It’s been 30 years since I first met Noboru Ogino in 1987. Back in those days, the world-renowned 'Le Quatuor de Trombone de Paris' were touring the country on their first trip to Japan. Among the crowd, the then up-and-coming trombonist Ogino listened on intently with amazement and envy.
As the years flew by, I wrote this song, 'In the Still of the Night', for Ogino’s 2001 recital. Furthermore in 2011, with the reproduction of that recital from 10 years prior, I took the chance to revamp the second half of the composition. Finally it was truly complete.
At the onset, the ring of the trombone melds and resounds with the sound of the piano. As the hour grows late, and the lights give way to darkness, silence engulfs the night. Your ears pick up on the faintest sound traveling from a distance. Gradually the music draws you into a distant world. As the universe expands endlessly around you, the echo of Ogino’s trombone deeply entangles you like a soft strip of velvet.
Much time has passed since the composition of this song, and I am eternally grateful for this new publication. I would like to thank trombonist Noboru Ogino, pianist Hiroko Hayashi and FOSTERMUSIC Inc., for helping to making this publication possible.