Mina Kubota

Mina Kubota

Mina Kubota, born in Fukuoka, Japan, started composing music at a music school at age four and began her piano career at age five. At age 10, she was recognized by Mstislav Rostropovich as she took his master class and has since been performing around the world. In 1983, she was invited to perform at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, where she played her own compositions with the National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Rostropovich. She has also performed with renowned orchestras (the NHK Symphony Orchestra, the New Japan Philharmonic, the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra, the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra, the Kyushu Symphony Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra), including concerts in the US (at the UN General Assembly Hall, New York), the UK, France, Germany, Mexico and Israel. After graduating from high school, Mina enrolled in the Royal Academy of Music in London as a scholarship student to study composition and commercial music under Nick Ingman and Chris Brown, followed by graduation in 1994 and completion of a postgraduate degree in 1995. While in the academy, she received the Lansdowne Award, sponsored by CTS Studios, and was also among the finalists of the Eric Coats Prize. She subsequently collaborated with musicians in the UK in various music genres, from pop to classic. Mina has been active as a pianist, composer, arranger and producer since she moved back to Japan in 2001, composing and arranging a variety of music for TV dramas, films, animation, etc. Her outstanding works include those for the NHK TV drama "Gegege no Nyobo (My Husband is a Cartoonist)", the film "Katsuragi Jiken (The Katsuragi Murder Case)", the TV animation "Macross Delta", the "ARIA" series and the TV drama "Innocent Days". In addition, she has released two albums of her own: Moment (2008, Victor Entertainment) and Crystal Tales (2011, Aten Recordings).