Wataru HISASUE

In 2025, Wataru Hisasue won second prize at the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition, one of the world's three most prestigious music competitions, achieving the highest placement ever by a Japanese pianist and attracting significant international attention. Following this success, he gave a triumphant homecoming recital at Suntory Hall in Tokyo. In 2017, he was awarded third prize and the Special Prize for the best interpretation of the commissioned work at the ARD International Music Competition.

He has also received numerous other distinctions, including first prize and the Audience Prize at the International Piano Competition of Lyon; the Aoyama Music Award (Newcomer Prize) in 2009; the Aoyama Music Award (Baroque Saal Prize) in 2019; and the Aoyama Music Award (Aoyama Prize) in 2024. At the 16th Géza Anda International Piano Competition in 2024, he received two jury-awarded special prizes: the Beethoven Prize and the Liszt-Bartók Prize.

He has appeared at major music festivals such as the Audi Music Festival and the Würzburg Music Festival, among many others. As a soloist, he has performed with leading orchestras including Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Brussels Philharmonic, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, Belgian National Orchestra, and Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. From 2026 onward, he continues to be scheduled for recitals, concerto performances, and chamber music concerts both in Japan and internationally.

In 2021, he released the CD The Recital, which was selected as a "Special Recommendation" by Record Geijutsu magazine. In October 2025, he released a recording of works by Pascal Dusapin on the German label GENUIN classics.

He has received numerous grants and awards, including the Heiwado Foundation Art Encouragement Award (Music Division) and overseas study support from the same foundation; a scholarship from the Rohm Music Foundation (2018/19); the Shiga Prefecture Cultural Award and the Otsu City Special Cultural Award (2025). In 2026, he received the Kansai Genki Cultural Sphere Award (New Power Prize for 2025) and the Fresh Artist Prize at the 36th Nippon Steel Music Awards.

He studied under Haruo and Miyuki Tatsumi, Kuniko Murakami, and Yasuko Tasumi, and pursued advanced studies at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg, the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris, and the Universität der Künste Berlin, graduating from each institution with highest honors. His principal teachers include Gilead Mishory, Emmanuel Strosser, Pascal Devoyon, and Klaus Hellwig. He is currently based in Berlin.