The Nippon Club Summer Festival 2024
“Musical Banquet – Celebrating Jokichi Takamine’s Induction into the National Inventors Hall of Fame”
Dr. Jokichi Takamine, the first president of Nippon Club, was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame on May 9, 2024. Dr. Takamine was a pioneer in biotechnology, conducting research that led to the medical application of adrenaline, for which he was awarded 20 U.S. patents, not only contributing to the development of the industry, but also building a significant cultural impact and creating an enduring legacy in Japan and the United States. At this year’s Summer Festival, we would like to honor and celebrate his accomplishments with you.
This year’s event venue will be the Manhattan School of Music (MSM), where the JCC Fund is committed to supporting scholarships for outstanding Japanese students studying at MSM, and
Mr. Maeda, Vice President & Assistant Secretary of the Nippon Club, represents the JCC Fund on MSM’s International Advisory Board. It is through these connections that we have decided to hold this event at MSM.
The first half of the event will consist of a reception with dinner and drinks, and the second half will feature entertainment by MSM faculty and students, with the first half featuring classical music and the second half featuring jazz. We hope you will join us for an enjoyable summer evening.
Concert venue: Miller Recital Hall (MSM)
【Date & Time】
Tuesday, July 2
6:00 PM～8:45 PM (U.S. EST)
【Venue】
Manhattan School of Music
（130 Claremont Ave, New York, NY 10027）
www.msmnyc.edu
【Fee】
Members $180/Guests & Non-members $220
（dinner & drinks, tax and service charge included）
【Maximum allowed up to 100 guests】
Please note that the registration will be closed as soon as it reaches capacity.
Adrenaline (Adrenalin®) U.S. Patent No. 730,176 Inducted in 2024
(Born Nov. 3, 1854 – Died July 22, 1922)
Chemist and entrepreneur Jokichi Takamine was a biotechnology pioneer whose research led to the use of adrenaline in medicine. Also known as epinephrine, adrenaline is widely used for many applications, including the treatment of anaphylaxis and cardiac arrest. (https://www.invent.org/inductees/jokichi-takamine)
5:30 pm Open venue and check-in
6:00 – 7:20 pm Dinner & Cocktail hour (MSM Ades Hall)
7:30 – 7:40 pm Opening remark (MSM Miller Hall)
7:40 – 7:45 pm Announcement of Jokichi Takamine’s induction of National Inventors Hall of Fame
7:45 – 8:45 pm Entertainment (Live Classical & Jazz music performance by MSM faculties & students)
8:45 pm Closing, End of the event
Claude Debussy, Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp, First movement, Pastorale.
Lento, dolce rubato
Blu Akira Shelton, flute
Soolim Shin, viola
Mariko Anraku, harp
Program TBA
Suzuna Ikeda, Lyric Soprano
Bradley Moore, Piano
Program TBA
J’Nai Bridges, Mezzo Soprano
Bradley Moore, Piano
Performers:
Erena Terakubo, Saxophone
June Cavlan, Voice
Quinton Cain, Drums
John Benitez, Bass
（司会者/Master of Ceremony）
Christina Maxwell is a New York City-based singer, actress, and executive consultant. A graduate of the University of Michigan’s Musical Theatre department, she is an award-winning performer who has appeared globally, including in New York City, Italy, France, and Japan. Maxwell has also starred in commercials for brands like Olay, Nissan, and Humira, and received accolades for her role in the musical “SONATA 1962.”
In addition to her performing career, Maxwell consults for brands such as Related Companies, Mikimoto, and Pomellato. She previously worked as Director at Related Companies, where she launched Art @ Related and advised on cultural partnerships. She also emcees galas and speaks at institutions like NYU and Columbia Business School.
Maxwell has a background in music and arts therapy, having worked with children battling cancer at RipRap and launched “Music at Mott” at the University of Michigan’s Mott Children’s Hospital. She was named Distinguished Young Woman of America in 2012.
(ハープ奏者/Harp)
Mariko Anraku is a renowned soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician, praised for her artistry and elegance. Since 1995, she has been the Associate Principal Harpist of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Anraku has performed with orchestras such as the Toronto Symphony and Vienna Chamber Orchestra, and in major concert halls like Carnegie Hall and Opera Comique in Paris. She has received numerous awards, including First Prize at the Nippon International Harp Competition and the Concert Artists Guild Competition.
Anraku is dedicated to contemporary harp repertoire, premiering works by Toshio Hosokawa and Jean-Michel Damase. She has recorded three solo albums and a duo album with flutist Emmanuel Pahud for EMI Classics. Anraku teaches at the Manhattan School of Music and the Pacific Music Festival, and serves as a jury member at harp competitions. She holds degrees from the Juilliard School and the Glenn Gould School, and has studied under notable teachers. Additionally, she studied Oriental Art History at Sophia University and performs community service concerts at various venues.
(メゾソプラノ/Mezzo-soprano)
Two-time Grammy® Award-winning American mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges is known for her “plush-voiced mezzo-soprano” (The New York Times) and commanding stage presence. Her 2023-24 season features the world premiere of Intelligence by Jake Heggie at the Houston Grand Opera and debut performances with the New York Philharmonic and Boston Symphony Orchestra. She will also return to the Metropolitan Opera in John Adams’ El Niño and perform as Carmen at the Hamburg State Opera. Her recital engagements include performances at San Diego Opera, Modlin Center of the Arts, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In the 2022-23 season, Bridges starred as Carmen at Arena di Verona, Canadian Opera Company, Dutch National Opera, and Lyric Opera of Chicago. She made her Seattle Opera debut as Delilah and performed Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony with the Detroit Symphony. Additionally, she premiered works by Carlos Simon and Jimmy Lopez, and performed at various prestigious venues.
During the pandemic, Bridges emerged as a leading figure in promoting inclusion and racial justice in classical music. She was named a Kennedy Center NEXT50 cultural leader and premiered Adolphus Hailstork’s A Knee on the Neck with the National Philharmonic. She led a notable panel on race and inequality in opera with the Los Angeles Opera and was featured in the Converse shoe brand’s All Stars Campaign. Bridges also performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and participated in the Global Citizen movement’s Global Goal campaign.
Bridges’ notable past performances include her Metropolitan Opera debut as Nefertiti in Akhnaten, winning Grammy® Awards for productions of Akhnaten and Richard Danielpour’s The Passion of Yeshua, and role debuts in Satyagraha and Girls of the Golden West. She has received numerous prestigious awards, including the 2018 Sphinx Medal of Excellence and the 2016 Richard Tucker Career Grant.
A native of Tacoma, Washington, Bridges earned her Master of Music degree from Curtis Institute of Music and her Bachelor of Music degree from Manhattan School of Music.
(ソプラノ/Soprano)
Suzuna Ikeda is a lyric soprano from Nagasaki, Japan. Recently, she performed as the soloist in the finale of Schumann’s oratorio “Das Paradies und die Peri” with the MuSe Chorus. This year, she has performed as Zerlina in the Act 1 finale of “Don Giovanni,” and sung the soprano aria from the St. Matthew Passion during Bach Week at the Manhattan School of Music. Additionally, she sang both the American and Japanese national anthems at the JCCI 39th Annual Gala Concert last year. Previously, she has performed as Giulietta in scenes from “Giulietta e Romeo” at TIVAA, as Susanna in “Le Nozze di Figaro,” and as Cobweb in Benjamin Britten’s opera “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at MSM. She is also actively engaged in new music and has participated in concerts featuring emerging composers. In 2019, Suzuna earned her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Tokyo University of the Arts and graduated with a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the Manhattan School of Music this spring. Suzuna is set to return next year for a Professional Studies Certificate under the guidance of her vocal professor, Joan Patenaude-Yarnell.
She is a recipient of the JCC Fund Scholarship.
Bradley Moore
(Piano)
Bradley Moore has performed in recital with notable artists like Renée Fleming, Susan Graham, and Jamie Barton, and as a piano soloist with the National Symphony Orchestra and Buffalo Philharmonic. He played the Martinu Harpsichord Concerto with the San Francisco Ballet and has accompanied the Met Orchestra, Wiener Philharmoniker, and Los Angeles Philharmonic.
His recordings include The House Without A Christmas Tree, a recital with Melody Moore, and Silenced – Unsung Voices of the 20th Century with Ian Koziara, to be released on August 9 by Cedille Records.
Moore conducted world premieres of The House Without a Christmas Tree and Some Light Emerges at Houston Grand Opera and led performances of Tosca and The Magic Flute. He has conducted at the Miami Music Festival and Castleton Festival, and served as Associate Music Director at Houston Grand Opera and assistant conductor at the Metropolitan Opera, Salzburg Festival, and Opéra National de Paris.
Erena Terakubo (Saxophone)
Erena Terakubo is a saxophonist, flutist, clarinetist, composer, arranger, and educator from Sapporo, Japan. She gained international recognition with her debut album “North Bird,” which topped Japanese jazz charts. Terakubo has released five more albums and teaches workshops at U.S. universities. She has performed at prestigious venues and events, including International Jazz Day at the UN, Tokyo Jazz Festival, Hollywood Bowl, Dizzy’s Jazz Club, and the Kennedy Center.
She has played with notable ensembles such as the Kenny Barron Quartet and the Mingus Big Band. Terakubo’s six albums include “New York Attitude,” “Burkina,” “A Time for Love,” “Little Girl Power,” and “Absolutely Live!” She also composed the theme song “High Touch (High Five)” for a TV broadcast in Hokkaido.
Terakubo was the first Japanese recipient of the Presidential Scholarship at Berklee College of Music and graduated with a master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music in 2023. She also received the JCC Fund Scholarship.
