Yu Tamaki Hoso - Solo Trombonist
Yu's passion and gift for sharing the human experience through music is evident not only in his expressive performance but also through his numerous collaborations and educational endeavors. Yu Tamaki Hoso is leaving his mark on the world one note at a time. Building bridges with music. It is step by step towards world peace.
Yu Tamaki Hoso is a Japanese solo trombonist active worldwide, his artistic work is built on three main pillars: solo recitals, trombone concertos, and masterclass instruction. In addition, he is engaged in a wide range of activities including chamber music, orchestral performance, education, writing, and artistic production.
Born in Ashiya, Japan, he began his professional studies at Hyogo Prefectural Nishinomiya High School of Music and Kyoto City University of Arts before moving to the United States. After establishing an orchestral career in the United States, Japan, and Europe, he transitioned exclusively to a solo career in 2018. Since then, he has performed in more than 20 countries across Europe, North America, South America and Asia.
Yu currently serves as Distinguished Visiting Professor at Osaka University of Arts and is an official artist for Pro Arte Musicae (Tokyo), Sanda Co./JoyBrass (Tokyo), S.E. Shires Company (USA), and Glanz Trombone (Japan). He is also Music Director of the FukuTama Festival in Shimane and the Glanz Trombone Festival in Shizuoka. His principal teachers include Ian Bousfield, Peter Sullivan, Shinichi Go, and Hiroo Yamashita. Currently located in Denmark, Yu additionally serves as Chair of the International Trombone Association Solo Competition Committee and as an Advisory Board Member of the International Trombone Festival.
His annual recital tours are held not only in major cities throughout Japan but also in the United States. Since 2021, he has performed at more than 70 leading American music institutions, including The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, and New England Conservatory. As a concerto soloist, he has appeared with orchestras such as the Japan Century Symphony, Japan Philharmonic, Tokyo City Philharmonic, Tokyo New City Orchestra, Dream Wind Orchestra (comprised of principal players from Japan’s professional orchestras), Santa Fe Symphony (Argentina), Federal University of Bahia Orchestra (Brazil), “Pershing’s Own” United States Army Band, Osaka Shion Wind Orchestra, Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra, Super Strings Kobe, Fountain City Brass Band (Kansas City), and the University of North Texas Wind Orchestra. He has also collaborated with numerous Japanese premier wind ensembles.
He has been invited to perform solo recitals and concertos at major international festivals, including the International Trombone Festival (ITF), La Folle Journée (France), Trombonanza (Argentina), Brazilian Trombone Festival (Festival da ABT), Japan Trombone Association, Southeast Trombone Symposium (USA), American Trombone Workshop (ATW), Korean Trombone Symposium, Civebra (Brazil), and the Vientos de la Montaña Music Festival (Mexico).
He has released four solo albums: Love and Chaos (2018), Colors for Trombone (2019), Bridges (2023), and Gifts for Trombonists (2025). His performances have been broadcast on NHK-FM (Japan) and Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR, Germany). He has commissioned new works from internationally acclaimed composers including Samuel Adler, Yasuhide Ito, and Miho Hazama, and continues to explore and expand the expressive possibilities of solo trombone music.
He is the first Japanese brass musician to have won prizes at two international competitions affiliated with the World Federation of International Music Competitions, as well as at the two largest national competitions in Japan. His awards include First Prize at the 26th Japan Wind and Percussion Competition (awarded unanimously by all seven judges), Second Prize at the 6th Jeju International Brass Competition (Korea), and the Aoyama Music Award (Baroque Saal Prize), among many others.
Drawing on his musical experiences across diverse regions of the world, he is deeply committed to the education of the next generation. He has given masterclasses and workshops internationally, and since 2014 has regularly organized professional trombone workshops, inviting Ian Bousfield as a special guest instructor. In 2016, he co-founded the Ian Bousfield / Yu Tamaki Trombone Academy under the auspices of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government at Tokyo Bunka Kaikan, followed by another edition in 2018 hosted by Pro Arte Musicae and Shinjuku City. Since 2021, he has resumed educational activities in the United States and has also given masterclasses at institutions such as the University of Gothenburg (Sweden), Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), and the Brasília Conservatory. He has contributed extensively to Band Journal magazine (Ongaku no Tomo Sha), including a year-long series of “One-Point Lessons” in 2012 and a monthly column titled Challenging the World! – Grasping Dreams Beyond Borders from 2014 to 2016 (30 installments).