Takashi Matsunaga in Warsaw

Composer and pianist Takashi Matsunaga (b. 1986) embarked on his music career as a 13-year-old, having studied with Hank Jones. At the age of 17, he debuted with the best-selling album Takashi. Also in 2003, he played at the Jazz in Tokyo festival, sharing the stage with Herbie Hancock, which brought him appreciation of artists of international standing. In 2004 he released the album Storm Zone in the USA, Europe, and Asia, becoming the youngest artists to record with Blue Note in the 75 years of the labels history, beating Miles Davis to it. Matsunaga is a holder of the 14th Idemitsu Music Award. He writes music for television programs and advertisements, as well as composing classical music. He has performed with the New Japan Philharmonic under Hiroyuki Iwaki and a range of other international orchestras playing G. Gershwin, D. Shostakovich, and W. A. Mozart. To mark the 10th anniversary of his debut, he released the album Good News. In December 2013, he played a solo concert and a duet with maestro Gabriel Taccino at an awards ceremony held by the Société nationale des beaux arts (SNBA) at the Louvre, to the acclaim of the international artistic community.

His sense of rhythm and piano technique are highly valued across the world.