is a Japanese orchestral and choral conductor and author based in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.
Ito is the third generation to be born into a musical family of conductors in
Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...
, Japan. He moved to the US in 1997 in order to study international affairs at the
Elliott School of International Affairs
The Elliott School of International Affairs (known as the Elliott School or ESIA) is the professional school of international relations, foreign policy, and international development of the George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. It i ...
of
the George Washington University
, mottoeng = "God is Our Trust"
, established =
, type = Private federally chartered research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.8 billion (2022)
, preside ...
. After graduating, however, he decided to become a professional musician and moved to New York City to study intensively.
Ito started his professional career as a conductor in March 2008 with
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
's opera ''
The Marriage of Figaro
''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...
'' at the
Goldstein Theatre in
Queens
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
, New York. Soon after the debut he became music director of the Reona Ito Chamber Orchestra, a professional orchestra newly established by himself and the Japanese immigrant community in the New York metropolitan area. Ito's inaugural performance with the ensemble was at
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...
in June of the same year.
From 2011 to 2013, Ito was music director of Zagreb Sinfonietta in
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
. In August 2012 he and the orchestra were invited by the
Poreč
Poreč (; it, Parenzo; la, Parens or ; grc, Πάρενθος, Párenthos) is a town and municipality on the western coast of the Istrian peninsula, in Istria County, west Croatia. Its major landmark is the 6th-century Euphrasian Basilica, whic ...
Music Festival to perform at the
Euphrasian Basilica
The Euphrasian Basilica ( hr, Eufrazijeva bazilika, it, Basilica Eufrasiana) or the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of Mary is a Roman Catholic basilica in the Istrian town of Poreč, Croatia. The episcopal complex, which comprises the basil ...
, one of the
UNESCO World Heritage
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
Sites. On 5 March 2013 he conducted a special concert celebrating the 20th-Year Anniversary of the Japan-Croatia Diplomatic Establishment, which was supported by the Office of the President of the
Republic of Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
and the Embassy of Japan. Ito was also invited for an official meeting with the then president
Ivo Josipović
Ivo Josipović (; born 28 August 1957) is a Croatian academic, jurist, and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2010 to 2015.
Josipović entered politics as a member of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia (SKJ), and played a ke ...
at the Office.
In October 2014, Ito placed as third runner up of
the American Prize
The American Prize is a set of annual nonprofit national competitions in the performing arts which recognizes and rewards commercial and noncommercial recorded performances of classical music in the United States based on submitted applications. T ...
in Orchestral Conducting (Professional Orchestra Division), one of the most prestigious national prizes for classical musicians in the US.
Conductor Winners
. The American Prize Official Blog. 28 October 2014.
Writings
* Ito, Reona. 2020. "Hearing the Music of the Spheres
The ''musica universalis'' (literally universal music), also called music of the spheres or harmony of the spheres, is a philosophical concept that regards proportions in the movements of celestial bodies – the Sun, Moon, and planets – as a fo ...
(宇宙の音楽を聴く, ''Uchū no Ongaku o Kiku'')". Kobunsha
Kobunsha ( ja, 光文社 ''Kōbunsha'') is a Japanese publishing company. It publishes literature, manga novels, and women's magazines.
Company history
Kobunsha was established on October 1, 1945, and belongs to the Kodansha group.
The company h ...
. .
* Ito, Reona. 2016. "On the Case of ‘Japan’s Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...
’ Mamoru Samuragochi: ‘Real’ Beethoven and General Awareness on Rights & Duties in Western Music History". ''The Bulletin of Musashino Gakuin University'' Japan Research Institute, Vol. 13: 151–159. .
* Ito, Reona. 2009.
A Conductor and His Orchestra: A Bridge between Cultures
. The Consulate General
A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...
of Japan in New York “Japan Info”, Vol. 27.
References
External links
Official Facebook pageAgency website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ito, Reona
1979 births
Living people
Elliott School of International Affairs alumni
American male conductors (music)
American classical musicians of Japanese descent
21st-century American conductors (music)
Musicians from Fukuoka
Japanese emigrants to the United States
21st-century male musicians