Dedicated to Takahiro Sonoda Memorial Series in 2024, 20 years after his death

The late Takahiro Sonoda, while passionately devoted to his activities as a performer throughout his life, also launched and devoted himself to a recital series for young pianists. Pianists who performed in the series and were inspired by Mr. Sonoda gather every year around the anniversary of his death to perform a single piece of music with respect and gratitude to the master.
This year, the 20th anniversary of Mr. Sonoda's death, the pianists will perform with deep emotion and their own feelings.

Masashi Okada
While still in high school, Mr. Okada won the first prize at the Japan Music Competition. He studied at the Berlin University of the Arts and won many competitions, including the first Japanese winner of the Liszt International Piano Competition. He has received the Idemitsu Music Award, the Chopin Society of Japan Award, and others.

Ayako Kawai
Graduated from Toho Gakuen School of Music, and graduated from Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris at the top of her class. She won the first prize at the Salerno International Competition, the Maria Canals International Competition, and many other competitions, and two of her CDs were selected as representative Japanese recordings in the series of "Record Geijutsu" magazine.

Ayano Shimada
Ayano Shimada graduated from Toho Girls' High School with a degree in music at the top of her class. She studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris, the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Musique, and the University of Music and Performing Arts Leipzig. She has won many competitions, including the first prize at the Jean Francais International Competition, and is also active in chamber music.

Nozomi Takahashi
After graduating from the Musikhochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Dresden with the highest honors, Nozomi Takahashi completed her postgraduate studies in the Meisterklass at the same university. She won the third prize in the Sonoda Takahiro Prize Piano Competition and the second prize in the G. Gandolfi International Piano Competition. She has made Bach's Golberg Variations her life's work and gives recitals of the same piece every year.

Piano Duo Duor (Takashi Fujii & Yoshie Shiramizu)
Graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts. They have received many awards in Japan, Europe, and the U.S. They have also performed in Japan, Europe, and the U.S. They have received numerous awards in Japan, Europe, and the United States, and have performed on nearly 900 stages in Japan and abroad. She has released 8 CDs, all of which have been selected as special prize winners or semi-special prize winners by Record Geijutsu magazine.

Chie Hirai
Graduated from Toho Gakuen School of Music with a major in piano, and graduated at the top of her class from the Department of Ancient Music at the Royal Conservatory of Music in The Hague, Chie Hirai has won many competitions, including the IYAP International Ancient Music Competition, and is active as a fortepiano player. She is also active on the modern piano.

Kazumasa Matsumoto
Studied at the Berlin University of the Arts while a student at Tokyo University of the Arts. He won the first prize at the Japan Music Competition, and prizes at the Queen Elisabeth Competition and the Busoni International Competition. He holds a recital series "Kazumasa Matsumoto's World Music Heritage" every year throughout Japan.