The acclaimed SAKURA Cello Quintet celebrates more than a decade of music-making with its debut album, Clair de lune on Platoon, scheduled for release on September 19, 2025. Hailed as “brilliant” and “superb” by Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times, SAKURA has established itself as one of the world’s only permanent cello quintets. The ensemble reimagines repertoire through the sonorities of five cellos while also expanding the repertoire with new works.  The SAKURA Cello Quintet is built on the artistry and virtuosity of its members: Stella Cho, Michael Kaufman, Yoshika Masuda, Zachary Mowitz and Peter Myers.The group's name, SAKURA, is a tribute to their mentor, cellist Ralph Kirshbaum, whose name "Kirs(c)hbaum" translates into "cherry tree," as does the Japanese word sakura.  

Kirshbaum, Gregor Piatigorsky Chair in Violoncello at the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music, says, "The cello quintet SAKURA is a unique ensemble who initially came together a decade ago during their studies with me at the USC Thornton School of Music in Los Angeles. That each individual member is a highly accomplished cellist and musician, dedicated to this endeavor as a meaningful part of their busy and productive musical lives, is a testament to their profound curiosity and creativity, which has resulted in an exciting and ever-expanding repertoire for cello quintet. Their considered choice of the ensemble name SAKURA fills me with pride and affection not only for such a singular honor, but above all for their remarkable accomplishments over the past decade which will hopefully continue well into the future."

The new album, Clair de lune brings together the best and most beloved cello arrangements from SAKURA's wide-ranging collection of repertoire. The album spans centuries, from iconic film scores like John Williams’s Star Wars and Joe Hisaishi’s Howl’s Moving Castle to Renaissance madrigals by Orlando Gibbons and Carlo Gesualdo. “These are pieces that we have honed and polished over the years, and they all hold deep meaning for us and and our audiences,” says Michael Kaufman. 

"When the ensemble approaches repertoire selections, each work is reimagined with reverence and imagination," says cellist and arranger Peter Myers. "We aim to preserve the spirit of the original while highlighting the expressive power of five cellos. Our goal is to get inside the mind of the original composer, to understand the musical intention while also offering a fresh and inspiring perspective.”

Myers' liner notes describe how he transformed Claude Debussy’s Clair de lune from a piano miniature into a radiant ensemble piece by drawing on string sonorities familiar to Debussy and his contemporaries; the five-cello arrangement employs harmonics and pizzicati to recreate a floating, crystalline sound world. The complete program note can be found in the Album Booklet.

The album will be released on September 19 as a digital album by Platoon on all major streaming platforms. 

Recording Credits
Executive Producers: Lior Rosner and SAKURA
Producer: Lior Rosner
Recording Engineer: Louis Ng
Mixing Engineer: Jack Wilson
Mastering Engineer: Patricia Sullivan
Cover Photography: Shaun Frederickson
Album Cover Design: Luis Jaime

ABOUT SAKURA

A unique and versatile cello quintet, hailed as “brilliant” and “superb” by Mark Swed in the Los Angeles Times, the SAKURA Cello Quintet is built on the artistry and virtuosity of its members: Stella Cho, Michael Kaufman, Yoshika Masuda, Zachary Mowitz and Peter Myers. Drawing from the rich heritage of a repertoire that spans eight centuries, inventive programs are constructed around conceptual threads, with a commitment to opening new vistas of beauty and expression by showcasing the great warmth and scope of five cellos.

SAKURA explores great music of the past through dazzling arrangements that offer fresh perspectives on familiar notes, and continually expands the five-cello repertoire into the future by commissioning new works. In the tradition of the great chamber ensembles, the quintet distills its interpretations through time, reveling in the pure sonic pleasure of a unified and colorful sound. Its name honors the great mentor and artist Ralph Kirshbaum, with whom all five members studied: sakura (桜) (Japanese) and Kirschbaum (German) have the same meaning: “cherry tree”, an organism whose flowers have five petals.