Yoko Owada

MOUNTAIN VIEW — The Community School of Music and Arts (CSMA) at Finn Center in Mountain View will present a classical flute concert with Yoko Owada on Friday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m.

This special cultural event, offered free of charge in CSMA’s Tateuchi Hall, is part of the school’s commitment to provide the community with high-quality, cross-cultural programs and events. Event supporters include the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco, the Japan Foundation, and the Japan Society of Northern California.

The internationally acclaimed flutist comes to the U.S. after having recently completed a European tour.

As a performer of Western and contemporary Asian music, Owada’s exploration of new sounds and techniques has initiated a revolution in the world of flute music. Her Tateuchi Hall concert will include works by Poulenc, Mozart, Maestro Nakano and other composers. Accompanying Owada will be pianist Dr. Nicholas Isaacs, CSMA music school director.

A graduate of Tokyo’s Toho Gakuen High School of Music, Owada received her undergraduate degree from the Toho Gakuen University of Music. She entered the Conservatoire National de Musique de Paris, where she studied with Jean-Pierre Rampal and received the First Prize in Flute in 1977. Upon graduating from the Conservatoire, she began the soloist course of Freiburg Musik Hochschule in Germany.

While still a student, Owada made her New York debut at Carnegie Weil Recital Hall in 1980 as a winner of the East and West Artists Audition for Young Performers. She also received the Hungarian Special Prize in the 1980 International Music Competition of Budapest, special honors from the Rotary Club in La-Chauz-de-Fond in Switzerland in 1983, and the East and West Artists Soloist Prize in New York in 1986.

Owada has participated in music festivals in France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and Japan, in addition to making both radio and television appearances.

Since her debut with the New Japan Philharmonic in 1981, she has performed internationally with such distinguished ensembles as the Tokyo City Philharmonic, Toulouse National Chamber Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, and Deutsche Bach Solisten.

In addition to playing in various solo recitals and featured performances, she has toured around the world with harpist Josef Malnar. Owada has taught at the Ueno Academy of Music, Toho Gakuen University and Karuizawa Music Summer School.

About CSMA

CSMA at Finn Center is a regional center for arts education committed to providing “arts for all” regardless of age, skill level or economic means. Since its founding in 1968, CSMA has grown to be the largest non-profit provider of arts education programs in the region and is among the top 10 schools of its kind nationally.

In 2004, CSMA opened Finn Center, its state-of-the-art permanent home. Annually, the school reaches over 40,000 people in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. Programs in music, visual arts and new media are provided through lessons, classes and camps, as well as through concerts, artist talks and exhibitions.

CSMA also provides arts-in-the-schools programs (Arts in Action, Music in Action), as well as special outreach events at community venues.

Tateuchi Hall is located at 230 San Antonio Circle. Limited open seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis on the day of the event only, with tickets distributed beginning one hour prior to showtime. There is limited on-site and street parking.

For complete information and a CSMA Arts & Entertainment 2008-09 season brochure, as well as details about all other CSMA programs and services, see www.arts4all.org or call (650) 917-6800.