EVA ALKULA & TOMOYA NAKAI
Kantele & 25st -Koto player

TOMOYA NAKAI ProﬁleTomoya Nakai born in Tsu City, Mie Prefecture in WesternJapan,Nakai studied “Jiuta” music ( a traditional musical style ofWestern Japan ) under Miho Ashigaki.
He also studied the 25-string koto under Keiko Nosaka andcomposition under Aki Mori. In addition to the 25-stringkoto,Nakai also plays the Shamisen (3-string lute ) and composes
original musical compositions. He graduated from the Traditional
Japanese Music Course at Tokyo National University of Fine Arts& Music in 2001 and then has gone on to win Numerous Awards.
In 2002, he passed the NHK Traditional Music Audition and went
on to receive the Cultural Encouragement Award from his
hometown of Tsu City. He also has been featured in various
magazines such a the weekly Shukan Asahi magazines featurearticle entitled “ New Traditional Music Talent”
In 2005,he collaborated with Violinist Tibor Kovac of the Vienna Philharmonic to perform a piece that Nakai had
composed,called “Sakuragawa” ( Cherry Blossom River) In 2006,he released his ﬁrst album,”Hana wa kokoro” (FloweringSpirit ) and in 2007 gave multiple performances in Finnland and in Cebtral America ( Mexico,Chile and Dominica).TheConcerts,which were sponsored by the Japan Foundation,were very well received.
A highly active artist, Nakai performs live as well as works on new recordings. In addition to concert,he also performs inschool and through various media. He continues to garner much attention and excitement for his originality andﬂexibility,which pushes the boundarie of musical genres,particularly that of his project of interpreting the music of Nohon the 25-string koto.

http://www.tomoyanakai.com/

EVA ALKULA ProﬁleEva Alkula is one of the leading kantele artists in Finland. She specializes in contemporary and electro-acoustic music
and in Japanese fusion music.
Alkula performs as a soloist and in various chaimber music ensembles in Finland and abroad. She has performed widelyaround Europe, in USA and in Japan. She visits Japan regularly and collaborates with the local musicians e.g. koto artist
Tomoya Nakai. Alkula has joined music festivals such as Our Festival, Tampere Biennale, Time of Music, Kuhmo
Chamber Music Festival, Musica Nova, Nordic Music Days and Bergen International Festival and has premiered works byvarious contemporary composers both in Finland and abroad. She has also worked as a musician in several theaters andoperas like Von Krahl Teater, Savonlinna Opera Festival, The Finnish National Opera, Tampere Theater, The Finnish
National Theater etc.
Alkula has released a solo album 'Helios' in 2007. Duo album 'Youkihi' with koto artist Tomoya Nakai was released in2009 by Texicalli Records. Alkula has also broadcasted in The Finnish Broadcasting Company, BBC and NHK (Japan) andparticipated in several ﬁlm and documentary productions. Alkula has worked with the electric kantele since 2003 and haselectro-acoustic projects e.g. with violin artist Pekka Kuusisto, Tomoya Nakai and electro band KONEV.
In 2003 Alkula graduated with a Master of Music from the Sibelius-Academy in Helsinki where she studied contemporary
and classical kantele music with kantele artist Ritva Koistinen. In 1999-2000 Alkula studied Japanese koto in Hokkaido
University of Education in Sapporo with koto artist Yukiko Takagaki. Alkula has won the 1st prize in the National Kantele
Competition in 2003. Alkula has been given artist grants by The National Council For Music, Finnish CulturalFoundation, ESEK - The Finnish Performing Music Promotion Centre and Arts Council of Pirkanmaa. In 2012-2014
Alkula's work will be supported by The National Council For Music. Alkula teaches kantele playing at the Sibelius
Academy and at Tampere Conservatoire.

http://www.evaalkula.com/