Mayumi Miyata

Mayumi Miyata
宮田 まゆみ
Born (1954-04-01) April 1, 1954
Tokyo, Japan
GenresContemporary classical music
OccupationMusician
InstrumentShō
Years active1979–present

Mayumi Miyata (宮田 まゆみ, Miyata Mayumi) is a Japanese player of the shō, a traditional Japanese mouth organ.[1]

Miyata was born on April 1, 1954, in Tokyo and graduated from the Kunitachi College of Music, where she majored in piano.[2] While in school, she began studying gagaku music from Ono Tadamaro of the Imperial Household Agency. From 1979 she performed in gagaku concerts at the National Theatre of Japan, and from 1983 she began giving solo shō recitals, which brought her wider public attention.[3]

Although the shō is generally associated with Japan's ancient gagaku court music, Miyata was among the first players of the instrument to specialize in contemporary classical music. She plays a specially constructed instrument with extra pipes, allowing for the use of more chromaticism.[4]

The US composer John Cage (1912–1992) composed a number of works for Miyata just before his death. Cage met her during the 1990 Darmstadt summer course.[5] She has also premiered works by Tōru Takemitsu, Toshi Ichiyanagi, Maki Ishii, Joji Yuasa, Klaus Huber, Toshio Hosokawa, and Uroš Rojko, and has performed with major orchestras internationally, including the Saito Kinen Orchestra under Seiji Ozawa, the NHK Symphony Orchestra under Charles Dutoit, the New York Philharmonic under André Previn, and the Czech Philharmonic under Vladimir Ashkenazy.[3]

In 1998, Miyata performed the Japanese national anthem, "Kimigayo", at the opening ceremony of the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano.[6][3]

In 2005, Miyata performed in three songs by the Icelandic musician Björk, for the soundtrack album to Drawing Restraint 9, a film by Björk's contemporary media artist boyfriend Matthew Barney, about Japanese culture and whaling. Miyata also appeared in the film, playing the shō in one scene. Previously, a piece written for and recorded by Miyata, "Music for Shō and Harp" by Cort Lippe, was sampled in the Björk single, "Venus as a Boy".

She has performed in Japan, Australia, the United States, and Europe.[7]

Discography

Honours

  • Kawasaki Cultural Award (⁠1/新人賞⁠) — Arts Encouragement Prize (1986)
  • 37th Matsuo Geinō Award, Excellence Prize (2016)
  • 67th Arts Encouragement Prize (Minister of Education Award) (2017)
  • Medal with Purple Ribbon (2018)[8][3]
  • Japan Foundation Award (2021)[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Musician breathes life into Japanese sho". Washington Post. 2023-05-19. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  2. ↑ "Mayumi Miyata | The Japanese Sho mouth organ of Mayumi Miyata Giving voice to the natural world | Performing Arts Network Japan". The Japan Foundation Performing Arts Network Japan. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "宮田まゆみ" (in Japanese). AMATI. Retrieved 1 August 2026.
  4. ↑ "Ryuichi Sakamoto on Life, Nature and 'Time'". The New York Times. 2021-07-14. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  5. ↑ Haskins, Rob (October 2004). "The Extraordinary Commonplace: Cage's Music for Shō, Violin, Conch Shells". Archived from the original on 2012-02-09. Retrieved 2008-08-10.
  6. ↑ "宮田まゆみ(ミヤタマユミ)/笙" (in Japanese). Pia Corporation. Retrieved 1 August 2026.
  7. ↑ "Mayumi Miyata on Apple Music". AppleMusic. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  8. ↑ "笙奏者・宮田まゆみさん 天啓のように鳴り響いた音楽" (in Japanese). Nikkei. Retrieved 1 August 2026.

Further reading

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