Since 2008, UBE has been inviting the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra to Ube City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, where the Company was founded, to hold a classical music concert with a full orchestra. The goal is to contribute to the development of local culture through music based on UBE’s founding principle of coexistence and mutual prosperity.
18th UBE Classical Concert
In July 2025, we invited the conductor Toshiaki Umeda to UBE’s Head Office to participate in a conversation with President Nishida prior to this year’s concert, which will be the 18th in this series.
In addition to explaining the appeal of the upcoming concert, the two also shared a calm dialogue on the values shared by communities and companies through the lens of music, such as comparing the roles of an orchestra conductor and a company president.
Special Discussion between President Nishida and Mr. Toshiaki Umeda (Conductor)
Discussion Article (PDF: 394 KB) (Japanese only)
Discussion Video (YouTube)
Discussion Video: UBE Classic Concert 2025 Special Discussion
UBE Classical Concert
To improve the music culture of local communities and help nurture the next generation, UBE has invited the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra to perform a concert of classical music at the Watanabe Memorial Hall in Ube, Yamaguchi every year since 2008.
This concert contains an original setlist that UBE, as the main sponsor, participated in selecting and deciding on the order of performance. Employees have been working together as one to ensure a smooth process from initial planning all the way through management on the day of the event, creating a special place for the community and the Company to act in harmony. This concert receives additional support from cooperating private citizens, local governments, and public interest groups, reflecting a collaborative spirit encompassing the entire community. (Partners: (Public Interest Incorporated Foundation) Watanabe Memorial Culture Association, Ube Music Appreciation Society. Supporters: Ube City, Ube Board of Education, Ube Culture Creation Foundation, Ube Nippo, tys TV Yamaguchi, FMY FM Yamaguchi, FM Kirara)
In addition, the Group company Libertas Ube, Ltd. has, with the cooperation of the Ube-city Council of the Social Work, has undertaken an initiative to invite persons with disabilities to the dress rehearsal of this concert. This was done with the goal of providing those who feel uneasy about attending the concert on the formal performance date with a chance to experience the music. Moreover, as part of our efforts to create a concert that everyone can enjoy with peace of mind, we worked alongside PIONEER CORPORATION to install haptic sound systems so that persons with auditory disabilities can experience the music as well.
※Haptic sound systems operated by PIONEER CORPORATION are currently not in use.
Since 2022, in line with the basic concept "Together with Residents, Together with Music," we have been making sweeping renewals to the content offered through this project, with a focus on children's education and the promotion of music culture among the next generation. Our hope is that through this performance we are able to spark an interest, however small, in classical music among the young people who will become leaders for the next generation, and to this end we waive all fees for the elementary and junior high school students from the cities of Ube, Sanyoonoda, and Mine that we invite to attend each year. In addition, we have donated the proceeds from ticket sales to improve local music culture since the very first concert, and we maintain an ongoing program under which we donate instruments to support the activities of junior high school brass bands. We will continue to conduct activities to support the enhancement of music culture.
Moreover, we will hold our annual friendship concert at a hospital on the day before the event to provide patients with an opportunity to heal through music. In fiscal 2025, we will also hold a "lobby concert" in Ube City Hall's Civic Center to allow a broad range of community members to enjoy music free of charge.
-
The Friendship concert
(at Yamaguchi University Hospital) -
The Friendship concert
(at the Ube City Hall's Civic Center)
Music clinic
-
On the day before the UBE Classical Concert, instructors from the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra are invited to conduct a music clinic in which they instruct brass band students on their instruments.These events are held in classrooms and gymnasiums at junior high schools in Ube City. They are organized by the Watanabe Memorial Culture Association with the cooperation of UBE Corporation.
Comments from students
- I am glad that I was able to play beautifully in the joint performance after the clinic because I learned better how to produce sound and how to play musically. (Horn, 2nd year junior high school student)
- I had never been able to produce high notes, but after being taught, I was able to do it for the first time. I am very satisfied. (Trumpet, 1st year junior high school student)
-
History of UBE Classical Concert
| 1st concert (2008) | As a social contribution activity for the local community, the company began holding the UBE Group Charity Concert at the Ube City Watanabe Memorial Hall, which was built to commemorate the achievements of UBE’s founder, Sukesaku Watanabe, and has hosted performances by many famous musicians in Japan and from around the world. It was first held as a summer family concert for children, but since most of the audience were adults, the company decided to hold it as an autumn classical concert from the following year. |
|---|---|
| 2nd – 9th concerts | The original Composer Series programs were presented. |
| 4th concert (2011) | Elementary and junior high school students were invited free of charge to the dress rehearsal. This was continued thereafter until 9th concert and changed to invitations to main performances, etc., from the 10th concert onward. |
| 5th concert (2012) | Hearing-impaired people were invited to the dress rehearsal, and body sonics were used. This was continued thereafter. |
| 10th concert (2017) | Premium events were held to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the concert. Participants were selected by lottery from among those who had purchased tickets for the concert. The events were: (1) 60 people invited to an orchestra talk and instrument hands-on experience, (2) 100 people invited to observe the dress rehearsal, and (3) approximately 100 junior high school students in Ube City invited free of charge to the main performance (the invitation was changed from the dress rehearsal to the main performance). |
| 11th concert (2018) | The company continued to invite about 100 junior high school students in Ube City to the main performance free of charge. |
| 12th concert (2019) | The soloist signed autographs. |
| 13th concert (2020) | The concert was held with thorough measures to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 (e.g., by holding two performances per day with only 20% of the seating capacity filled). |
| 14th concert (2021) | The concert was held with thorough measures to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 (e.g., by filling only 50% of the seating capacity). |
| 15th concert (2022) | In light of the company’s name change to UBE Corporation, the 80th anniversary of its incorporation, and the 125th anniversary of its founding, the purpose of the concert was changed to place more emphasis on supporting children’s music education (in schools), and the name was changed to UBE Classical Concert. Elementary and junior high school students not only from Ube City, but also from the neighboring cities of Sanyo Onoda and Mine are invited to the main performance. UBE hopes to provide more children with opportunities to experience classical music and to support their growth through music education. UBE also sees this as a contribution to SDG 4, “Quality Education.” |
| 16th concert (2023) | The conductor of the concert was Mr. Junichi Hirokami. Mr. Hirokami had also been the conductor of the 13th concert in 2020, which was held with thorough measures to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 (e.g., holding two performances without intermissions per day at each stage and filling only 250 seats, or 25%, of the seating capacity). The 16th concert marked his much-awaited reappearance, and the selection of pieces that he conducted included symphonies. The concert also featured Ms. Rio Arai, a solo violinist who uploads YouTube videos designed to communicate the appeal of the violin in an approachable manner and who is frequently featured in various media. |
| 17th concert (2024) | The concert was our first time inviting a solo flutist to perform. |