Yoko Nagae Ceschina

Countess nihongo|Yoko Nagae Ceschina|チェスキーナ・永江洋子 is a Japanese-born mecenate living in Italy who in February 2008 was in the news for funding the New York Philharmonic's concert in Pyongyang.

Born in 1932 in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan, she graduated from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music and went to Italy in 1960 to study harp as the very first publicly funded Japanese student abroad since WWII [ [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UGEDDO0&show_article=1 Japanese underwrites N.Y. Phil concert in Pyongyang] ] . In 1962 she met Count Renzo Ceschina, a millionaire businessman from Milan whom she married in 1977 [ [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UGEDDO0&show_article=1 Japanese underwrites N.Y. Phil concert in Pyongyang] ] .

Her husband died few years later and she spent a decade fighting his relatives over his inheritance [ [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UGEDDO0&show_article=1 Japanese underwrites N.Y. Phil concert in Pyongyang] ] . His estate was reportedly worth nearly 190 million dollars [ [http://www.philanthropyjournal.org/news/nonprofit-news-roundup-feb-25-2008 Non-Profit News Roundup 2008] ] . Having won, she devoted herself to promoting music [ [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UGEDDO0&show_article=1 Japanese underwrites N.Y. Phil concert in Pyongyang] ] .

She has sponsored countless musicians and concerts, among them Valeri Gergiev, conductor of the Mariinski Theatre in St-Petersburg, and purchased Maxim Vengerov's [ [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UGEDDO0&show_article=1 Japanese underwrites N.Y. Phil concert in Pyongyang] ] . excellent violin, for which he greatly thanks her, expressing appreciation in all of his program notes.

About the controversies surrounding the concert in North Korea, she says:"I know nothing about politics, I don't care about the conflicts between North Korea, Japan, United States. I love music and music is a universal language. I am pleased I can make the concert possible, I hope it can contribute to peace" [ [http://www.lastampa.it/_web/cmstp/tmplrubriche/musica/grubrica.asp?ID_blog=37&ID_articolo=797&ID_sezione=66&sezione= La Stampa - L'Orchestra USA in Corea del Nord] ] .

References

External links

* [http://mainichi.jp/area/kumamoto/news/20080218ddlk43040329000c.html The NY Phil: Music makes everyone happy The NY Philharmonic in Pyongyang, Kumamoto's Own Yoko Ceschina sponsors] , Mainichi Shinbun (in Japanese) accessed on April 11, 2008
* [http://www.iza.ne.jp/news/newsphoto/slideshow/all/all/date/59507/ Photo of Ms. Nagae Ceschina] , Sankei Shinbun accessed on April 11, 2008