Tomoko Mukaiyama is back at  Meervaat on December 5. This is Tomoko‘ s small tradition , an alternative to Sinterklaas. We will celebrate DEC5 this year with Canto Ostinato.

Simeon ten Holt’s Canto Ostinato (1976) is a monumental work in the 20th-century piano repertoire and has passionate followers all over the world . Its repetition is soothing, yet within that repetition there is so much variety, so much room to try things out.

Canto Ostinato has been part of Tomoko Mukaiyama’s repertoire for nearly 20 years. Every year on 5 December, a ritual returns, a night that combines Dutch tradition with her own.  This time her partner is Chisato Taniguchi, the Japanese pianist who is based in Paris and is a true rising star. Two pianists from different generations and backgrounds exploring this composition with great freedom. Two pianos, two people, one shared rhythm.

If you have heard Tomoko play Canto before, you know no two versions are alike. Chisato and Tomoko decide on the spot how long they stay, how loud, how soft, how high and how low they go.  Let the rest of the world drift past for a while. Bring your ears, your kindness, a friend or just yourself, and leave the rest at the door.

About Tomoko Mukaiyama
Based in the Netherlands, Tomoko Mukaiyama works across disciplines as a pianist and multidisciplinary artist. Alongside performing with festivals and orchestras, she creates and presents works in a wide range of forms, including film, theatre, installations and salon-style projects, exploring the spaces between different artistic fields. With femininity at the core of her practice, her work engages with themes such as the body, gender, boundaries, memory, and ritual. In recent years, she has also developed numerous works centered on the themes of home and family.

About Chisato Taniguchi
Born in Japan in 1998, Chisato Taniguchi began music at the age of two and piano the year after. She studied at the Toho-Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo and continued her studies at the Conservatoire de Paris with Florent Boffard. In 2022 she won second prize at the Orléans International Piano Competition. She has performed at the La Roque d’Anthéron International Piano Festival and the Venice Biennale Musica, and is known for her passion for contemporary repertoire.