Junko Ueno Garrett

Japan-born Junko Ueno Garrett has captivated audiences around the world with her colorful tone, poetry, expressiveness, dynamic technique, and wide range of repertoire. She began playing piano at the age of three, trained at the prestigious Toho Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo studying under Professor Hiroshi Miura, and received a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music in the United States studying under Professor John Perry.

In the 2015-16 season she starts with the South American solo concert tour for the purpose of a cultural exchange co-organized by the Consulate General of Japan at Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba in Brazil, Japanese Embassies in Chile and Uruguay, and the Japan Foundation, New York. On this tour she performs a solo recital “Tango, Soul, and Passion”, Villa-Lobos Piano Trio No. 1, and Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23. Throughout the season she performs at variety of venues in Los Angeles area including Los Angeles Philharmonic's Chamber Music series at Disney Concert Hall, faculty artist/guest artist performances, and chamber music collaborations with leading Los Angeles musicians. (Concert details at www.junkopiano.com)

Her recent engagements include recitals at Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center, New York’s UN and Charles Wang Center, Radio France, French Festivals in Turenne, Chambre and Treignac. Le Chateau de Sedieres, Boston’s Berklee College, San Francisco’s Japan Center, Kansas City’s Carlsen Center, Denver’s King Academic Performing Arts Center, Salt Lake City’s Libby Gardner Concert Hall, Tampa’s Carrollwood Cultural Center, Georgia’s Falany Performing Arts Center, Tucson, Houston, Indiana, Fairbanks, Philadelphia and Shreveport. Under the culture exchange program of the Japan Foundation, Japanese Embassies and Consulate Generals of Japan she toured South and Central America in 2010, 2008, 2006, 2002, and 1999, including Venezuela (Saint-Saens Concerto No. 2 with Orquesta Sinfonica Venezuela under Alfredo Rugeles), Ecuador (Chopin Concerto No. 2 with Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Ecuador under Medardo Caisabanda), Colombia’s Teatro Colón, Rio de Janeiro’s Musica no Museu at Mosteiro de Sao Bento, Argentina’s Teatro Gran Rex, Brasilia’s Teatro da Caixa, Peru’s Sociedad Filarmonica, Uruguay’s Auditorio Carlos Vaz Ferreira, Costa Rica’s Teatro Eugene O’Neill, El Salvador’s Teatros Nacionals des San Salvador and Santa Ana, Cuba’s Basilica Menor del Convento, and Mexico City. In the summers of 2009 and 2007, at the invitation of the U.S. State Department, Junko toured in Japan as part of the Belrose Duo, performing and lecturing on American music in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Kobe, Okinawa, Sapporo, Tottori, and Fukuoka. Junko Performs in Japan frequently. Other activities include concert tours to India in 2004 and 2005 introducing Western Music to Indian audiences. She often gives masterclasses where she performs. In 2000, Junko received “The Japanese Consul General's Award” for her contributions to international relations and understanding between countries.

Junko holds a faculty position at Occidental College, and has released 3 solo CDs. She is a Kawai artist and lives in Los Angeles.