(b Kanagawa, 5 May 1958). Japanese conductor. He studied at the Tokyo College of Music, and after graduating in 1983 became an assistant conductor of the Nagoya PO. In 1984 he won first prize at the first Kirill Kondrashin International Conducting Competition in Amsterdam. One of the jurors was Ashkenazy, who was so impressed with Hirokami that he engaged him as the conductor of his Japanese tour in 1985. In the next few years Hirokami was invited to conduct leading orchestras throughout the world, including the French National Orchestra, the Berlin Radio SO, Montreal SO, Israel PO, the Concertgebouw Orchestra, Vienna SO, the LSO and the RPO. In 1989 he made his début at the Sydney Opera House with Un ballo in maschera. In 1991 he became principal conductor of the Norrköping SO, where he added many contemporary Swedish works to his repertory. In 1995 he was appointed principal conductor of the Japan PO. Hirokami’s conducting, in a repertory ranging from Handel to contemporary music, is characterized by colourful lyricism, dynamic rhythm and a strong sense of drama. Among his recordings are orchestral works by Borodin, Atterberg and Linde.
MASAKATA KANAZAWA