 Akira Mori. |
On Sunday, May 22, Drake University’s Director of Orchestral Studies Akira Mori will conduct members of the Minnesota Orchestra at a concert benefiting victims of Japan’s recent tsunami.
The concert will take place at 4 p.m. in the Benson Great Hall of Bethel University, 3900 Bethel Dr., Arden Hill, Minn.
“I was delighted to be asked to conduct this benefit concert,” said Mori, former assistant conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra. “All of the musicians are donating their time and talents, and they hope to generate a lot of funds for the tsunami victims. Even if people can’t attend the actual concert, there are ways to contribute toward the cause.”
Free-will offerings will be accepted at the door, and all proceeds from the concert will be donated to the American Red Cross, Red Cross Japan and relief organization CRASHJapan. Individuals unable to attend the concert but still wishing to donate can do so via CRASHJapan’s website.
The program will include pieces by Aaron Copland, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Samuel Barber, as well as traditional Japanese songs. Mori, who also serves as an assistant professor of music at Drake, was born in Japan and has conducted the Tokyo Symphony and Tokyo Chamber Orchestra.
He is a recipient of the Hideo Saito Award from the Tokyo International Music Competition Conducting Contest and the Best Concerto Accompanying Award from Dinu Niculescu International Competition in Romania.
Mori has served as a professor and conductor in music schools at Indiana University, the University of Minnesota, Louisiana State University and Tokyo College of Music, among others.
He received his bachelor’s degree in flute performance from the New England Conservatory and his master’s degree in orchestral conducting from Indiana University.
For more information about the benefit concert, contact akira.mori@drake.edu.