Ayane Kozasa, viola

Start to a New Year

ayanekozasa — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 16:05:50 +0000

I FINALLY got around to updating my concerts! At least for this semester, and more updates to come on that page! Highlights include a performance in LONDON at the end of this week and playing Transfigured Night AND Brahms sextet with Pam Frank and Mr. Wiley! If you live in New York, come to the Bargemusic on Oct 7!

Graduating from Curtis and not having that daily community of friends has definitely been an adjustment. What I do miss most is the orchestra rehearsals…. so I’m so grateful that I get the chance to play with the Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra this season! And come November, I will be starting at the Kronberg Academy in Kronberg, Germany. I will be going back and forth from Germany to the states, and will also be studying with the amazing Nobuko Imai! She has always been a huge role model to me, and I was (and still am) beside myself when I found out I could study with her.

My experience as an Astral Artist has so far been amazing! They are so supportive of everything that I’m trying to accomplish, project ideas that I have, and most of all, having the chance to play chamber music with awesome musicians = happiness! I actually have a string trio concert tonight with Lionel Cottet and Eunice Kim, and I can’t wait to rock out to some Beethoven, Schubert, and Dohnanyi

SO, so many changes, a lot of repertoire to learn, but in the end, it’s all fantastic, and I’m so grateful….

And I never forget to have fun The other day, we went to an apple orchard, and I got FUJI APPLES, MY FAVORITE!

Have a wonderful day everyone!

ROC -> NYC -> FRANKFURT -> NYC -> PHL -> VERMONT -> PHL? -> ABQ/ANGEL FIRE

ayanekozasa — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 14:23:01 +0000

Hi Friends,

Above is my summer itinerary. So much travelling! And I really have no excuse not to keep updating you about my whereabouts now that I have a smartphone….. I will do my best!

Right now, I am at the International Viola Congress in Rochester, NY. It’s my first Congress, and I am having a blast! Everyone is so nice and enthusiastic, and life is filled with all things viola related <3 I played my first recital yesterday, and I am even more excited for this next recital with my good friend and composer, Michael Djupstrom! (he won the viola composition competition) So if you are in the area, come hear his fantastic piece, Walimai!

The picture on this post is of a building in Dresden, Germany when the school orchestra went on a tour for a week. I ate so much food…..

MASSIVE UPDATE

ayanekozasa — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 21:37:44 +0000

SPRING BREAK!

Which means I can finally update my whereabout for this semester. Here goes a very long post!

First, I am very excited to share that I will be going to Marlboro Chamber Music Festival this summer! I can’t wait to work with incredible artists and colleagues, and meet a family heroine, Mitsuko Uchida.

Second, my epic Brahms night was incredible! It opened with the F Major Viola Quintet with Pam Frank, Zoe Martin-Doike, Nathan Vickery, and Jessica Chang. What an amazing first experience with the quintet! The night concluded with the C Minor Piano Quartet with Becky Anderson, Eric Han, and Michelle Cann. The ending will haunt me forever…

Then, my graduation recital. What a joy to share the stage with people I love, and show my thanks to all the friends and faculty who have supported me the last three years. I tried to say all my thanks at the end without crying, but alas, my thanks to my friends brought out the water works Lovelovelove to all the people in my life!

Immediately after my recital, the Johannes Quartet came to do a residency at Curtis! My Mozart Quartet with Luosha, Nikki, and Nathan had some amazing coachings, and the residency concluded with an amazing concert with students and Johannes playing side by side. Thank you Johannes Quartet for giving us so much insight into Mozart!

2 weeks ago, Nathan and I left Philly for Boston to start rehearsing for the Steans on Tour! I think we had a very successful first concert at the Isabella Gardner Museum. It’s a really cool performance space! 360 degrees of viewing pleasure Can’t wait to continue our tour next week!

2012!!!

ayanekozasa — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 23:40:14 +0000

Happy New Year! あけましておめでとう！

Clean slate, fresh start, and a whole lot of exciting projects in line!

My 2012 resolution: to smile a lot and take good care of my friends. I have always had a tendency to lose track of friends — a bad habit stemming from moving around from city to city. It has made me proactive to seek new hobbies and connections, but has also made me a terrible long time friend. This year, I will try to reconnect with at least one old friend every week, always be there for my current friends, and be a little more selfless. Maybe this is all because of the fact that I am graduating from Curtis soon, and getting a bit nostalgic, sigh…

Happy birth of 2012 friends! I hope the new year will bring many many fantastic events for everyone!!!

Making New Friends

ayanekozasa — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 21:50:30 +0000

little behind on my updates, but two weeks ago, I taught a couple masterclasses in Arizona and California. What an amazing experience! It was so great to reconnect with old colleagues and meet new violists. Teaching all those masterclasses also opened my eyes to all the various ways of explaining musical ideas to others. No matter how many ideas you might have in your head, it is so important to know how to communicate them logically to the audience, student, etc. I think I learned as much as the students did in the masterclasses, if not more!

Masterclass with UCSB with Helen Callus’ studio! I got to hear my old friend, Jonathan Morgan

WEST COAST!

ayanekozasa — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 01:45:49 +0000

I’m waiting at the Vegas airport right now on my way to Idyllwild, CA. Apparently it is snowing there, and until now, I had no idea I was going into the mountains! Thank goodness I love the cold…

Tomorrow is the beginning to some amazing events. By next Sunday, I will have:
– Taught my first masterclass
– Taught 4 more masterclasses!
– Made a recording of the wonderful Inner Voices by Peter Askim
– Played some Piazzolla and Martinu chamber music!

Crossing my fingers for some LA sunshine…

SuperAwesomeUpdate!

ayanekozasa — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 14:45:04 +0000

1. I got interviews in The Strad and Strings Magazines! You should support the printing world and buy BOTH MAGAZINES!

2. Graduation recital date has been set for February 27th, 2012 8pm in Field Concert Hall. Come listen to some of my favorite viola music of all time (Brahms songs, yummmmmm….) and eat celebratory food after

3. Le Vain Bakery is delicious. Smitten by their peanut butter chocolate cookie… LOVE

Back to School

ayanekozasa — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 21:22:05 +0000

It has been a great 2.5 weeks at Music from Angel Fire — thanks to everyone who made it such an incredible experience! I finally ate sopapillas for the first time and saw multiple shooting stars. And the music was AWESOME! Beethoven viola quintets are a new favorite, and it is always so inspiring to be with experienced musicians.

Now, it’s back to school, my third and final year at Curtis. This will also be the year I do my graduation recital, so mark your calendars as soon as the date is confirmed! Still under construction, but I’m thinking music by Schumann, Brahms, Part, Hindemith, and Djupstrom…

Sad to leave the southwest, but it’s time to get back to the eastcoast!

<3 Ayane

YAY Interview!

ayanekozasa — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 22:57:29 +0000

Many thanks to Laurie Niles for publishing an interview for me! You can read it at violinist.com

I’m currently visiting my Cleveland friends, and would like to just say how much I admire the Hudson Chamber Players. It’s a group started by some Cleveland Institute of Music students and graduates that highlight talented young musicians to play in Hudson. If you’re in the Cleveland area, GO CHECK THEM OUT! They started this from scratch by themselves — wow… and they make excellent cookies <

Update!

ayanekozasa — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 05:18:42 +0000

Hi Everyone!

Apologies for the lack of posts. Here are some updates:

a. I had a great time at the Primrose Competition, and made some very valuable friendships! You can watch all of our performances here.

b. I recently played the Hindemith Sonata Op 25 No 4 at the Ravinia Steans Music Institute with Michael Mizrahi! The performances will be uploaded soon on Steans’ InstantEncore page, so please look out for it

c. Today, July 3rd, my piano quartet at Steans will be playing on WFMT radio (Chicago’s classical music station) at 11am Central Time. You can listen here.

Thanks for all your support!

Hugs,
Ayane