Empress Michiko was in attendance at Tokyo's Kioi Hall on February 4 for a special event, "An Introduction to the Orchestra for Children," planned and presented by the Association of Japanese Symphony Orchestras.
The event used proceeds from a concert by the world-famous cellist Mstislav Rostropovich in celebration of Empress Michiko's seventieth birthday two years ago. Its objective was to give children an opportunity to meet professional orchestra members and discover the joy of creating music. About fifty elementary school students performed their own compositions to the empress's enthusiastic applause.
