Tomoki Sakata

Japanese pianist Tomoki Sakata “demonstrated virtuosity, considerable color and expressivity” (Dallas Morning News) during the 2013 Cliburn Competition, earning him a place among the top six finalists. Since just 19 years old, he has been building a reputation for a “youthful overabundance of talent” that creates “its own visceral excitement” (Theater Jones). Mr. Sakata won the 4th prize at the Queen Elisabeth Competition 2021 in Brussels, the 1st prize and public prizeat the Kissinger KlavierOlymp 2019, and the 1st prize along with 6 special prizes at the Franz Liszt International Piano Competition 2016 in Budapest by a unanimous vote.

He has made recital, chamber and concerto appearances throughout Europe, Asia, the U.S.A and Africa, in such major concert halls as Leipzig Gewandhaus, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Rudolfinum, Müpa Budapest and Suntory Hall, as soloist with Staatskapelle Halle, Belgian National Orchestra, Czech National Symphony, Hungarian National Philharmonic, NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra, working with such conductors as Leonard Slatkin, Alexander Lazarev, Andrea Battistoni, Tadaaki Otaka, and Kazushi Ono, as a chamber musician, working with Tokyo Quartet, Brentano Quartet, to name a few.

Also active as a composer and arranger, Mr. Sakata’s works have been performed at major concert halls in Japan by leading artists. His compositions and arrangements are published by Ongaku no Tomo Edition. He made his debut as a conductor with the Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra, conducting 2 Mozart concerti from the keyboard and japan premiere of a symphonic work by Liszt, in February 2022.