Kentaro Nagai

Kentaro Nagai is a Japanese pianist and educator. He graduated from the Royal College of Music after completing Bachelors Degrees with First Class Honours, Master of Music with Distinction and Artist Diploma  under the tutelage of Gordon Fergus-Thompson and John Blakely. During his studies, he was kindly supported by a scholarship, Irene Hanson Memorial Award. He also benefited from further studies with Josep Colom at Liceu Conservatorio in Barcelona, Spain. 

His musical training began at the age of four with an influence from his mother who is a professional Opera Singer and a Lieder Singer. He made his concerto debut at the age of eight in Japan. Then at the age of 14, he moved to Canada where he received several music awards and scholarships including the Canmore Mayor’s Award for the Honourable Citizen. He has given numerous performances in Japan, Canada and Europe at such venues as the Banff Centre in Canada, Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room, Cadogan Hall, Steinway Hall, St. Paul's Cathedral, St. Martins in the Field, St. James Piccadilly and the National Gallery in London, and Auditori. He also appeared as a concerto soloist including the performances with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra. As a very keen chamber musician and a vocal accompanist, Kentaro also won the Geoffrey Parson Memorial Trust Award for his dedications to Piano Accompaniment.

He is the founder of MusiKen Pro., a music initiative based in Japan through which he has organised numerous concerts and workshops aimed at promoting classical music to broader audiences and engaging local communities. He is also a co-founder and organiser of the charity concert series KIBOU, which raised funds to support victims of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami.

Kentaro is a well sought-after educator and mentor, and have given numerous masterclasses in the UK, Spain, Hong Kong, and Japan. He has also served on the jury for various international music competitions, most recently for the Japan round of the Singapore International Music Competition.

Dedicated to nurturing the next generation of musicians, Kentaro is an enthusiastic pedagogue who takes great joy in sharing his passion for music with his students and young musicians worldwide.

Kentaro Nagai是一位日本鋼琴家及音樂教育家。他畢業於英國皇家音樂學院，師承鋼琴名師戈登·弗格斯-湯普森（Gordon Fergus-Thompson）與約翰·布萊克利（John Blakely），以一級榮譽成績完成學士學位，並以優異成績完成音樂碩士及演奏家文憑課程。在學期間，他榮獲學院 Irene Hanson Memorial Award獎學金，並曾赴西班牙巴塞隆拿利塞歐音樂院，跟隨西班牙鋼琴家約瑟普·科洛姆（Josep Colom） 深造。

Kentaro 自四歲開始學習鋼琴，深受其作為專業歌劇及藝術歌曲演唱家的母親薰陶。八歲時於日本首次登台演奏協奏曲。十四歲時移居加拿大，期間屢獲音樂獎項及獎學金，包括坎莫爾市長頒發的榮譽市民獎。他曾於日本、加拿大及歐洲多地演出，包括加拿大班夫藝術中心（Banff Centre）、倫敦皇家阿爾伯特音樂廳 Elgar Room、Cadogan Hall、Steinway Hall、聖保羅大教堂、St. Martin-in-the-Fields、St. James Piccadilly 及倫敦國家美術館，以及西班牙 Auditori 音樂廳。他亦曾擔任協奏曲獨奏，包括與加拿大卡加利愛樂樂團（Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra）及保加利亞索非亞愛樂樂團（Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra）合作演出。

作為一位熱愛室樂與聲樂合作的鋼琴家，Kentaro 曾獲得 Geoffrey Parsons Memorial Trust Award，以表揚他在鋼琴伴奏領域的貢獻。

Kentaro 為日本音樂推廣組織「MusiKen Pro.」的創辦人，曾策劃多場音樂會及工作坊，向大眾推廣古典音樂並促進社區藝術參與。他同時為慈善音樂會系列「KIBOU」的共同創辦人及策劃者，透過音樂活動為 2011 年日本東北大地震與海嘯災民籌募善款。

Kentaro 是深受歡迎的音樂導師與教育家，曾於英國、西班牙、香港及日本舉辦多場大師班，並多次擔任國際音樂比賽的評審，包括新加坡國際音樂比賽日本賽區的評審工作。

懷抱培育新一代音樂人才的熱忱，Kentaro熱衷於音樂教育，並樂於與世界各地的年輕一代音樂人與學生分享他對音樂的熱誠與洞見。

J. Brahms - 6 Klavierstücke Op. 118 (1 - 3)

G. Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue arrangement for Two Pianos