Ayaka Taganuchi, viola

Scholarship holder since 2024

The Japanese violist Ayaka Taniguchi, born in 2005, is currently studying with Prof. Tabea Zimmermann at the University of Music and Performing Arts Frankfurt am Main.

In 2025, she achieved two major competition successes: she won the International Hindemith Viola Competition in Munich. For her outstanding performance, she received three awards: first prize, the audience prize, and the Fondation Hindemith Prize for the best interpretation of Paul Hindemith’s Sonata Op. 25 No. 4.

She also won second prize at the Concours de Genève – Viola Competition 2025, one of the world’s most prestigious music competitions.

As a soloist, her repertoire ranges from the Baroque period to contemporary music. Chamber music also plays an important role in her career. In 2024, her clarinet trio won first prize at the Lenzewski Competition. Her chamber music partners include renowned musicians such as Nobuko Imai and Tim Vogler. Since 2024, she has been a scholarship holder of Villa Musica.

She has participated in prestigious festivals and academies, including the Pau Casals International Music Festival and the Kirishima International Music Festival.

She began her studies at the Tokyo University of the Arts with Prof. Kazunori Kawasaki and Makiko Etani.