Naoko Yoshino

Born in London, Naoko Yoshino began to study harp at the age of six with Susann McDonald. In 1985, after winning first prize at the Ninth International Harp Contest in Israel, she started her worldwide career. Ms. Yoshino's solo engagements with the world's top orchestras have included dates with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, and The Philadelphia Orchestra, with conductors such as Boulez, Ozawa, Mehta, and Blomstedt. Also known as a recitalist and chamber musician, Naoko Yoshino has come to work with such renowned artists as violinist Gidon Kremer, violist Nobuko Imai, cellist Clemens Hagen, and flutists Aurèle Nicolet and Emmanuel Pahud. As an advocate of new repertoire for harp, Ms. Yoshino has premiered many works, including Toru Takemitsu's "And then I knew 'twas Wind" and Toshio Hosokawa's "Harp Concerto".