Takuya Nemoto's concert transcription of Bach's monumental Goldberg Variations makes this masterpiece accessible to even non-diehard fans, who can now enjoy listening to it in one sitting. The Jugong Boys In 2014, two chubby fellow students from the Tokyo University of the Arts reunited after completing their studies in Europe to form a duo specifically focused on delivering French baroque music. The name derives from the idea and comments from friends, “Just listen to their performance, you'd think they’re as cool as any Junon Boy(winners of the annual boy idol competition that continues to be held to this day by the magazine, Junon), but in fact they are built like dugongs.” Thus the coinage and duo name, The Jugong Boys(Junon Boys + Dugong). Their signature attire in performance is gingham check shirt and bow tie. They go by the tagline, “Beauteous, with your eyes closed!” Toru Yamamoto pursued graduate studies in early Music at the Tokyo University of the Arts, after which he went on to earn a Master's degree in Fine Arts with honors from the ZHdK, Zuericher Hochschule der Kunste. His mentors of modern and early music cello count Takashi Dohi, Fumiaki Kouno, Hideki Kitamoto, Hidemi Suzuki and Roel Dieltiens. As a member of the Bach Cantata Club at the Tokyo University of the Arts, he honed his skills under the tutelage of Michio Kobayashi. He has won numerous awards, placing second at the 2008 16th International Johann Sebastian Bach Competition in Leipzig, Honorable Mention at the 2011 Brugge International Early Music Competition, and, also in 2011, placing first with the Den Haag Piano Quintet at the International van Wassenaer Competition. His scholarships include the 2010 Overseas Study for Upcoming Artists of the Agency of Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan, and the 2011 Rohm Music Foundation Scholarship. He has played regular concert seasons, recorded and toured internationally with many leading orchestras performing with period instruments, in Japan and overseas, such as the Bach Collegium Japan and Orchestra Libera Classica. Among his other activities, he performs with Takuya Nemoto as the duo Jugong Boys, that they founded. He co-founded L’orchestre d’avant-garde with Yusuke Watanabe, of which he is the principal cellist as well as board member. He is the principal cellist and inspector for the Promusica Baroque Academy. In 2017 he was among the judges for the Yamanashi Early Music Competition, where he had placed second in 2006. His passion for educating young musicians and introducing period instruments to a broader audience has led him to teach an intensive course titled, “Introduction to Early Music,” at his alma mater, the Tokyo University of the Arts, and holds masterclasses such as at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, National University of Singapore. From April 2025 he is Lecturer in early music at his alma mater. Takuya Takuya Nemoto was conferred an Mmus in conducting by the Tokyo University of the Arts, where he was discovered by Hiroshi Wakasugi for his extraordinary gift in grasping theatrical works in their original languages such as English, German, French, Italian, Latin, Russian, and Czech. He has since held successive supporting positions, making him an integral presence for performances at the New National Theatre, Tokyo, as chorus master, diction coach, and lecturer on works, as well as at Japanese opera companies including Tokyo Nikikai Opera Foundation, Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival(OMF), and Nissay Opera. He earned a diploma in basso continuo from the Conservatoire National Superieur Musique et Danse Lyon. He is the harpsichordist in the duo, The Jugong Boys with baroque cellist Toru Yamamoto, and for numerous other performances. He has composed two operas(Kagetora, 2018 and La veuve Aphrodissia, 2021), the cantata Rinshisen(2016), and other vocal pieces. Most recently, he was music director for Der Rosenkavalier at Shizuoka Performing Arts Center in 2024, ceaselessly embracing new opportunities in related fields. Mutsuyuki Motomura(recorder)graduated from the Sweelinck Conservatorium in Amsterdam, studying with Walter van Hauwe among others. He returned to Japan in 2001 after having performed extensively for more than 10 years based in Amsterdam. His repertoire spans works from the 14th century to the contemporary. More recently, he has sought out music from the baroque period that specifically designated the recorder as the melody instrument, to explore nuance created only through the idiosyncrasies of the instrument at that time. His albums, including Neapolitan Recorder Concertos(WAONCD-370)and Hotteterre Pieces for Recorder (WAONCD-590)are consummate examples of this devotion. At the same time, he has sought out works that are seemingly far removed from the baroque recorder repertoire in his effort to expand the instrument’s horizon. His Sonate a la Maresienne by Marin Marais(Portraits in French Baroque Sonatas, WAONCD-550)is but one example. The albums are all available through the streaming services.(Search Mutsuyuki Motomura.)