Yasuaki Itakura

Yasuaki Itakura began his musical studies in Japan at the age of five with the piano, then with music theory, harmony and clarinet at the age of 10.

After meeting Henriette Puig-Roget (piano accompaniment) at the National University of Arts in Tokyo in March 1978, he continued his training at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris as a scholarship holder of the French Government (clarinet with Guy Deplus and chamber music with Maurice Bourgue).

He returned to Japan in 1984 where he began his musical career, first as a solo clarinettist, in recital, with orchestra or in chamber training. Since then, he has been teaching at many universities in Tokyo. His musical activities have taken him to Japan, France, Australia, Germany, Egypt, Spain, China, Korea and the United States. He always includes Japanese pieces in his program.

As a pedagogue, he works a lot for a Japanese version of Rose's studies, Klosé's method and the great repertoire of masterpieces for clarinet by Debussy, Poulenc, Schumann and Mozart.

Thanks to his precious French friends, he regularly receives French clarinetists in Japan to promote the beautiful French clarinet tradition.

Photo credits: Laëtitia Lécuyer / Henri SELMER Paris