I had spent what may be called an unhappy three months, because of circumstances that could not be helped, and problems that were by no means easy to resolve.
When one goes to a classical concert in such an unhappy state, the music absolutely does not enter the heart in the ordinary way.
That is why, even at last night’s concert, the opening Brahms did not enter me, despite all the preparation I had done for it.
Then came the second work.
This was what I had come for.
That is precisely why I had travelled all the way to Nagoya.
Rina Nakano appeared.
For now, I will write only a little.
She was, in a word, tremendous.
This was the performance of a true genius, a prodigious genius of the highest order.
It was truly astonishing.
Brilliant female violin geniuses continue to appear in Japan, one after another, like a chain of glittering stars.
I have already written about the causes and reasons for this.
From among them, if I were to describe the group of those in the age range following Rina Nakano as a prodigious corps, then, in order of age, they would be Rina Nakano, Kaho Murata, and HIMARI.
Of course, Riisa Nakahara must also be included among them.
Only the sound of genius can save the anguish of genius.
Only the sound of genius can heal the anguish of genius.
The members of the orchestra, too, are in truth each geniuses in their own right.
All of them were captivated by her genius and by the sound of the Stradivarius she played.
They were inspired by it.
After the performance, the concertmaster and the other members of the orchestra stamped their feet on the floor in praise of her playing.
The second movement of Ysaÿe’s Sonata No. 5, which she performed as her solo encore, was also a historic performance.
Stimulated by her, the orchestra members, each of them geniuses in their own right, together with the organist Kazuki Tomita, made Saint-Saëns into a historic performance.
As I have already written, ever since the moment my promised life was overturned in an instant at the beginning of my third year of high school, I listened to classical music on NHK FM from morning until night, day after day.
Last night, I also remembered how, in those days, I listened with deep devotion to Bach performed by Virgil Fox, Helmut Walcha, Karl Richter, and Marie-Claire Alain.
Last night was an evening of historic performance in the truest and most extraordinary sense.