Kazuki Yamada

His gestures have already developed a vocabulary of unheard-of wealth, full of character and with the grace of a ballerina, which can’t help but evoke the elegance of Chailly or the jubilation of Kleiber.

Le Temps (CH)

Kazuki Yamada was the winner at the 51st Besancon International Competition for young conductors in 2009, receiving the audience award as well as the Grand Prize.  He was awarded the Ataka-Prize in 2001 when he graduated from the conducting course at Tokyo National University of Fine Arts & Music, under Ken-ichiro Kobayashi and Yoko Matsuo. He also studied under Gerhard Markson at the International Summer Academy of Mozarteum Salzburg in July 2002; here, he was selected as best student and conducted Varna Philharmonic Orchestra (Bulgaria).

In the 2010/2011 season, he will make his London debut with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, at London’s Barbican Hall, his Paris debut with Orchestre de Paris and his Berlin debut with Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin.   Future plans also include engagements with Dresdner Philharmonie, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Turku Philharmonic Orchestra.   In June 2010, Yamada stepped in at the last minute with Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, to huge acclaim, and earning himself an immediate reinvitation to the orchestra

Guest conducting engagements in Japan have included Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra, Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa, Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra and Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra. In March 2010, he stepped in for an indisposed Seiji Ozawa with Ensemble Orchestral Kanazawa, conducting works by Schönberg and Mozart, with great success.  He has subsequently been given the title of ‘Music Partner’ with Ensemble Kanazawa.  In summer 2010, he will appear with Saito-Kinen Orchestra, also at the recommendation of Seiji Ozawa.

At college, he formed Yokohama Sinfonietta, where he remains music director. At the age of 22, he conducted all 9 symphonies of Beethoven with the orchestra.  His repertoire also includes all symphonies of Schumann, Brahms, Tchaikovsky and Borodin and soloists with whom he is now working include Nicolas Altstaedt, Isabelle Faust, Francesco Piemontesi, Vadim Repin, Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Tamas Varga.

Passionate about choral repertoire, he is Tokyo Philharmonic Chorus’s Residential Conductor.  The group have released four CDs with Yamada (on Fontec Inc).  He worked with Charles Dutoit and NHK Symphony Orchestra in 2006, as chorus master.   

Now resident in Berlin, Yamada was born in Kanagawa, Japan, in 1979.

SEASON 2010/2011

Kazuki Yamada, winner of the 51st Besançon International Competition for Young Conductors