Natsuko Yoshimoto

Born in Japan, Natsuko began playing the violin at the age of three. She studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and Royal Northern College of Music in England and the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.  She received direct guidance and teaching under Lord Menuhin and Wen Zhou Li.

She has won many awards and prizes in international competitions including the Gold Medal in both the prestigious 1994 Shell/London Symphony Orchestra Competition and the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa Award and the Iwaki Award for outstanding achievement as a Japanese artist.

In great demand as a soloist, she has appeared with many world renowned orchestras including the London Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia (London), Halle Orchestra, Odense  Symphony (Denmark), Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic, Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Melbourne Symphony and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras.

Natsuko is currently the Concertmaster with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. She frequently guests as a Concertmaster with other major orchestras in Australia and Asia. She was the leader of the Australian String Quartet and then the Grainger Quartet until the end of 2008. She continues to perform chamber music as a guest artist with various groups and musicians.

Natsuko is also a passionate teacher and is a staff member at the Conservatorium of Music in Queensland and at the University of Queensland teaching violin and chamber music.

She has given many world premieres of works by Australia’s most prominent composers and has recorded for Virgin Classics, ABC Classics, Melba Records and Tall Poppies.

Natsuko plays on a Giovanni Battista Guadagnini generously on loan from UKARIA Trust.