Sachiko Furuhata-Kersting

Born in Yokohama, Japan, Furuhata-Kersting started piano lessons at the age of three. After winning the New Pianist competition in Japan, she relocated to Germany to study at the University of Music in Detmold and Robert Schumann Hochschule in Düsseldorf. Her instructors included Arnulf von Arnim, Roberto Szidon, Detlev Kraus, Naoyuki Taneda, and Willem Brons. She has also completed master classes in Salzburg, Austria (with Prof. Liske), Weimar, Germany (with Prof. Ringeissen) and Sion, Switzerland (with Prof. Roberto Szidon). She has been invited to perform across Europe, including Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, and Japan. Her recordings are published under the classical label Oehms Classics.

Her recorded works of Beethoven and Schumann won the Music Arena Performance of the Year designation for 2014 in Japan.[2] Notable performances have included her 2011 debut in München, 2012 debut in Suntory Hall in Tokyo, 2013 debut in London, 2014 performance in Basel, 2015 concert in Luxembourg, 2017 debuts in Cardiff and Edinburgh, and November 2017 debut at Carnegie Hall in New York. In addition to her solo recitals, Furuhata-Kersting has performed with several international orchestras including the Russian State Philharmonic, the German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Pfalztheater Orchestra, among others in Europe and Japan. She has also performed by invitation at numerous music festivals, including the EuroClassic and Kultursommer Rheinland-Pfalz Festival, playing several concerts.

In 2012, she was named a “Steinway Artist” by Steinway & Sons of New York and Hamburg.[3]

Furuhata-Kersting's repertoire has included classical and romantic pieces from Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms, Liszt, and Chopin.

Furuhata-Kersting's recent concerts have included performances in Tokyo, Basel and Düsseldorf (with Deutsche Radio Philharmonie at several venues[4]), a solo recital in Cardiff, Wales, a solo recital in Kaiserslautern, and a chamber concert in Dortmund, Germany. On July 29, 2017, Furuhata-Kersting debuted at Usher Hall in Edinburgh with a program featuring Beethoven, Schumann and Chopin.[5]