Sanctuary Sounds In Bloomfield: 'Tokyo to New York' Concert

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — The following news release comes courtesy of Sanctuary on the Green Arts and Cultural Alliance. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site.

Sanctuary Sounds will present clarinetist and ohichiriki player Thomas Piercy, cellist Elena Ariza, and pianist Marina Iwao in “Tokyo to New York,” a program exploring contemporary musical dialogue across cultures and traditions. The concert will take place at Sanctuary on the Green in Bloomfield, New Jersey at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 15.

The program brings together works by Andrea Casarrubios, Dai Fujikura, Beata Moon, Polina Nazaykinskaya, Miho Sasaki, and Michael Schelle, alongside Astor Piazzolla’s Le Grand Tango, arranged by Thomas Piercy. Several works were composed specifically for Piercy, including Sasaki’s 黎明 (Reimei / Dawn) for ohichiriki, cello, and piano. The concert also features clarinet adaptations of works originally written for him.

Thomas Piercy is a New York City- and Tokyo-based clarinetist and hichiriki player who has premiered more than 400 compositions written for him. His career spans contemporary and classical music, gagaku, Broadway, television, and film. His recordings include the Emmy Award-winning Juno Baby and Netflix’s Emmy Award-winning Blue Eye Samurai. He directs the Tokyo to New York composer/performer collective and Random Access Music.

Elena Ariza, cello, has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Berliner Philharmonie, Davies Symphony Hall, the Royal Concertgebouw, and Seiji Ozawa Hall. A committed advocate for contemporary music, she has commissioned and premiered works bringing the cello into dialogue with traditional Japanese instruments. She is a C.V. Starr Doctoral Fellow at The Juilliard School.

Marina Iwao, piano, is a member of the Tokyo to New York composer/performer collective and an active champion of contemporary music. With Thomas Piercy, she premiered Margaret Brouwer’s Sonata for Clarinet and Piano at the 2023 International ClarinetFest. She serves as a staff pianist at The Juilliard School and Kaufman Music Center.

EVENT INFORMATION

• Tokyo to New York
• Sunday, November 15, 2026
• Sanctuary on the Green Bloomfield, New Jersey
• 3 pm, $10 suggested donation

ABOUT SANCTUARY SOUNDS

Sanctuary Sounds is a concert series presented by Sanctuary on the Green Arts and Cultural Alliance in Bloomfield, New Jersey. Bringing together established and emerging artists, the series presents adventurous musical programming across genres, traditions, and disciplines, with an emphasis on contemporary composition, creative exchange, and the experience of live performance. Set within the historic Bloomfield Presbyterian Church on the Green, Sanctuary Sounds creates opportunities for artists and audiences to encounter new work in an intimate and resonant setting.

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