Shinoda Masanobu’s Recital Series: A Night with British Composers and a Rising Star
January 20, 2026 – Pianist Masanobu Shinoda’s recital series continued with its third installment, a captivating evening dedicated to british composers and featuring a new work by Yuko Ohara, a composer who studied in teh UK. The concert, held with both afternoon and evening performances, offered a diverse program exploring contemporary piano music and its intersection with electronic soundscapes. Electronic sound was provided by Hiroki Sahara. The evening’s program was thoughtfully curated by Tai Shinryo.
The program opened with paraphrases from Thomas Adès‘s opera ”Powder Her Face,” specifically selections I and IV. These pieces hinted at the composer’s signature style, recalling echoes of club music reminiscent of “Asyla.” The music tantalized with fleeting pop melodies, just beyond grasp, and a deliberately unsettling rhythmic structure that consistently subverted expectations, creating a uniquely engaging listening experience.
George Benjamin’s contributions, “Shadow Lines” and “Relative Lag,” presented a contrasting dynamic. While “Shadow Lines,” comprised of six miniatures, felt somewhat subdued and lacking in dramatic shifts, “Relative Lag” emerged as a delightful and airy counterpoint.
Rebecca Saunders’s ”Utterance” proved particularly intriguing. The piece seemed to embody a “speech melody,” prompting reflection on the inherent variability of human speech. Even in the most placid conversation,tempo and rhythmic nuances are constantly in flux. Saunders appears to have translated this subtle complexity of vocal inflection onto the piano, attempting to replicate the vast spectrum of sonic variations present in human speech. Considering this, the title “Utterance” feels more accurately translated as “speech act” rather then a simple “statement.”
Jonathan Harvey’s “Tomb of Messiaen – for piano and Tape” showcased a compelling blend of acoustic and electronic elements, while Yuko Ohara’s commissioned premiere, “ǝsɹǝʌǝɹ engineering for piano, fixed media and live electronics,” demonstrated a fresh and innovative voice in contemporary composition.
The recital concluded with excerpts from Brian Ferneyhough’s “Six Epigrams” and selections from michael Finnissy’s arrangements of Strauss waltzes, Gershwin pieces, and English country tunes, providing a diverse and satisfying conclusion to a thoughtfully programmed evening.
Shinoda’s performance throughout the evening was marked by technical precision and a clear understanding of the nuances within each composer’s unique style, making for a memorable concert experience.
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