On the evening of July 8th, the Emperor and Empress of Japan attended a dinner hosted by the President and First Lady of Mongolia at the hotel where they were staying.
At this dinner, His Majesty the Emperor played the viola on stage and performed with the Mongolian National Morin Khuur Symphony Orchestra, deepening international friendship through music. The full videos of the two pieces of music performed by His Majesty the Emperor on the viola has been released by NTVNews of Japan.
The Emperor performed two pieces, one Mongolian and one Japanese, together with the viola players of the Mongolian National Morin Khuur Symphony Orchestra and the Mongolian National Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra.
The first song is "Mongolian Ayargoo" by Mongolian composer Altankhuyag. This song is a piece for the Morin Khuur composed in the early 2000s, and is said to express the broad and gentle feelings and innermost thoughts of Mongolians.
The second song is the Japanese "Song of the Beach." This is a masterpiece that has been selected as one of the "100 Best Japanese Songs" with lyrics by Hayashi Kokei and music by Narita Tamezo.
The Emperor has played viola on foreign visits in the past, but this was the first time he performed in public on a foreign visit since coronation.
The Emperor brought his beloved viola from Japan to Mongolia, and on the 8th, after paying his respects at the memorial monument for Japanese detainees in Mongolia, he returned to the hotel and rehearsed with the orchestra.
According to the Imperial Household Agency, the Emperor commented, "It was very good to be able to perform together."
The Mongolian National Morin Khuur Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra that plays morin khuur, a traditional Mongolian instrument. When the orchestra performed in Japan in 2022, the Emperor and Empress attended the concert along with the President of Mongolia and his wife, who were visiting Japan.
Furthermore, in 2007, when His Majesty visited as Crown Prince, he also performed with the orchestra on the viola.
During the approximately three-hour banquet, Mongolian artists and athletes appeared and performed a variety of performances, including Japanese songs. The Emperor and Empress commented, "Through the performances, we were able to feel the rich artistic talent of Mongolia and the Mongolian people, and were impressed by how proud the Mongolian people are in their arts and how talented they are."
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