Chika Inoue

Concert saxophonist, Chika Inoue has been praised by The Los Angeles Times with “beautiful tone, acute sensitivity and virtuosic technique.” Al Schmitt, 20-time Grammy winning recording engineer and producer acclaimed “Most delicate tone I have heard throughout my career.” James Conlon, music director of LA Opera has congratulated with “beautiful sound.” She appears regularly as a saxophonist in the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She has received numerous performance awards in competitions, lavishing praise as a soloist and chamber musician. Chika has extensive concert touring in North America, Europe, and Asia with admiration and performed as soloist at Granada Music Festival in Spain, Faenza International Saxophone Festival in Italy, Astoria Music Festival, Yamaha Saxophone Festival in Japan, International China Clarinet, and Saxophone Music Festival in China and many more. Additional performances include appearances with the Pacific Symphony, Fresno Philharmonic, Santa Monica Symphony, Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra, Culver City Chamber Orchestra, California Opera, and Hollywood Bowl Orchestra.

Her current projects include Chika & Scott, a classical guitar and saxophone duo with guitar virtuoso Scott Morris. The duo made its debut recording album, Unfettered under Samek Music Label, recorded at the legendary Capital Records “Studio A” in Hollywood with producer Niko Bolas and recording engineer Al Schmitt. Also, Chika has been concertizing duo recitals with master pianist Mikiko Yamaguchi in Japan. During the Covid-19 pandemic, they have received grants from Osaka Cultural Art Grant to arrange and transcribe classical music to the saxophone repertoire and record online concerts, generous fund from Kakehashi Foundation to concertize electronic music using Roland's digital wind instrument Aerophone Pro AE-30 and their digital piano LX708, and Okayama Cultural Artists Creation Foundation to perform a concert at Okayama Symphony Hall in Okayama city.

A native of Osaka, Japan, Chika spent most of her youth in Frankfurt, Germany and San Diego, California. Chika received her Bachelor's degree in Saxophone and Music Education from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Masters degree from California State University, Fresno, and completed her academic education with a Doctorate in Musical Arts from the University of Southern California. In much demand as a master teacher, she is lecturing internationally at schools, colleges, and universities. She is currently on faculty at the California State University, Dominguez Hills. 

Chika is committed to sharing classical saxophone music and its diverse capabilities across the spectrum of music with audiences worldwide. She is based in both Los Angeles, California, U.S.A and Kyoto, Japan.

Photo credit: Alexander O. Smith