Profile
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 Professors John Perry and Robert Roux.
In the 2012-13 season she performs Beethoven’s 4th concerto and Choral Fantasy, an on-going Bach project including Italian and French influenced works and the Goldberg Variations, and various chamber music. Junko¢s recent engagements in the U. S. include recitals in New York, Boston, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Kansas City, Denver, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Houston, and Fairbanks under the auspices of the Japan Foundation, the Japanese Embassy, and Japanese Consulates General. She performed on several occasions for the 150-year celebration of the US-Japan treaty. Under the Japan Foundation¢s grant program she toured South and Central America in 2010, 2008, 2006, 2002, and 1999, including Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru, Mexico, Cuba, El Salvador, and Costa Rica. During these visits, she performed and lectured receiving high critical acclaim. 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 (with husband and Los Angeles Philharmonic cellist, David Garrett) performing and lecturing on American music. In 2000, Junko received “The Japanese Counsel General’s Award” for her contributions to international relations and understanding between countries.
In Los Angeles she keeps a busy performance schedule, performing on the Los Angeles Philharmonic¢s chamber music series, chamber music collaborations with leading Los Angeles musicians, faculty performances, and guest artist appearances. Junko holds a faculty position at Occidental College.
Junko debuted in the U.S. in 1991, South American in 1992, and France in 1994, and her return trip to France in 1996 included a live performance on Radio France. Her return debut to her Japanese homeland was in 1995, and she has since performed frequently in Japan. Other recent activities include concert tours to India in 2004 and 2005 introducing Western Music to Indian audiences. She often gives masterclasses where she performs.
Junko has released three solo CDs, “Canción para piano”, “100 Years of Japanese Piano Music”, and “American Music for Piano”. She has also partnered in two piano trio CDs of Japanese folk songs commissioned by the Japanese philanthropist, Mr. Seigo Arai. Junko Ueno Garrett is a Kawai artist. She resides in Los Angeles.
