Grantee | Connecticut College (Awarded in January 2025)
Project | 2025 Connecticut College Orchestra Tokyo Concert Programme
When Professor Shou Ping Liu began planning an international concert tour with the Connecticut College Orchestra, she wasn’t just thinking about the musical repertoire—she was thinking about access. (Photo credit: Peichang Zheng)
“How does it feel when we say music is a universal language with no boundaries, and then turn around to tell the students that their financial hardship will get in the way of such an experience?” she asked. “They had all auditioned. They all worked equally hard. How would it be possible to leave some behind?”
That commitment to access shaped every decision Liu made as the tour came together. Thanks in part to support from the United States-Japan Foundation (USJF), no one was left behind. In March 2025, Liu led all 31 student musicians to Tokyo, where they joined the professional Tokyo Sinfonia for a week of intensive rehearsals and a joint concert. For many students, it was their first time outside the United States, and for some, their first time on a plane. The tour became a transformative lesson in cross-cultural collaboration, inclusion, and the unifying power of music.
From Workshop to World Stage
The idea began modestly. While researching workshops for her own professional development, Liu came across the Tokyo Sinfonia International Conducting Workshop, led by renowned conductor Robert Rÿker. She reached out to inquire and proposed something bold: what if her student orchestra joined the professional ensemble for a joint concert? (Photo credit: Sean Elliot)
To her surprise, Maestro Rÿker embraced the idea immediately. What started as a personal outreach evolved into a full-fledged international collaboration. Together, Liu and Rÿker designed a program that would bring American student musicians and Japanese professionals onto the same stage—not just to perform, but to rehearse, interact, and learn from each other.
Opportunities like this are rare in the world of collegiate music, where professional ensembles and student orchestras seldom share the same stage. For Liu, that was exactly what made the challenge worth pursuing.
Beyond the Music: A Cultural Education
This was no sightseeing trip. The orchestra spent nearly a year preparing an all-Beethoven program—The Creatures of Prometheus Overture, Piano Concerto No. 1, and Symphony No. 7—a repertoire both technically and emotionally demanding. “I worried students would tire of playing just one composer,” Liu recalled. “To my surprise, they loved it. They bathed in Beethoven for a year.”
Music was just one part of the students’ education. Connecticut College faculty member Professor Hisae Kobayashi taught a custom Japanese language and culture course to all of the students. In Tokyo, the orchestra visited cultural landmarks and participated in a traditional tea ceremony. “Halfway through the tour, students were even bowing to the people around them without consciously thinking about it,” said Liu.
The Tokyo Sinfonia rehearsals added another layer of immersion that went beyond the technical and aesthetic aspects of music. “My students were impressed by their dedication and stamina,” Liu explained. “Whereas we in the United States are accustomed to three-hour rehearsals, the rehearsals of the Tokyo Sinfonia lasted six hours each day!”
To deepen collaboration, each Connecticut College student was paired with a Tokyo Sinfonia musician, sharing a music stand and, increasingly, a shared musical vocabulary. “Although there was a language barrier between the two groups, the musicians learned how to communicate through music,” Liu said. “They learned to watch one another’s phrasing and to even share their musical ideas with one another. This was beautiful for me to see.” (Photo credit: Motokazu Ichinoseki)
Equity in Action
As the Connecticut College Orchestra prepared for its most ambitious project yet, one obstacle threatened to undermine the entire effort: affordability. Although the College provides strong support for study abroad programs, this concert tour didn’t qualify for traditional funding, putting several students at risk of being left behind.
That’s where the United States-Japan Foundation stepped in. A USJF grant helped cover flights, instrument rentals, cultural activities, and coaching fees for six students with demonstrated financial need.
“The unexpected help from the USJF made it so that all students felt equal on the trip,” Liu said. “The students who were supported by financial aid were able to fully participate in the entire experience as if there were no boundary between them and the other students.”
Returning Home—and Looking Ahead
Back in Connecticut, the orchestra’s momentum didn’t stop. At the Garde Arts Center, the region’s most prominent performance space, the Connecticut College Orchestra joined with the New London High School Choir for a post-tour concert. In the longer term, many of the choir members, drawn from a diverse public school community, were juggling part-time jobs or were uncertain about attending college. Through music, the two groups connected—and USJF’s support reverberated again.
“Without our trip to Japan, I don't think there would have been so many people willing to support my concert at the Garde,” said Liu. “There was a strong feeling of warmth in this concert.”
The Tokyo experience also planted seeds for the future. Liu hopes to expand the orchestra’s global partnerships, including potential collaborations with Doshisha University, a Connecticut College sister school in Kyoto. She dreams of inviting Tokyo Sinfonia musicians to New London, Connecticut, creating a reciprocal exchange.
For the students, the memories are fresh, but Liu knows the real impact may not surface for years. “I would not be surprised if these 31 students return to Japan in the future because of their love of the country that they developed on this trip. I believe that, in all of these ways, this trip contributed to the relationship between the United States and Japan.”
A Legacy of Possibility
For Liu, this tour was more than a professional highlight; it was a personal mission fulfilled. Trained in Germany, raised in Taiwan, and now teaching in the U.S., she has long believed that music can bridge the spaces between people and cultures. With the support of the United States-Japan Foundation, she turned that belief into a living, breathing performance: one bow, one rehearsal, one flight at a time.
“We learned so much more about the musical scene, the musical heritage, and the musicians’ attitude in Japan through this experience,” she said. “For students, this memory will stay with them for a long time. Their growth as musicians and human beings was immense.” (Photo credit: Sean Elliot)
