Mona Asuka Ott (''Mona Asuka'', Born 1991 in Munich) is a German pianist and the younger sister of

Alice Sara Ott is a German classical pianist. Early life and education Alice was born in Munich, Germany, in 1988. Her Japanese mother had studied piano in Tokyo; her father was a German civil engineer. She says she realised as a child that "music was the la ...

Early life and education

Mona Asuka Ott was born in Munich in 1991; her Japanese mother had studied piano in Tokyo and her father was a German civil engineer. She gave her first public performance on the piano at the age of four. She was taught, like her sister

, by

Karl-Heinz Kämmerling Karl-Heinz Kämmerling (6 May 1930 – 14 June 2012) was a notable German academic teacher of classical pianists, who trained pianists at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and the Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover for careers as performer ...

at the

Mozarteum University of Salzburg Mozarteum University Salzburg (German: ''Universität Mozarteum Salzburg'') is one of three affiliated but separate (it is actually a state university) entities under the “Mozarteum” moniker in Salzburg municipality; the International Moz ...

. In 1997, at the age of six, she was rated sixth in Group 1 (Under 8) of the International Competition ''Classica Nova In Memoriam

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, , group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throug ...

'' (Hanover, 1997). She won first prizes at the Grotrian-Steinweg competition in Brunswick; the Jugend Musiziert and at the EPTA International Piano Competition in

Osijek Osijek () is the fourth-largest city in Croatia, with a population of 96,848 in 2021. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja ...

. She made her orchestral debut aged 13. In 2006 she was a finalist at the 11th Hamamatsu International Piano Academy Competition in Hamamatsu (Japan). She also received the audience prize at the Kissinger Piano Olympics at Bad Kissingen. In September 2008 she appeared in the special concert of the "Piano furioso" foundation in the Small Hall of the Laeiszhalle in Hamburg. From 2009 she studied with

Bernd Glemser Bernd Glemser (born 1962, Dürbheim) is a German pianist. A student of Vitaly Margulis, in 1989 he became Germany's youngest piano professor at Saarbrücken's Musikhochschule. He has recorded major pieces by Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev, Schumann, ...

at the University of Music Würzburg. She received several grants, including the Degussa Foundation and the

Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben The Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben is a foundation whose purpose is the promotion of musical excellence in Germany. The organisation was founded in 1962 by Hans Sikorski and Wolfgang Essen and is based in Hamburg. The patron of the Foundation is Pr ...

Career

Mona Asuka Ott joined, among others, the Ruhr Piano Festival, the Festival de La Roque-d'Anthéron, the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the Kissingen Sommer on Franconian Music Days and the Brunswick Classix Festival. She has conducted orchestral performances with the Philharmonic State Orchestra of Halle – Staatskapelle Halle, the Hofer Symphoniker, the Württemberg Chamber Orchestra, the

Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra The is a Japanese symphony orchestra administratively based in Tokyo. The orchestra primarily performs concerts in Tokyo at the Suntory Hall, but also gives concerts at the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall. The orchestra also performs in Yokohama a ...

, the

Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstanz The Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstanz is a professional classical orchestra, based in Konstanz on Lake Constance. Origin The orchestra was founded in 1932 as the "Theatre and Concert Orchestra" by Hans Rüdinger. After the closure of all ...

and the Munich Symphony Orchestra.

Discography

Mona Asuka's debut CD album was released on 28 July 2017 by the Oehms Classics label, and featured the piano compositions of Franz Schubert and

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

. Tracks include: * Schubert: 4 Impromptus. Recorded on 9–11 March 2017 at the Bavaria Musikstudios in Munich. Op. 90, D. 899: No. 1 in C minor, No. 2 in E-flat major, No. 3 in G-flat major, No. 4 in A-flat major. * Liszt: Zwölf Lieder Von Franz Schubert. Recorded: 9–11 March 2017 at the Bavaria Musikstudios, Munich. 12 Lieder von Schubert, S. 558: No. 2, ''Auf dem Wasser zu singen''; No. 3, ''Du bist die Ruh''; No. 9, ''Ständchen von Shakespear''e; No. 11, ''Der Wanderer''. * Liszt: '' Années de pèlerinage'' (''Years of Pilgrimage''), S.162 "Venezia e Napoli". Recorded on 9–11 March 2017 at Bavaria Musikstudios, Munich. ''Années de pèlerinage'' II, Supplément, S.162 "Venezia e Napoli": No. 1, Gondoliera; No. 2, Canzone; No. 3, Tarantella da

Guillaume Louis Cottrau Guillaume-Louis Cottrau (10 August 1797 in Paris – 31 October 1847 in Naples) was a French composer and music publisher. Arrived in Naples with his father who served Joachim Murat, the King of Naples, Cottrau undertook the publication of ''Pas ...

References

External links

Homepage of Mona Asuka
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ott, Mona Asuka 1991 births Musicians from Munich German classical pianists Living people German people of Japanese descent 21st-century classical pianists 21st-century German musicians German women classical pianists 21st-century German women 21st-century women pianists