Tour of Japan 2025: day 8 and 9

Everyone described the acoustics as a gift: “everything you play comes right back at you,” someone said between bites of breakfast.

But first, we had to make our way from Fukui to Tokyo. On the bus I chatted with Pauli Paananen, who was looking forward to his very first Suntory Hall experience. Pierre Buizer kept popping his head up between the seats to share his excitement. The energy was infectious, like a buzzing bee, lifting everyone’s spirits. Jetlag? Gone. We were in full swing!

The shinkansen added an extra shot of adrenaline: the entire orchestra had to squeeze into the right carriage in under a minute. As one of the last to board, my heart was still pounding in my ears as I barely made it onto the train.

Once we arrived at the final hotel of the tour, there was just enough time to change clothes, grab our things, and hop back on the bus for the long-awaited concert.

From the outside, Suntory Hall may look modest compared to Fukui’s Harmony Hall, but the large bronze bell at the entrance announcing the doors’ opening has a stately, almost ceremonial air. Inside, the hall is an acoustic masterpiece, every note feels like it reverberates straight into your ribcage.

That first evening, Bruce Liu joined us for Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3. We opened with Wagner’s Cyrano de Bergerac, then Bruce, and closed with Dvořák’s Ninth. Lahav Shani moved like a whirlwind across the podium; with every glance, the music shifted, gentle where it needed to breathe, fiery where it needed to blaze. Bruce shone on stage, his fingers dancing across the keys, until it suddenly felt as if the entire hall was floating along with him.

Then, something extraordinary happened during the encore: Lahav joined Bruce at the piano for Hungarian Dance. Conductor and soloist, two entirely different roles, suddenly fused into one instrument, as the hall swayed along to every note. A nearly magical reminder of how music can unite people, even right there on stage.

Afterwards, the musicians left the stage one by one, their faces glowing with a mix of exhaustion and joy. All the tight rehearsal schedules, the traveling, the lack of sleep, all forgotten, blessed away by this hall.

We carried the energy with us and ventured into the city with a few colleagues. Tokyo itself is an experience. We decided to head for Shibuya Crossing: a swarm of people, lights, and sounds, every step in sync like a staccato of footsteps. Later, a smaller group ducked into a dim bar for a meal and reflections on the tour so far, laughter, stories, little victories.

Day 2: Shibuya, Sayaka, and a second round at Suntory

Thanks to the planning gods, we had a free morning. Pauli, Annabel, and I wanted to see Shibuya again and found a café on the fifth floor of a shopping center, the perfect spot to watch the crossing unfold below. We stopped by Hachiko, the statue of the loyal dog who waited for years for his late owner, a quiet reminder of devotion amidst the chaos.

Passing a record store, I quickly lost the musicians in stacks of classical LPs. Pauli kept shouting, “Get me out of here before I stay all day and miss the concert!” Annabel was equally absorbed. Musicians will be musicians.

Luckily, Pauli guided us back just in time to catch the bus to Suntory Hall again, this time with soloist Sayaka. While warming up, photographer Bruno snapped a group shot of the second violins. Behind the scenes, the stagehands stood with hands clasped behind their backs, eyes on the screen until the signal came. And then, the music spilled into the hall, and only then did the backstage crew collectively breathe again.

That evening’s program: Mozart’s Figaro, Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with Sayaka, and Brahms to close. The hall’s energy, Lahav’s whirlwind presence, the radiant soloist, it all blended into a sound so vivid it felt tangible. Afterward, the applause thundered just as wildly as the night before. The walls shook, the sound echoed, and backstage Sanne and I exchanged a smile: we did it again.

We wrapped up the night with a big group in the city: dinner, and then honoring the culture with a round of karaoke. Sometimes those are the moments that stay with you the longest, just like the notes that keep playing in your head for days (especially after hearing the same concert for a week straight ;))