Mika Takehara took her first percussion lessons from Professor Yoshitaka Kobayashi and Akikuni Takahashi. In 1992 she began to study at the Toho Gakuen College of Music in Tokyo, where her teachers included Professor Kobayashi and Professor Kyoichi Sano as well as the marimba virtuoso Keiko Abe. After graduating in 1996 she continued at Toho Gakuen, and received her research diploma the following year.
In 1997 she was invited by Anders Loguin, a member of the Kroumata Percussion Ensemble and professor at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, to attend the college as a guest student. After four years of study she graduated from the diploma course with the highest honours in 2001, giving her diploma concert with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra.
Mika Takehara made her début with the Kroumata Ensemble in 1998 and shortly afterwards she also performed at the International Percussion Event organized in conjunction with Stockholm’s year as Cultural Capital of Europe. She has since established herself as a soloist, appearing frequently at concerts in Sweden, Japan and all over Europe. Since 2000 Mika Takehara has been associated with the Saito Kinen Orchestra, under maestro Seiji Ozawa. She is also a member of the Swedish ensemble KammarensembleN, specializing in contemporary music.
www.mika-takehara.com
