MUSICAL INSPIRATION
The inspiration which each of her tutors has given her is
cherished by June as an invaluable legacy. Her hope is to share this
with everyone, through her performance, teaching and story-telling.
Copyright © 2007 June Grandwells. All rights reserved.
THE LATE MR KIYOSHI TSUTSUMI
Father of Professor Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi (Indiana University)
Mr Tsutsumi was June's first cello tutor.
Although known for his strictness, to her he was
like a grandfather. At every lesson, he would
express his delight at her having done her
homework so well, and would indicate how
difficult the next would be.
June greatly admires Mr Tsutsumi for his very original
method of teaching children. He would give his pupils a copy
of a well-known tune that he himself arranged to suit
each pupil's ability and progress. Looking at her collection
of his hand-written music sheets, June still feels his warmth
very close to her.
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Copyright © 2007 June Grandwells. All rights reserved.
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INCENTIVES
The late Professor Reine Flachot (École Normale de
Musique de Paris, France) recognised June's gift and
invited her to the Masterclasses for conservatoire music
students in France when she was still only eleven.
Professor Flachot's performance of Kodály’s Solo Sonata
impressed June deeply, and the course itself was very
exciting. June is especially grateful to Professor Flachot
for this unforgettable experience.
When June had just turned fourteen, she won
the Gold Medal at a Competition, outperforming many
older and more highly trained students. Receiving
the Special Prize from the President of her local
City Assembly on that occasion was her first
official acknowledgement, and led to June's admission
into the Toho Gakuen College of Music, which has
produced many of world-renowned performers.
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PROFESSOR KENICHIRO YASUDA
Toho Gakuen Public School
Toho Gakuen College of Music
Pupil of both Pierre Fournier and Gaspar Cassadó
Third Prize Winner at the Tchaikovsky International Competition 1966
June recalls a discussion about
tempo with Professor Yasuda that
illustrated his droll sense of humour.
Portraits of Brahms in later life depict
his stout physique, so they came to
the conclusion that he could not
possibly have walked or danced with
the same agility as a skinny child
like June. Therefore, when Brahms
suggested certain tempi ‘like a march’
or ‘like a minuet,’ they would have to
moderate their thinking accordingly.
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On another occasion,
the subject was the perceived
differences in the colours of
sounds,
and
Professor
Yasuda suggested that June
associate each chord or key
with a particular colour.
She very much appreciates
this
stimulation
of
her synaesthetic sense at
an early age.
Copyright © 2007 June Grandwells. All rights reserved.
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THE FRENCH CONNECTION
VIA GERMANY
Since then, June has become aware of two major
influences on her musical application stemming from this early
period of her study. She was introduced to the efficient and
methodical approach of the Germans by the followers of
Hideo Saito, a pupil of Feuermann and founder of the Toho
Gakuen College of Music. At the same time, the French schools'
influence on her musical interpretation was instigated by
Professor Yasuda and the other cellists (pupils of French
legends such as Tortelier and Navarra) with whom she was
studying chamber music at the time.
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THE LATE EMERITUS PROFESSOR
YORITOYO INOUE
Toho Gakuen Public School
Toho Gakuen College of Music
Expert in playing and teaching Russian music in Japan
Several times Judge at the Tchaikovsky International Competition
June remembers her
last meeting with Professor
Inoue. “Although his health
had already deteriorated,
he promised me, when I was
leaving Japan, that he would
be waiting for me to play
for him again. This was
probably the first and last
falsehood he ever told.”
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The Professor's beloved wife
reported to June's mother that, unlike
any of his other pupils, June tended to
chat away in the course of her lessons.
Their philosophical discussions were
often about music, but June treasures
most the account of Professor Inoue's
survival technique as a prisoner of
war during a Siberian winter,
when he learnt Russian.
Copyright © 2007 June Grandwells. All rights reserved.
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One day, whilst playing a Bach
piece for him, June suddenly became
confused about the intonation and felt
somehow trapped and muddled.
She could not forgive herself for being
unable to play her best for him. “When
you feel as if you are regressing,
it means your sense has become
sharper - proof that you are actually
making progress,” Professor Inoue
told her. June was encouraged by
this consolation, especially when
she found herself in what she calls
a quagmire of despair.
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When June apologised
for her absence from
Professor Inoue's funeral,
his widow reassured her,
“He would not have been
pleased if you had wasted
time when you should have
been studying attending
the funeral. He will always
be with you.” June took
comfort from this shared
belief
that
constant
self-improvement
was
the only way to repay
the support she had received.
Copyright © 2007 June Grandwells. All rights reserved.
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REWARDS
Soon
after
graduating
as
a Bachelor of Arts, June won a prize
in the 60th Japan Music Competition.
In the same year, she was awarded
the Japan Federation of Musicians’
Prize for her Schumann Concerto, and
her achievement was marked with
membership of the Federation.
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THE RUSSIAN CONNECTION
VIA GREAT BRITAIN
June wishes to express her thanks to Professor Ralph
Kirshbaum and Professor Emma Ferrand, her tutors at the Royal
Northern College of Music. June received a scholarship from the
RNCM, and was subsequently awarded a Postgraduate Diploma in
Advanced Studies in Musical Performance. She also has dear
memories of her Masterclass lessons with Professor Steven Doane
(University of Rochester, Royal Academy of Music) at the International
Music Seminar in Cornwall, where she was enthused by Professor
Doane's unique perspective on the topic.
In the same year that June became a member of the Japan Cello
Society, her lifelong dream of studying the Russian method was
finally fulfilled when she met Professor Alexander Boyarsky and
Professor Karine Georgian, to both of whom she feels
immense gratitude.
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PROFESSOR ALEXANDER BOYARSKY
Royal College of Music
June studied with Professor Boyarsky privately between 1997
and 2000. She must have looked somewhat fragile to him and
he would start with, “Are you all right? You still look like a doll.
What (piece) did you bring today?”
Professor Boyarsky allayed, with great immediacy, many
musical concerns June had endured for years. No-one but he,
June professes, can spot the cause of uncertainty so quickly.
His priceless advice helped her to regain her confidence.
Attending a recital given by Professor Boyarsky’s son,
Konstantin, Principal Viola in the Royal Opera House Orchestra,
June reflected that the son, taking after his father, must have been
very popular. Indeed, both are handsome and tall, brilliant
musicians, with a good sense of humour. And Professor Boyarsky’s
wife, who teaches violin at the Yehudi Menuhin School, always looks
elegant and graceful ... June is very fond of this ideal family.
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PROFESSOR KARINE GEORGIAN
Musikhochschule in Detmold (Germany)
Royal Northern College of Music
First Prize and Gold Medal Winner at the 1966 Tchaikovsky International Competition
Dedicatee and Associate of leading contemporary composers
When June first ‘saw’
Professor Georgian play,
the angle of her left hand on
the fingerboard seemed
interestingly
distinctive.
June wondered whether
this might be only a trick of
her own sightline. But
this observation eventually
led June to establish
the method that translates
her exuberant imagination
into rich sound.
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Professor
Georgian's
instantaneous response to June's
performance during her first lesson
at the Dartington International
Summer School, which
twice
awarded
June a scholarship, was
to empathise with her deep
contemplation of music. June can
never thank the Professor enough
for her generous and never-failing
mental support, and explains why
she regards Professor Georgian
as her mentor.
Copyright © 2007 June Grandwells. All rights reserved.
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“Whatever she does, her very
presence is awe-inspiring. One episode
illustrates her complete integrity: despite
her secure status as one of the most
respected of cellists, due to her passion for
music
and
her
uncompromising
commitment to her pupils, she did not
mind humbling herself by asking
all her pupils their opinion of her
performance at a stage rehearsal,
just before an important concert in which
she was to give the world première
performance of a piece.”
Another time, she casually took her student's cello
and played a phrase as a demonstration. Everyone shed
tears of pleasure at this inexpressibly spiritual moment.
“I am most privileged to have witnessed it.”
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Professor Ralph Kirshbaum
http://www.cellist.nl/
REFERENCES:
http://www.kirshdem.com/artist.php?id=ralphkirshbaum
ANNABEL MARTIN-BAH
Professor(2003)
Emma Ferrand
http://www.rncm.ac.uk/?_id=386
“Interview with June Grandwells”
MisterPinEd Ltd
Professor Steven Doane
http://www.cello.org/Newsletter/Articles/SDoane.html
KUMIKO ANDO
http://www.esm.rochester.edu/faculty/?id=60
(1998) 15 October 1998 Edition
“Interview with June Grandwells
Professor
Alexander
Boyarsky
Her Search for the Way to Convey
the Beauty
of the
Suppression of Emotions in the East”
http://www.rcm.ac.uk/prof.asp?display=professors&link=196
Nichi-Ei Times (1991 to 2002)
Konstantin Boyarsky
MICHIKO OI
http://www.zavarteclassic.com/konstantin-boyarsky
(1976 to 1982)
“June’s Lesson Diaries”
Professor Natalie Boyarsky
Private Collection
http://www.yehudimenuhinschool.co.uk/1g.asp
Professor
Karine
Georgian
EDITED
BY:
http://www.karinegeorgian.com/
EUGENE RYAN
Red
Rose
“Taboo”
VAL
SOUTHON
Copyright © 2007 June Grandwells. All rights reserved.