Shigeru Ishikawa: Together with Music

2024/01/25

The deciding factor for me to pursue classical music was, above all, the emotion I felt when I listened to a recording of Pablo Casals (cello) on an LP during high school. To a high school student in the midst of adolescence, agonizing every day that "something" was missing from my life, his sound and music seemed like a ray of light from heaven. I truly felt, "There is 'truth' here!"

Another person who had a major impact on my life was Miles Davis (jazz trumpet). Having dabbled in jazz since high school, I joined a club at Keio called the Jazz Ken (Modern Jazz Society), and the friendships I made there remain a great asset to this day. I am grateful for the support I have received not only from the Jazz Ken but from all Keio alumni.

My musical training journey abroad began in the summer of the year I graduated. Ultimately, I lived in the United States for 18 years and Switzerland for 7 years until returning to Japan in 2013. I first attended Yale University, and the following year, I entered the master's program at the Juilliard School. As a late starter, the weight and value of the education I received during this period are immeasurable. I practiced and studied incredibly hard during this time, desperately trying to keep up with the mentors I truly respected.

Especially during my time in New York at Juilliard, I lived out the motto "work hard, play hard" every day. I would start practicing at 9:00 AM and continue until the school closed at 11:00 PM. Then, I’d walk down Broadway to around 50th Street while listening to my Walkman at full volume to meet friends for drinks, laughing until morning, only to do the same thing the next day. It’s a fond memory of doing things that are unthinkable to me now.

After that, I held several principal positions in orchestras in the United States and Switzerland. During summer vacations, I would return to Japan to pursue other interests outside the orchestra, such as solo performances and teaching younger musicians, as much as possible. In 2013, I returned to Japan as the solo double bassist for the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra.

Because I love Japan, I was chronically homesick for 25 years. However, the time I spent living in the U.S. and Europe, being accepted as a peer and making music together, has become an immeasurably great asset and a source of unwavering confidence for me.