♪　Programme　♪

F. Poulenc	:	Cinq Poèmes de Max Jacob  Ⅰ Chanson bretonne  Ⅱ Cimetière  Ⅲ La Petite servante  Ⅳ Berceuse  Ⅴ Souric et Mouric
		Toréador (chanson hispano-italienne)
G. Bizet	:	» Carmen « (Carmen)  Habanera, Seguidilla
F. Poulenc	:	Les chemins de l'amour - Valse chantee
S. Yoshida	:	KATCHO-HUEI pour soprano et piano Poeme de Kyoshi Takahama
R. Wagner	:	Der Tannenbaum
		Sieben Kompositionen zu Goethes Faust  Nr.6: Gretchen am Spinnrade  Nr.7: Melodram
		» Der Fliegende Holländer « (Senta)  Sentas Ballade

Ranko Kurano
- Soprano

Ranko Kurano graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts with a Masters in Opera Vocals, gained experience at the National Opera Studio, and was encouraged to study in Milano as a scholarship recipient of a Japanese Ministry of Education. This led to further studies at the Academy of Music-Uccle, Brussels where she graduated with a Degré supérieur d’excellence” and won a Medal of Uccle-city, also graduated with a Masters of Music from the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. Ranko was a finalist in the Toulouse International Singing Competition and the Marmande International Singing Competition. She also won first prize in the Japan competition for Wagner Voice in Tokyo and awarded the special prize at the International Singing Competition for Wagner Voice in Bayreuth and Saarbrücken, Germany, and made her concert debut at Toulouse Opera Arias Concert with Jose Van Dam in 1996 and her Opera debut as Elisabeth in Wagner’s Tannhäuser in Tokyo in 1999. Other notable performances during Ranko’s 15 years in Europe as well as her time in Tokyo include: Soprano Solo in Beethoven’s Symphony No.9 at Palais des Congrès de Buxelles and at Smetana Hall in Prague, First Soprano solo in Mahler’s Symphony No.8 at Hanoi, Veitnam, Soprano Solo in Poulenc’s Stabat Mater conducted by Charles Dutoit at Tokyo and Opera Performances: Micaëlla in Carmen in Hannover, Antonia in Les Contes d’Hoffmann in Tokyo, Elektra at Theater Monnaie Bruxelles Belgium, L’amico Fritz at L’opera National du Rhin-Strabourg, Title Role in Madama Butterfly in Tokyo and Crete, Greece, Die Knusperhexe in Hänsel und Gretel in Tokyo.
Among her most memorable performances are the Wagner’s Operas where Ranko performed major roles in Keith Warner’s production of Der Ring des Nibelungen (Tokyo Ring), New National Theater Tokyo; Wellgunde and Freia in Das Rheingold; Sieglinde in Die Walküre; Gutrune in Götterdämmerung; also performed Senta in Edo de Waard’s direction of Der Fliegende Holländer; as well as Kundry in Parsifal; and Brünnhilde in Die Walküre. Ranko’s tremendous devotion to the role, brings alive the character’s spirit on stage where she has been acclaimed as “a woman in spirit possession” and she has received praise from Keith Warner as “the most brilliant Sieglinde I've ever met!”
Ranko has also made great success in Janáček’s opera, Lišák in Příhody Lišky Bystroušky, Emilia Marty in Vĕc Makropulos at Tokyo, and Poulenc & Cocteau’s Mono-Opera; La Voix Humaine with The Japan Sinfonia which highly praised her performance as epic. CD releases are ≪ Ranko Kurano Wagner Album ≫, ≪ Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 4 ≫ with The Japan Sinfonia and ≪ Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 2 ≫ with The Japan Gustav Mahler Orchestra, conducted by Hisayoshi Inoue.

Aki Uchiyama
- Piano

Started learning piano from Akemi Yamada at the age of five. Continued studies under Mihoko Naito at the Department of Arts (Music), School of Humanities and Culture, Tokai University. After finishing her master in Musicology at Graduate School of Tokai University, she moved to Germany to study Liedgestaltung (piano accompaniment techniques for lied) under Ramón Walter at Hochschule für Musik Freiburg. Since moved back to Japan in 1996, she has been performing as an accompanist for singers, instruments, and choirs at concerts, including "NHK-FM recital." Also studied under Yukiko Takahashi, well-versed in the French music. She has been coaching "Bach-Chor, Tokyo" and "Bach Kantaten Chor" as a Korrepetitor.

All concerts in the KEK Concert series are open to the public and admission free. If you wish to attend, please notify your name and address to the Information Centre at the Main Gate of KEK upon your arrival.