, better known by his stage name is a Japanese

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

, vocalist and songwriter, best known for his work in the

Ringo Sheena , known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer, songwriter and musician. She is also the founder and lead vocalist of the band Tokyo Jihen. She describes herself as "". She was ranked number 36 in a list of Japan's top 100 musicians compiled ...

-helmed band

Tokyo Jihen , also known as Tokyo Incidents, is a Japanese rock band formed by Ringo Sheena, after leaving her solo career. The band's debut single " Gunjō Biyori" was released in September 2004, and they ended activities in February 2012. The band sold 2. ...

. He is also the lead vocalist and pianist of the band

Appa Appa or APPA may refer to: Organizations *American Pet Products Association, an industry association in the United States * American Psychopathological Association, a scientific professional organization * American Philosophical Practitioners As ...

Biography

Izawa was born in 1976 in

Kurashiki is a historic city located in western Okayama Prefecture, Japan, sitting on the Takahashi River, on the coast of the Inland Sea. As of March 31, 2017, the city has an estimated population of 483,576 and a population density of 1,400 persons per ...

City,

Okayama is the capital city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The city was founded on June 1, 1889. , the city has an estimated population of 720,841 and a population density of 910 persons per km2. The total area is . The city is ...

Prefecture. His father Masanobu Izawa is the president of '' Kurabun Corporation''. Izawa began studying piano at the age of four, and by the age of 14 had also learned to play the guitar and was active in several bands in which he also served as the vocalist. After graduating from Kurashiki's Seiryo Senior High School, he entered the composers' program at the

Kunitachi College of Music The is a private music conservatory in Tachikawa, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1926 as the Tokyo Conservatory of Music, Kunitachi now offers study programs in performance, music education, composition, computer music, and musicology, for bachelor ...

; however, he left the college two years later before graduation because he felt he would not be able to study and compose music seriously at the same time. He formed a band with Kunitachi classmate H Zhett M soon after, although they dissolved three months later. He formed the band Appa in 2004 along with bassist Hideaki Hotta and drummer Kazuto Sato. Izawa serves as the band's leader, pianist and vocalist in addition to writing and arranging most of their songs. After two small-run independent EP releases, Appa released their full-length debut album, ''Rashipoki'', on November 5, 2008. In mid-2005, Izawa was introduced to

Sheena Ringo , known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer, songwriter and musician. She is also the founder and lead vocalist of the band Tokyo Jihen. She describes herself as "". She was ranked number 36 in a list of Japan's top 100 musicians compiled ...

by H Zhett M, then the keyboardist of Sheena's band

, as a potential replacement keyboardist (HZM planned to depart the group in order to concentrate more fully on his own band

Pe'z was a Japanese jazz instrumental band consisting of five men, dubbed "The Samurai Jazz Band." They were signed onto Sony Music Japan from 2008 until their split in 2015. History PE'Z began their music careers playing live on the streets of Shi ...

). After a period of hesitation, he was eventually convinced by the encouragement of both Sheena and bassist

Seiji Kameda is a Japanese music producer, arranger and bass guitarist. He has worked extensively with Ringo Shiina, serving as her producer and touring bassist for many years, including his tenure with their band Tokyo Jihen from 2005 to 2012. Biography ...

, who is said to have told him "Hurry up and join so we can play together", and Izawa debuted later the same year as a member of Tokyo Jihen's Phase 2 lineup alongside new guitarist

Ryosuke Nagaoka , is a Japanese musician, and singer and guitar player for the band Petrolz. Under the stage name , he was the second guitarist for Ringo Sheena's band Tokyo Jihen from 2005 until 2012. In 2013, Nagoka joined the band Gokumontō Ikka, a project i ...

, nicknamed Ukigumo. He arranged the majority of the songs on their second album ''

Adult An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...

'' and would go on to compose more songs for the group than any other member besides Sheena. In 2009, during a period of inactivity for the band during Sheena's temporary return to her solo work with the release of her fourth album ''Sanmon Gossip'', Izawa joined former

Ellegarden Ellegarden (stylized as ELLEGARDEN) is a Japanese rock band formed in December 1998 in Chiba, Japan. Ellegarden consists of drummer Hirotaka Takahashi, vocalist/guitarist Takeshi Hosomi, guitarist Shinichi Ubukata, and bassist Yuichi Takada. In ...

member Takeshi Hosomi's new band

The Hiatus The Hiatus is a Japanese rock supergroup formed by Takeshi Hosomi, lead vocalist of Ellegarden. Members * – vocals, guitar (Ellegarden, MONOEYES) * Masasucks – guitar (Fullscratch) * – bass (Radio Caroline, ex-Thee Michelle Gun Elephant ...

as a touring member. Izawa remained a member of Tokyo Jihen until the band's farewell tour and breakup in February 2012. He has since resumed full-time membership in Appa, beginning with a performance at March 11 Nakaso Music Festival. Appa released their second full-length album, ''Mantra'', on August 29, 2012.

References

External links

* (official solo web site) * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Izawa, Ichiyo 1976 births Japanese male pianists Kunitachi College of Music alumni Living people Musicians from Okayama Prefecture People from Kurashiki Tokyo Jihen members