𝔹𝕚𝕠𝕘𝕣𝕒𝕡𝕙𝕪

Sayako SHINONAGA 

－Pianist 

Grand Prix Winner of the 39th PTNA Piano Competition, also awarded the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award, the Tokyo City Philharmonic Award, and the Yomiuri Shimbun Award, she is recognized as one of the leading pianists of her generation in Japan.

Born in Kanazawa, Ishikawa, she began studying the piano at the age of three. She graduated from the Piano Performance Course at Tokyo College of Music and completed her master's degree there as a specially selected scholarship student. She subsequently pursued advanced studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, completing a postgraduate program.

She has achieved top prizes at major competitions in Japan, including First Prize at the 37th Iizuka New Artist Music Competition (receiving multiple special awards) and First Prize at the 1st Imola International Piano Audition in Japan (University/General Division). She is also a recipient of the IMA Music Prize at the Ishikawa Music Academy and was selected as a distinguished performer at the 19th Hokuriku Rising Artists Concert.

Internationally, she has been awarded Second Prize at the Delia Steinberg International Piano Competition, Second Prize and a Special Award at the Les Étoiles du Piano International Competition, and Third Prize at the Orbetello International Piano Competition, establishing a strong presence across Europe.

She has appeared as a soloist with prominent orchestras under distinguished conductors such as Taijiro Iimori, Michiyoshi Inoue, Kazumasa Watanabe, and Arie van Beek, collaborating with ensembles including Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa, the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Orchestre de Picardie.

Her performance career has taken her throughout Japan and across Europe, including Germany, France, Poland, Austria, Italy, and Spain, with appearances in concerts and international music festivals.

In recent years, she has been actively engaged in both solo and chamber music performances. In 2025, she presented the complete piano solo works of Maurice Ravel in two highly acclaimed recitals. She has also contributed to television productions, serving as piano supervisor, performer, and instructor for NHK's drama "Echoes of Vietnam" and TBS's "To the Ends of Hell".

She has studied under distinguished teachers including Chieko Maeda, Tomoko Izumiya, Ryuta Ono, Chikako Shimizume, Aya Tsurumi, Michiko Ohno, Rie Ishii, Hironao Suzuki, Mizuho Nakada, Hiroo Sato, Kazuko Sumi, and Anna Malikova.

Since April 2024, she has served as a part-time lecturer in the Piano Department at the Tokyo University of the Arts and is also active as a competition adjudicator. She is a full member of the Piano Teachers' National Association of Japan (PTNA).