Be the Change – Yoshie Muratani

Yoshie Muratani will never forget the exact moment she truly fell in love with music. As the daughter of an operatic singer in the Hyōgo prefecture of Japan, Yoshie had been steeped in music since birth. She listened to her mother sing, started playing cello when she was eight years old and discovered the concept of harmony as she and her friends sang on their bus ride home from school.

Early musical experience leads to rich musical career

But the magical moment happened as she played trombone during middle school summer music camp. “One day we were playing a very beautiful brass section harmony,” she recalls. “And then it hit. It felt so good, so fun. I could almost see how the sound was blending. It was so beautiful I started to cry. That’s when I decided to become a musician.”

Yoshie did indeed become a musician. She was one of 10 winners of the prestigious Rohm Music Foundation scholarship in Japan and earned a master’s degree in cello before moving to the United States. She now teaches cello privately in Redding and through The Music Connection in Chico. She also conducts the Butte MTAC (Music Teachers’ Association of California) Youth Orchestra, which involves approximately 30 students between the ages of six and 18.

Yoshie Muratani teaches orchestra students to work together, playing important notes as characters, each part contributing to the story of the music. Photos by Isabel Ruiz.

Orchestra challenges students to learn new roles

To Yoshie, the beauty of music comes not just from individual mastery, but from making music with others. “Learning to play music by yourself is challenging enough,” she says. “As you play in a group, you need to be aware of your role in the group and your relationship to what other people are doing.”

As their skills progress, orchestra students begin to recognize how they need one another to portray the full story of the music. “Many instruments play one note at a time, unlike a piano, which can play many notes at the same time,” Yoshie explains. “When musicians play together, each may play an important note that decides the character of a chord or the direction of the music. Musicians are like actors; they need to understand the part they’re playing because they have active participation.”

Emotional nuance of music inspires students

Practicing this musical awareness of others helps students develop emotional awareness as well. “Music is all about empathy,” Yoshie says. “Music portrays an emotional landscape; it’s an emotional language. In the beginning when I let students hear music, they often say it is happy or sad, but it’s so much more nuanced. What kind of happiness? Is it a peaceful happiness or jumping-up-and-down excitement?” Recognizing the emotions their individual notes contribute to the orchestra overall, Yoshie observes, inspires her students to rise to the challenge.

Neurological disorder leads to musical revelations

Yoshie’s journey has involved adapting to the mysterious paralysis of her left hand, eventually diagnosed as a neurological disorder called focal dystonia. “In a way, it has been a blessing in disguise,” she says. The condition drew her to study different brain neurology and different kinds of healing and increased her growth mindset. “When I was playing with only one finger, since I was not able to move my other fingers, I might not play a note right,” she says. “I realized if I get stuck with those past mistakes, I will make other mistakes. I need to focus on where I’m going.”

Children benefit from Yoshie’s positive, encouraging approach paired with high standards

Cheryl Ghica, who takes her three grandchildren to orchestra practices, describes Yoshie’s gentle, positive manner. Cheryl says her granddaughter especially struggled with the fear of making mistakes but has grown as a musician because of the way Yoshie encourages her and helps her look forward instead of back. “Yoshie is very patient, but she has high standards too. She helps students progress at their own pace and challenges them just enough,” Cheryl says.

Vianna Renaud, a City of Chico arts commissioner and a fellow musician and music educator, met Yoshie two years ago at the MTAC Butte County summer Music Academy. She admires “the value Yoshie places on collaborative work for both her students and colleagues,” such as through MTAC Youth Orchestra’s annual performance with the North State Symphony. This event joins students and professionals onstage under the baton of music director Scott Seaton. Vianna says Yoshie has “a way of fully focusing on you and truly listening; she is authentic, transparent and encourages her students to give their very best.”

Citing the Suzuki method of music education, Yoshie values creating “an environment of music.” While not every youth will play an instrument, creating a musical environment involves not just musicians, but audiences. Yoshie’s friend Natasha Lydon and her two sons have attended recent MTAC orchestra performances and Natasha’s description of their audience experience highlights Yoshie’s passion for and influence on music in the North State. “My kids feel moved by the power of the music Yoshie helps create,” Natasha says. “It penetrates your soul, feeling the love that is created by her work. Yoshie has changed the lives of every person I know that has worked with her. She is a joy, a power and a healer.”

Performances 

Sunday, February 16th – NSS Side-by-side performance at Laxson Auditorium – Advanced Orchestra

Saturday, March 8th – Dream Big Festival at Oroville State Theater

Monday May 19th – The End of Year Concert at Bidwell Presbyterian Church