The Nusantara Chamber Orchestra (NCO) was formed in 1988 under the aegis of the Nusantara Foundation chaired by Mrs. Herawati Diah. In 2004, the orchestra was invited as the Home Orchestra of Balai Sarbini Concert Hall, and the NSO Management was formed to run the daily operation of the orchestra, under the chairmanship of Miranda S. Goeltom, with Aida Swenson as the Executive Director. The Nusantara Symphony Orchestra has become an orchestra that is managed professionally where the orchestra members include the best Indonesian musicians with a large number of the members are under permanent contract and have regular rehearsals. With a repertoire ranging from the Baroque to the present time, and the NSO does not only performs classical music but also performs light classical music and jazz, along with traditional Indonesian folk music.

The orchestra s principal players comprise a group called the NSO soloists, which present chamber concerts and smaller individual recitals. Various other combinations are also possible such as a traditional string trio, quartets, quintets, sextets, octets, and small string orchestra with different variations.

In the early years of development, the Nusantara Symphony Orchestra has performed several concerts conducted by guest conductors such as Adidharma, Lim You from the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Theo Ollof and Peter Bansberg from The Netherlands and Louis Stewart from the USA.

The Nusantara Symphony Orchestra also cooperates with various groups and musicians, from within Indonesia along with visiting musicians invited from other countries to further improve the quality of the performances. NSO also plans a number of concerts in other countries in the years to come.

As one of Indonesia most prominent orchestras, the NSO has received various invitations to perform abroad. Such invitations included the Asia Orchestra Week in the Osaka Symphony Hall and Tokyo Opera City Hall in Japan on 4-6 October 2005, and the NSO was invited to a joint concert in one of the orchestras in Bangkok-Thailand in September 2007. On Asia Orchestra Week in Japan, the NSO has performed with the Century Orchestra from Osaka from Japan, the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra from Australia, the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra from Korea, and the Guongzhou Symphony Orchestra from China. The NSO has established itself among classic enthusiasts, not only in Indonesia, but has successfully captured international recognition.

Implementing all of these many activities by the NSO requires very strong support from various people. With this need in mind, the NSO formed a group by the name of Friends of NSO. The members of the Friends of NSO have provided contributions which have been critical to carrying out the challenging program and continued development of the Nusantara Symphony Orchestra.

Hikotaro Yazaki - Music Director and Principal Conductor
Mr Yazaki studied mathematics at the Sophia University, Tokyo. In 1970, he graduated as conductor at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music.  From 1970 until 1972, he was appointed Apprentice Conductor to the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra under Seiji Ozawa. In 1972, he made a concert tour in Switzerland as conductor of Tokyo Youth Symphony Orchestra.

Maestro Yazaki had since furthered his conducting studies in Europe with Hans　Swarowsky, Franco Ferrara, Sergio Celibidache , Zdenek Kosler, Pierre Dervaux.　He has received numerous awards such as laureate at the John Player International Conductors Award (1974), at the Concours International de Besancon (1975) and at the Rassegna Internazionale “Gino Marinuzzi” (1976).

Since then, titles that he has held include Conductor at the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra (1979-1988), Principal Guest Conductor at Norwegian Radio Orchestra (1986-1988) and Principal Guest Conductor at Hofer Symphoniker Germany (1986-1989) and also Music Director and Principal Conductor at Hofer Symphoniker (1989-1996).

Since 1994, Mr Yazaki has been the Principal Guest Conductor at the Orchestre de Chambre National de Toulouse.  From 2000, he became the Honorary Conductor at the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra.  And, from 2002 the Principal Guest Conductor at the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra.

Mr Yazaki is seen often with numerous orchestras in Europe with Royal　Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC　Orchestras, Oslo Philharmonic,　Orchestre Colonne, Nouvel Orchestre Philharmonique, Orchestre des　Concerts Lamoureux, Orchestre de Lyon,　Orchestre d Avignon, Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, Orchestre　Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Opera de Paris, Opera Royal de Wallonie, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande amongst　others. For his continuous effort at contributing of French music and culture, Mr　Yazaki was awarded the “Chevalier dans l Ordre des Arts et des Lettres”　from the French Government in 2001. In 2002 he has received music award from Exxon Mobile Company. At present he is the Music Director and Guest Principal Conductor of the Nusantara Symphony Orchestra.

Edward C. van Ness - Resident Conductor
Edward C. van Ness is a violinist, violist, conductor, writer and teacher who has lived and worked in Indonesia for over thirty years. His undergraduate and graduate studies were completed at Wesleyan University, with violin studies under Anthony Sant Ambrogio. While in Madras India on a Fulbright grant for an unprecedented two and half years, he conducted research on South Indian Classical Music, became a concert performer.

On the Carnatic Vina and established the Madras Chamber Orchestra. He has taught at the Akademi Musik Indonesia , Universitas Sumatera Utara and Universitas HKBP Nommensen where he established the music department in 1986 and Medan International School where he was head of the music department.

He founded Promusika Indonesia during his years in Yogyakarta whose players are now the most prominent orchestra musicians in Indonesia and currently largely reunited in the senior role of the NSO. He has conducted the first full performance of an opera (Bastien und Bastienne by Mozart) in the 1970 s and is listed in the Indonesian Musical Dictionary as the conductor and artistic director of the first entire performance of Handel s Messiah with Ensemble Nommensen and Promusika in 1987 (with original Baroque performance style), as well as a joint concert with the National University of Singapore orchestra two years later. He is active as a string teacher, clinician, conductor and adjudicator both in Indonesia and abroad.

“Great Romantic Music”
Hikotaro Yazaki – Principal Conductor
Jangeran – Chris Watson
I Gusti Kompiang Raka – Percussionist Bali Ethnic
Anak Agung Gede Ariawan – Bali dancer
Concerto for Violin and Violoncello – Johannes Brahms
Atsuko Watanabe – violinist (Japan)
Yasuro Chomei – cellist (Japan)
Symphonie Pathetique – Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Solo Artists in NSO Concerts
• Aisha Ariadna-Soediarso
• Rudy Laban
• Laksmi Pamoentjak
• I Gusti Bagus Wiswakarma
• Trisutji D. Kamal
• Oerip S. Santoso
• Ananda Sukarlan
• Peter Bansberg Marimba
• Huga Holleman – violinist (Holland)
• Frederic Pelassy – violinist (France)
• Izumi Tateno – pianist (Japan)
• Robert Lehrbaumer – pianist (USA)
• Anthony Peebles – pianist (Great Britain)
• Lim Kek Beng – cellist (Holland)
• Geoffrey Saba – pianist (Australia)
• Pierre Laniau – guitarist (France)
• Patricia Shih – violinist (Canada)
• Vivian Siao – pianist (USA)
• Marijke Ten Kate – Soprano (Holland)
• Lesly Tan – cellist (Singapore)
• Adam Gyorgy – pianist (Hungary)
• Kirsti Harms – soprano (Australia)
• Giselle Baulch – mezzosoprano (Australia)
• Cecylia Barczyk – cellist (USA)
• Miwako Fukushi – harpsicordist (Japan)
• Balazs Reti – pianist (Hungary)
• Paola Romano – soprano (Italy)
• Angela Cinalli – mezzosoprano (Italy)
• Alain Moglia – violinist (France)
• Stella Zhou – soprano (Singapore)
• Anna Koor – mezzosoprano (Singapore)
• Robin Clavreaul – cellist (France)
• Lertkiat Chongjirajitra – trumpetist (Thailand)
• Atsuko Watanabe – violinist (Japan)
• Yasuro Chomei – cellist (Japan)