composer
Biography:
MISATO MOCHIZUKI, born in Tokyo in 1969, is one of the composers who are equally active in Europe and Japan. After completing her composition diploma at the National University of Fine Arts and Music in Tokyo, she received the first prize for composition at the Conservatoire National Supérieur in Paris in 1995 and then took part in a seminar at IRCAM (1996/97).
In a very unique connection between occidental tradition and Asian breath, Misato Mochizuki's way of writing develops magical rhythms and unusual sounds of great formal and stylistic freedom. Her catalog of works (published by Breitkopf & Härtel) today includes around 40 works, including 15 symphonic compositions and 12 pieces for ensemble. Her works, which have been performed at international festivals (including the Salzburg Festival, Venice Biennale, and La Folle Journée in Tokyo), have received numerous awards, such as the 2002 Ars Musica Festival Audience Award in Brussels Chimera, 2003 the Japanese State Prize for Greatest Artistic Talent, 2005 the Otaka Prize for cloud nine as best symphonic premiere in Japan and for The blue Hour both in 2008 the grand prize of the Tribune international des compositeurs and in 2010 the Heidelberg Female Artists Prize. Her most outstanding productions include the orchestral portrait concert in the Suntory Hall in Tokyo (2007), the ciné concert in the Louvre with the music for the silent film Le fil blanc de la cascade by Kenji Mizoguchi (2007) and the portrait concert at the Festival d'Automne in Paris (2010).
2011-2013 Misato Mochizuki was Composer-in-Residence at the Festival international de musique de Besançon. Since 2007 she has been teaching art theory at Meiji Gakuin University in Tokyo. She was invited to composition courses in Darmstadt, Royaumont, Takefu and the Amsterdam Conservatory. In her activities she continuously reflects on the role of the composer in today's society. In addition, Misato Mochizuki writes a separate column every three months about music and culture for the renowned Yomiuri Shimbun, the most widely read daily newspaper in Japan.
Albums:
