Rio Yamase graduated from the Toho Gakuen School of Music, Department of Performance, Violin.
She studied violin under the late Toshiya Eto and Hardanger fiddle under the late Hallvard Kvåle.
Since 1992, she has performed with orchestras both in Japan and abroad, embarking on concert tours in Japan and the Nordic countries, including performances at the Munch Museum Hall in Norway.
In Norway, local newspapers have described her playing with headlines such as “When Riao Yamase begins to play, the church swings,” reflecting how her violin and Hardanger fiddle performances enchant audiences worldwide with their joyful, light-hearted melodies and sometimes melancholic tones.
In media, she is frequently featured at the top of entertainment news in the Nordic region, and in Japan, she has appeared on NHK and other media outlets.
She was the music director (composition and performance) for Hayao Miyazaki’s short animated film Monmon the Water Spider and participated as a performer in the Studio Ghibli film Tales from Earthsea.
She has released numerous CDs from Victor Entertainment, including Golden Aurora, Crystal Rose Garden, and Love Song of the Fjords.
In 2018, she was appointed “Good-will Ambassador of Hardanger” by the Hardanger district.
On January 31, 2023, she was awarded the “Royal Norwegian Order of Merit” for her efforts and contributions to sharing knowledge of Norwegian folk music and culture in Japan and fostering cultural relations between the two countries, earning the title of Knight.
She continues to perform and give lectures both in Japan and abroad while dedicating herself to nurturing the next generation of musicians.
2022 Outstanding Piano Instructor Award.
3rd Setagaya Music Competition Special Instructor Award.
The notes Do, Re, Mi are like words!
Learning music, a universal language, through various instruments offers both a great challenge and endless possibilities in life. My students range in age from 2 to 86 years old, with some just starting out and others who have been with me for over 25 years. Beginners often aspire to “play their favorite masterpieces!” or “perform with an orchestra!” while professional musicians have goals like “learning effective performance techniques!”—each with their own unique objectives. Among my Hardanger fiddle students, I teach everyone from complete beginners to professional violinists. They joyfully learn Nordic traditional music, which has no written sheet music, as if memorizing old folk tales. Why not study sheet music like reading a book, feel the rhythm like having a conversation, and play your instrument as if singing a song?
