was the president of the

Yamaha Corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation and conglomerate with a very wide range of products and services. It is one of the constituents of Nikkei 225 and is the world's largest musical instrument manufacturing company. The former motorcycle divi ...

from 1950 to 1977, and again from 1980 to 1983. He is often credited with the international success of Yamaha and was also widely influential as a community

music educator Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do original ...

. Born in

Hamakita was a city located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. On April 1, 2005, the city had an estimated population of 86,653 and a density of 1,300.00 persons per km2. The total area was 66.64 km2. It is now part of ward of Hamakita when t ...

, Kawakami was a graduate of Takachiho College of Commerce. He started working for Yamaha in 1937, where his father, Kaichi Kawakami had been the president since 1927. Kawakami succeeded his father and introduced

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: Long-distance ...

production to Yamaha (

Yamaha Motor Corporation is a Japanese multinational manufacturer of motorcycles, marine products such as boats and outboard motors, and other motorized products. The company was established in 1955 upon separation from Yamaha Corporation (however, Yamaha Corporation ...

). Retired in 1976, he wrote several books on

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

and founded the largest and most popular system of community music schools in the world. He died in

Hamamatsu is a city located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. the city had an estimated population of 791,707 in 340,591 households, making it the prefecture's largest city, and a population density of . The total area of the site was . Overview H ...

at the age of 90 of natural causes. Kawakami was married to Tamiko and had a son and a daughter.

References

1912 births 2002 deaths Yamaha Corporation 20th-century Japanese businesspeople People from Hamamatsu {{Japan-business-bio-stub