A solitary hall nestled in the forest
Backstage at Yatsugatake Highland Music Hall

The narrator of this story

Yatsugatake Kogen Lodge / Yatsugatake Highland Music Hall
Sales Planning Manager

Masaaki Yui

Masaaki Yui

Born in Sakuho-machi, Nagano Prefecture. After working at a hotel in Tokyo, she joined the company in 1990 with the desire to "raise her children in her nature-rich hometown." For approximately 30 years, she has been involved in the operation of the Yatsugatake Kogen Music Hall. She is knowledgeable about plants and animals and has the special ability to identify the species of wild birds just by their calls. She also personally guides "Nature Walks," conveying the charm of nature. Her hobbies are mountain climbing and collecting "railway stamps" by traveling around the country.

A "Forest Salon" brought to life by a world-renowned pianist and a celebrated architect.

Located in the Nobeyama area of Minamimaki Village, at the eastern foot of the Yatsugatake Mountains in eastern Nagano Prefecture, "Yatsugatake Kogen Lodge" is a classic highland resort hotel situated in a villa area at an altitude of over 1500m.
A 15-minute walk from this hotel along a tree-lined promenade will reveal a distinctive building with a sharp, angular silhouette in the distance. This is the setting for this story, the Yatsugatake Highland Music Hall.

It all started with small salon concerts held in the lobbies of lodges and other places by music lovers who gathered in the resort area. One day, world-renowned pianist Sviatoslav Richter was invited to one of these concerts and was so impressed by the surrounding environment, with its natural growth of birch and Japanese white birch trees, that he suggested, "Why not build a wooden hall in this forest?"

Subsequently, with advice from Richter and composer Toru Takemitsu, the design was entrusted to Junzo Yoshimura, one of Japan's leading architects. Based on the concept of "feeling the resonance of the trees in the forest and becoming one with the outside scenery," the design pursued a roof that blends in with the surrounding trees and an open space that makes extensive use of wood and glass. Thus, in 1988, the Yatsugatake Highland Music Hall was born.

An intimate space with a maximum of 250 seats where performers and audience become one.

The venue has a maximum seating capacity of 250. This close proximity, where performers and audience members share the same space and can make eye contact, embodies the intimacy of "salon concerts" held in medieval nobles who invited musicians to their homes.

The unique acoustics of the wooden building and the performance environment that allows for a sense of unity with the audience have been highly praised by the artists who perform there. Despite its inconvenient location on a mountaintop, it constantly receives offers from artists who want to perform there, and currently hosts more than 100 concerts annually.

Masaaki Yui, who has overseen operations for many years as the head of sales planning at the Yatsugatake Kogen Music Hall, recalls the emotion he felt when he first experienced live music there.

"It's like the sound is swirling around me. It's less like 'listening to the sound' and more like 'being enveloped in the sound.'"

The untold struggles on the ground behind the philosophy and design

However, realizing such a sublime musical experience involves various challenges on the ground. Yui explains the reason as follows:

"The concert hall is a building designed with a very high ideal and a strong narrative. Because we prioritized design and the customer experience above all else, there was actually a lot of behind-the-scenes work involved."

First, let's look at the approach to the building. Even here, there are unique challenges specific to construction sites.

The concert hall's parking lot is deliberately located about 100 meters away from the building. Yui says this is also part of Yoshimura's carefully calculated landscape design.

"The road curves slightly, and as you walk along it, you gradually see the black roof. The way the building appears, almost like a curtain opening, is a way to heighten the audience's excitement before the performance."

It's a stylish way to build anticipation for an extraordinary experience as you get closer, but it's not always sunny. On days with heavy rain or snow, the entire staff rushes out with umbrellas and carefully guides guests along the path, demonstrating the unique challenges of providing support in bad weather.

A giant 20-meter-wide shoji screen that preserves the extraordinary atmosphere.

Upon entering the concert hall, surrounded by beautiful wild grass, you'll find a large shoji screen in a corner of the lobby.

In fact, the passageway leading from the dressing rooms to the stage is located just off the lobby where guests relax, in a slightly lower area. To prevent artists and guests from bumping into each other just before a performance and ruining the sense of the extraordinary, it's necessary to close off the huge shoji screens, which stretch for about 20 meters, before the show begins to partition off the space.

Furthermore, because the entire building is constructed along a natural slope, there are many steps inside, and the passageway leading to the stage is a long ramp. Due to this structure, backstage staff face difficulties when loading and unloading heavy equipment such as sound systems, which they wouldn't encounter in a flat venue.

Behind the scenes of the ultimate in seating comfort: the "foldable chair"

Upon entering the hall from the lobby, you'll find rows upon rows of custom-made chairs designed by Yoshimura specifically for this hall, aptly named "foldable chairs." As the name suggests, they are foldable, yet they are upholstered in leather and equipped with armrests, offering a comfortable seating experience that allows you to relax even during long periods of viewing.

Despite the meticulous attention to detail in these chairs, each chair weighs approximately 6 kg, which presents a significant challenge behind the scenes of the event. To accommodate the scale and purpose of each performance, the seating layout must be changed. For example, for a concert with 150 attendees, staff must manually fold up all 100 unnecessary chairs and carry them to the warehouse.

Since it's difficult to buy this chair new these days, I send my well-used chair to a repair shop and continue to use it carefully, having it repaired over and over again.

A space is only truly "complete" through human intervention.

The daily, painstaking work is a consequence of prioritizing the philosophy and design of the space. The burden on the staff is by no means small, but they say they feel a real sense of fulfillment when they see customers and artists moved by the unique experience that can only be had here.

Yui says:

"Even people who have heard the same artist perform in large city halls tell us that 'the experience in Yatsugatake is special.' When we see the genuine satisfaction on our guests' faces as they leave, it makes us feel that all our hard work has been worthwhile."

Yoshimura's meticulously planned and beautiful landscape, and architecture imbued with high ideals. However, the mere presence of the building does not create a "special moment." It is the umbrella offered on a rainy day, the giant shoji screens quietly closing, and the carefully arranged "foldable chairs" that create this special atmosphere.

This forest salon, envisioned by a world-renowned pianist and a celebrated architect, will only be truly completed when the warm, personal touches of staff members like Yui are added to its design.

The reason why top artists adore it so much

This space, meticulously maintained and cared for daily by the on-site staff, captivates even the artists who perform on stage.

Many artists performing here for the first time are surprised by how close they are to the audience. Once they actually start playing, they are satisfied by the deep resonance unique to a wooden building and the sense of unity that comes from being able to feel the audience's breathing, and they all say in unison, "I want to perform here again." Yui, who has been watching over the venue for many years, recalls the scene on stage as follows:

"Violinist Taro Hakase really loves the intimate atmosphere of this hall, and every summer he holds a week-long performance here. Also, singer Sayuri Ishikawa was so moved by the warm applause from the audience at such close range that she was moved to tears. There is an exchange between performers and audience here that you can never experience in a large hall."

Furthermore, violinist Mariko Senju, who has been performing in this area since before the concert hall was built, shared her memories of that time and contributed the following words to this article.

A supreme experience woven from nature, architecture, and human hands.

As autumn deepens, the scenery of the forest surrounding the concert hall also changes vividly. The surrounding larch trees turn golden, creating a scene of bright "Yatsugatake Yellow" throughout the forest. On clear days, you can see the majestic figure of Mt.Fuji through the large windows behind the stage, and at night, countless stars twinkle in the clear night sky. The natural spectacle created by the seasons and weather adds even more color to the experience in this wooden hall.

What further enhances the emotional impact of the concert hall experience is the time spent at Yatsugatake Kogen Lodge after the performance. Instead of rushing back to everyday life, you can stay at the forest hotel. Enjoying a Western-style course meal featuring seasonal ingredients at Restaurant like Hanagoyomi, while discussing the beautiful sounds that lingered in your heart, is a luxury unique to a highland resort. Yatsugatake Kogen Lodge also offers special Staying plan that include concert tickets, dinner, and accommodation.

The beauty of the architecture, the magnificent natural surroundings, the dedication of the staff who support it all behind the scenes, and the elegant evening spent with exquisite cuisine—all these elements come together to create a truly unique experience. Please come and experience it for yourself at the Yatsugatake Highland Music Hall.

Yatsugatake Kogen Lodge

2244-1 Uminokuchi, Minamimaki Village, Minamisaku District, Nagano Prefecture
View free shuttle service and Access >

TEL：0267-98-2131

View the official website View the concert schedule