Smooth transitions: Native of Japan a conductor on the move

By JEFFREY DAY - jday@thestate.com

Conductor Morihiko Nakahara is coming a long way — from Spokane, Wash. — for his tryout with the S.C. Philharmonic. That’s just a puddle jump compared to the move he made as a child.

Nakahara (naa-ka-har-a) grew up in a small town outside Kagoshima, Japan, where he lived with his mother and grandparents. At 15, he went to Michigan as a foreign exchange student.

“My grandmother was very progressive and really wanted me to experience the rest of the world,” Nakahara said. “She had this wild idea about sending me to the U.S.”

He didn’t mind at all and fit in well in the small community, which was similar to his hometown.

Nakahara, 31, is the second of seven candidates for the music director position at the S.C. Philharmonic. Saturday (Oct. 13) he will lead the orchestra in playing a Felix Mendelssohn violin concerto with guest soloist John McLaughlin Williams; “Last Round,” a contemporary tango-influenced work by Osvaldo Golijov; and music for the ballet “Romeo and Juliet” by Sergei Prokofiev.

Nakahara is a conductor in transition and literally on the move.

Right after conducting here, he will head to Jacksonville, Fla., where he starts his first season as associate music director. He also holds that post at the Spokane orchestra.

He just wrapped up six years as conductor of a Michigan orchestra and plans to leave his post at Eastern Washington University, where he is director of orchestras.

Nakahara was an only child, and his parents split up when he was small. His mother worked, so his grandparents provided much of his care. His early music training was the usual school classes. He eventually took up clarinet, which he also studied in college before switching to conducting.

Along with his duties in Jacksonville and the trip to Columbia, Nakahara has several guest conducting slots coming up.

“I’ve been fairly busy, so I haven’t counted yet,” he said.

Because he’s a young conductor establishing himself, he does not often get back to Japan to visit his family.

Nakahara said the program for Saturday’s concert will provide a good variety for him, the orchestra and the audience.

“The Mendelssohn is very much a staple for violin and orchestra, and I’m assuming many have played accompaniment to Mendelssohn,” he said.

The Golijov piece shows the range of the composer’s influences — from the folk music of his native Argentina to his Jewish heritage to his place in the avant garde.

“People might not know it, but the raw, emotional power is easy to understand,” Nakahara said.

The Prokofiev “I’ve always liked,” he said. “Every section has some important solo playing, and it’s a good way to get to know the orchestra.”

And that’s what he is here to do.

Reach Day at (803) 771-8518.

MORIHIKO NAKAHARA

• Age: 31

• Native of the Kagoshima region of southern Japan

• Came to the U.S. at 15

• Studied at Andrews University in Michigan and the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music

• Associate conductor of orchestras in Jacksonville, Fla., and Spokane, Wash.; former music director of the Holland, Mich., orchestra

• Featured in the American Symphony Orchestra League’s National Conductor Preview, 2005