Koji Nakano

Who is Koji Nakano?

Koji Nakano is a Japanese composer. He was born in Japan and educated in Boston, The Hague, and San Diego. Mr. Nakano has been recognized as one of the major voices among Asian composers of his generation. His work strives to merge Western and Eastern musical traditions, and reflects the relationship between beauty, form and imperfection through the formality of music. Mr. Nakano received his Bachelor's Degree in composition with distinction, and Master's Degree in composition with academic honors and distinction, Pi Kappa Lambda, from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he studied with Lee Hyla and John Harbison. Later, he studied with Dutch composer Louis Andriessen in Amsterdam and at the Royal Conservatory of Hague as the Japanese Government Overseas Study Program Artist. Mr. Nakano received his Ph.D. in composition from the University of California at San Diego, where he studied with Chinary Ung. In addition to being the recipient of The American Artists and Museum Professionals in Asia Fellowship from the Asian Cultural Council, Mr. Nakano is also The first recipient of the Toru Takemitsu Award in Composition from the Japan Society of Boston awarded annually to the most talented young composer in the Boston area. In 2008, he became the first composer to receive the S&R Washington Award Grand Prize from the S&R Foundation, which is awarded annually to the most talented young artist, for his/her contributions to U.S.- Japanese relations. The past distinguished grand prize awardees include soprano Maki Mori, pianist Yu Kosuge, violinists Yosuke Kawasaki, Sayaka Shoji, and Tamaki Kawakubo.