the Blumenstuck op19 intro.
During the faster parts of the Studien nach Capricen Von Paganini, she attacked the difficult Andante & Agitato parts & played the glissandos with the tiniest inflections & nuances…I was floored.
During the Papillons op2 - some of the quieter parts were a bit vampy but it worked out in the space & in between some of the most Prestissimo sections, she calmly wiped her palms on the beaded tulle layers of her ballgown - very riot grrrl.
Phew. I’ve probably written too much about one little part of the trip, but it stands out as a great experience…A great venue, receptive audience, amazing choice of pieces & composer - & to top it off a top-notch performance…sigh…”I always love the accomp’niment and that’s because..”
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