is a Japanese

lutenist A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lute" can re ...

. Imamura has appeared on more than 150 CDs, both as a soloist and as a member of ensembles. His solo recordings include the complete lute works by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

(two versions : for Naxos in 2018 and for Etcetera in 1991), three volumes of lute sonatas by

Silvius Leopold Weiss Sylvius Leopold Weiss (12 October 168716 October 1750) was a German composer and lutenist. Born in Grottkau near Breslau, the son of Johann Jacob Weiss, also a lutenist, he served at courts in Breslau, Rome, and Dresden, where he died. Until re ...

(for Claves and Capriccio), pièces pour théorbe by

Robert de Visée Robert de Visée (c. 1655 – 1732/1733) was a French lutenist, guitarist, theorbist and viol player at the court of the kings Louis XIV and Louis XV, as well as a singer and composer for lute, theorbo and guitar. Biography Robert de Visée's p ...

, Spanish music for vihuela from the time of Charles V (Querstand) and the complete lute fantasies by Simone Molinario (Deutsche Harmonia Mundi). His teachers included lute with Eugen Müller-Dombois and

Hopkinson Smith Hopkinson Smith (born December 7, 1946) is an American lutenist and pedagogue, longtime resident in Basel, Switzerland. Smith was born in New York City, the son of architectural writer and photographer G. E. Kidder Smith. He graduated from ...

at the

Schola Cantorum Basiliensis The Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (SCB) is a music academy and research institution located in Basel, Switzerland, that focuses on early music and historically informed performance. Faculty at the school have organized performing ensembles that have ...

, where, in 1981, he received his soloist's diploma. In addition, he studied interpretation and basso continuo with

Ton Koopman Antonius Gerhardus Michael Koopman (; born 2 October 1944), known professionally as Ton Koopman, is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orches ...

and Johann Sonnleitner and composition with Wolfgang Neininger. Imamura has collaborated with such artists as

Cecilia Bartoli Cecilia Bartoli, Cavaliere OMRI (; born 4 June 1966) is an Italian coloratura mezzo-soprano opera singer and recitalist. She is best known for her interpretations of the music of Bellini, Handel, Mozart, Rossini and Vivaldi, as well as for her ...

Teresa Berganza Teresa Berganza Vargas OAXS (16 March 1933 – 13 May 2022) was a Spanish mezzo-soprano. She is most closely associated with roles such as Rossini's Rosina and La Cenerentola, and later Bizet's Carmen, admired for her technical virtuosity, mu ...

, Gérard Lesne, Marc Minkowski, Michael Schneider, Martin Gester, Maurice Steger,

Masaaki Suzuki is a Japanese organist, harpsichordist and conductor, and the founder and music director of the Bach Collegium Japan. With this ensemble he is recording the complete choral works of Johann Sebastian Bach for the Swedish label BIS Records, for wh ...

, Alan Curtis and Paul Goodwin. Mr. Imamura is a member of La Stagione Frankfurt, Les Musiciens du Louvre, Camerata Köln, Le Parlement de Musique and Il Complesso Barocco. Imamura created the ensemble "Fons Musicae" in 1997. They have released five recordings - "Airs de cour" (Michel Lambert), and recording dedicated exclusively to works by Giovanni Bononcini, Agostino Steffani, Antonio Caldara, Francesco Gasparini and Barbara Strozzi. These recordings have received awards including "Classica" (France) and "Star of the Month" (Germany). Imamura teaches lute at the Conservatoire National de Région, Strasbourg since 1984. In 1989, he began teaching at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst,

Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts The Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts (german: Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main, italic=no, link=no, HfMDK) is a state Hochschule for music, theatre and dance in Frankfurt and is the only one of its k ...

. He gives master-classes in Europe and throughout the Far East.

Awards

* "Diapason d'Or" prize by French Diapason Magazine (July–August 2006) * "Joker de Crescendo" prize by the Belgian magazine, Crescendo.(September–October 2008) * "Cultural achievement award" by the Canton of Solothurn (Switzerland) in 2010. * "The classica" by the French magazine, Classica (July-August 1998) * "Star of the Month" Prize by the Fono Forum Magazine (march 2002)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Imamura, Yasunori 1953 births Japanese male musicians Japanese musicians Living people Musicians from Osaka Prefecture People from Sakai, Osaka