MITO ARTS FOUNDATION 1-6-8 Goken-cho, Mito-shi, Ibaraki-ken, 310-0063 Japan Click for transportation directions Phone: +81 29-227-8111 Facsimile: +81 29-227-8110 E-mail address: webstaff@arttowermito.or.jp

ATM Director General Yoshida Receives National Cultural Prize 1996

Biography of Mr. Hidekazu YOSHIDA

Mr. YOSHIDA was born in Nihombashi in Tokyo on September 23, 1913, and is now 83 years old. He graduated from Tokyo Imperial University (now University of Tokyo) before the war. After the war, in 1946, he started his career as a critic with a series of articles on Mozart contributed to the Ongaku Geijutsu magazine, Japan's most respected publication on music. Aptly expressing the beauty and attraction of music in words, Mr. YOSHIDA was responsible for laying the foundations for the genre of musical criticism in Japan. He later expanded his critical scope to the field of art, and has gained a wide readership.

In 1948, Mr. YOSHIDA founded the "Musical Classroom for Children" with Mr. Hideo SAITO and others; the school later developed into the Toho Gakuen School of Music. In 1957, he established the "20th Century Musical Research Institute" with Mr. Minao SHIBATA and others. He has also contributed to the development of modern music in Japan and has introduced it to the public.

The 16-volume collection of Mr. YOSHIDA's writings (available from Hakusuisha) won the 2nd Jiro OSARAGI Prize. In addition, his "Portrait of Manet" won the 44th Yomiuri Literature Prize. Mr. YOSHIDA has written many essays.

In 1988, Mr. YOSHIDA was appointed the Director General of ATM.

Hidekazu YOSHIDA's Achievements as ATM Director General

When it came time for the previous mayor of Mito, Mr. Kazunobu SAGAWA to appoint the director general of Art Tower Mito (ATM) - with its facilities for music, drama and art - he thought that the most appropriate person for the position would be Mr. Hidekazu YOSHIDA, well known not just for his activities in the musical world but also for his critical essays on art as a whole.

In 1988, Mr. YOSHIDA was appointed as the Director General of ATM, and has served in that position ever since. Thanks to him, ATM has been able to attract many talented musicians, dramatists and artists to perform or exhibit on its premises, including Mr. Seiji Ozawa, musical adviser to the Mito Chamber Orchestra (MCO).

Mr. YOSHIDA has also been responsible for proposing various ideas that have emerged as some of the most salient characteristics of the way ATM is run. Those include the establishment of an in-house orchestra and dramatic troupe, and the focus on carrying out projects on its own.

Besides serving as ATM Director General, Mr. YOSHIDA concurrently serves as chairman of the ATM artistic committee, and as the general/artistic director of the Mito Chamber Orchestra. He is also vice-president of the Mito Arts Foundation, which manages ATM.

Since ATM's opening in March 1990, Mr. YOSHIDA has guided the activities of the museum in a way that has successfully ensured that their vision is not restricted to the city of Mito, but is open to the world at large.

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