Ikuyo Kamiya

Japanese Classical Pianist

Acclaimed a master of her generation, Ikuyo Kamiya is one of the most prominent pianists in Japan. Beginning the piano at the age of eight, she studied under Aiko Iguchi at the Toho Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo and following her first prize at the Japan Music Competition, was chosen to study at the Essen National Academy in Germany, where she studied with Klaus Hellwig and Stefan Askenaze. Ms. Kamiya’s international career was launched following her victory at the 1972 Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition, after which she was invited to perform throughout Belgium at various festivals in recital as soloist with orchestras including the Brussels National Orchestra and the Antwerp Orchestra. A review of her subsequent London debut described her playing as being “abundant in musicality and powerful presentation” and “the result of a through analysis.’ Invited to play as soloist with all the major Japanese orchestras including the NHK Symphony, Tokyo Symphony and Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra, Ms. Kamiya also performs at home and abroad with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and Orchestre de Chambre Jean-François Paillard. Her collaborations with conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Seiji Ozawa, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Heinz Roger and Maxim Shostakovich have also garnered great critical acclaim. In addition to solo recitals, and concerto performances, she also regularly gives chamber music performances with artists such as the Cleveland Quartet and members of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Ikuyo Kamiya is known for her wide repertoire, and particularly recognised for her interpretations of Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Schumann, Chopin, Mussorgsky and Satie, many of which are available in her extensive discography. She has made 20 recordings on the RCA label, including acclaimed recordings of the major Beethoven sonatas released in Europe and the U.S.,where they achieved record sales. She continued to record on the Fontec label and in 2001 released a CD marking the 35th anniversary of her debut featuring the Grieg Piano Concerto and Beethoven Piano Concerto No.4 with the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra of Moscow Radio and Chosei Komatsu. Her most recent recording entitled Ikuyo Kamiya ～ J.S. Bach was released in 2003. In 1988, Ms. Kamiya received the prestigious Arts Festival Award of Japan. She is currently professor at Kyoto Municipal University.