16 Notable alumni of Toho Gakuen School of Music
Updated: June 08, 2026 EliteDegrees
Toho Gakuen School of Music is ranked #7,880 in the world and #598 in Japan by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 16 notable alumni from Toho Gakuen School of Music sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with Toho Gakuen School of Music won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. Ryō Terakado
1961-. (aged 65)
concertmaster
conductor
violinist
musician
Ryo Terakado is a Japanese violinist and conductor who specializes in historically informed performance. He also plays the viola, viola d'amore and violoncello da spalla. He has been teaching at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague and the Toho Gakuen School of Music.
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2. Chon Wolson
1959-. (aged 67)
opera singer
Chon Wolson is a Korean soprano opera singer with the Tokyo-based Nikikai Opera Company. Born in Tokyo, she is a second-generation Zainichi-Korean.
3. Mari Takano
1960-. (aged 66)
composer
pianist
Mari Takano is a Japanese composer, pianist, essayist, and teacher. Takano's work, and musical voice, has been recognized as among the most distinctive to be found amid Japanese composers of the "post-Takemitsu generation".
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4. František Brikcius
cellist
film director
film editor
František Brikcius is a Czech cellist.
5. Mayuko Kamio
1986-. (aged 40)
violinist
Mayuko Kamio is a Japanese violinist. She won the First Prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2007, the Young Concert Artists International Auditions in 2000, and was the youngest prize winner at the International Yehudi Menuhin Violin Competition in 1998.
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6. Kazuyoshi Akiyama
1941-2025 (aged 84)
conductor
talent manager
Kazuyoshi Akiyama was a Japanese conductor who held conducting posts of symphony orchestras in Japan, Canada and the U.S., such as the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra from 1964 for life, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra from 1972 to 1985, the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra from 1985 to 1993, and the Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra from 1998. Akiyama conducted the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra in the...
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7. Nobuko Imai
1943-. (aged 83)
university teacher
violist
concertmaster
Nobuko Imai is a renowned Japanese classical violist with an extensive career as soloist and chamber musician. Since 1988 she has played a 1690 Andrea Guarneri instrument.
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8. Karen Tanaka
1961-. (aged 65)
pianist
music educator
composer
Karen Tanaka is a Japanese composer.
9. Yukie Nishimura
1967-. (aged 59)
composer
pianist
Yukie Nishimura is a prolific Japanese pianist and composer. Hailed as a musician of "New Age Music", her piano style is light easy listening and her works are sometimes heard on television in Japan, even with her appearance in television commercials and fashion magazines thanks to her stunning looks. She has a following in Hong Kong, China and Singapore.
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10. Chihiro Yamanaka
1974-. (aged 52)
university teacher
pianist
jazz musician
Chihiro Yamanaka is a Japanese jazz pianist and composer, born in Kiryū, Gunma Prefecture. As of 2025, she was based in Tokyo. She has released more than 20 albums, most of them on Verve Records.
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11. Seiji Ozawa
1935-2024 (aged 89)
conductor
music director
musician
Seiji Ozawa was a Japanese conductor known internationally for his work as music director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony, and especially the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO), where he served from 1973 for 29 years. After conducting the Vienna New Year's Concert in 2002, he was director of the Vienna State Opera until 2010. In Japan, he...
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12. Sumi Shimamoto
1954-. (aged 72)
actor
seiyū
Sumi Koshikawa, known professionally as Sumi Shimamoto (島本 須美, Shimamoto Sumi), is a Japanese actress and narrator. She has voice acted in Hayao Miyazaki's movies Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, The Castle of Cagliostro, My Neighbor Totoro, and Princess Mononoke.
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13. Kokia
1976-. (aged 50)
composer
singer-songwriter
recording artist
singer
Akiko Yoshida is a Japanese singer and songwriter performing under the stage name Kokia (styled KOKIA). Her most well known songs are "Arigatō..." (ありがとう..., Thank You) (which reached number 2 in Hong Kong when it was covered by Sammi Cheng) and "The Power of Smile" (which topped at No. 8 in the singles chart). She is also recognized for her...
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14. Hiroko Nakamura
1944-2016 (aged 72)
pianist
essayist
composer
Hiroko Nakamura was a Japanese pianist.
15. Airi Suzuki
1989-. (aged 37)
violinist
musician
Airi Suzuki is a Japanese singer, actress, model, and radio personality associated with Up-Front Works. In 2002, she joined Hello! Project as a member of Hello! Project Kids and later debuted as the lead vocalist of the Japanese idol girl group Cute in 2005. Throughout her singing career, Suzuki also became a vocalist for the girl group Buono! From June...
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16. Kyōhei Sorita
1994-. (aged 32)
conductor
pianist
businessperson
representative director
Kyōhei Sorita is a Japanese classical pianist and conductor. In 2021, he won second prize, ex aequo, at the XVIII International Chopin Piano Competition, the highest prize for a Japanese-born pianist in the competition since Mitsuko Uchida's second prize in 1970.
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