The Min-On Concert Association extends our warmest season’s greetings and very best wishes for the New Year.
Although the pandemic led to the cancellations of all in-person live concerts starting February 2020, we were thankfully able to resume our cultural exchange program in 2021 by inviting top artists from Estonia, Germany, Tunisia, and Uruguay to nationwide tours of Japan.
Our association is also happy to report of the success of our online concert program throughout the year. To cite just two instances, we held virtual concerts by renowned pianist Chiara D’Odorico to commemorate the 210th anniversary of Paraguay’s independence, and by Patricia Vlieg, a highly talented pianist who performed in honor of Panama’s independence bicentennial. These and other online performances reflect the Min-On’s ongoing commitment to sharing the wonderful and wondrous culture of music with viewers both in Japan and around the world.
In one way of expressing our heartfelt appreciation to both artist and audience for the cooperation and support you so generously rendered us this year, we present two songs in one video through our Min-On YouTube channel: the first song, “Maailm Heliseb,” is from an in-person concert by Estonia’s famed Curly Strings foursome, and the second—“Cha-cha, muchacha,” also with a live audience—was performed by celebrated Uruguayan percussionist Ruben Rada.
The Min-On Concert Association hopes you enjoy these rousing performances from 2021 as much as we did. We look forward to presenting many more concerts in 2022, in the hope that the gift of music will touch your lives and bring us all closer together, regardless of the challenges that lie ahead.
May you all enjoy a very safe and happy New Year.
