Kazuyuki Kouno

International Tuba Soloist & Brass Band Director
Kazuyuki Kouno PGDip

Kazz Kouno was born in Tokyo,Japan. He began his musical career as a Tuba player in his junior high school wind orchestra when he was 11 years old.
Afterwards, he entered Senzoku College of Music where he saw a brass band for the first time.
During his four years in the college, he was chosen as a soloist in a special concert and to be a member of the elite wind orchestra, he enjoyed having concerts and recording CDs in the orchestra. While in the college brass band, he studied music with Prof. Takeo Yamamoto, Richard Evans and Dr. Robert Childs.
In 2011, he moved to the U.K to start the second stage of his musical career as a student at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
During the two years, he was awarded the Brian Gilbert Prize.
He also joined the British Champion Section Brass Band, Tongwynlais Temperance Band. They won the Scottish Open Competition in 2011 which was his first competition.
After his successful time with “Ton”, he moved to the Cory Band, which is one of the best brass bands in the world. While in the world-leading band, they won the titles of the Welsh Regional Contest, the European Brass Band Championships in Oslo and Brass in Concert. They also toured in European countries, Norway and
Australia.
As a tutor, he traveled around local towns and villages in Wales to teach young musicians and improve local brass bands.
After his two years in the U.K, Kazz was keen to spread brass band culture within the Japanese music world. With this in mind, he was invited by bands in the U.K and Japan to perform as a player. Such bands included the Desford Colliey Band from England and the “IBE” Band in Japan for their tour of Australia.
In 2013, three Japanese bands invited this young musician to be their resident conductor. They are the Nexus Brass Band, the Riverside British Brass and the Tokyo Brass Band Festa.
He traveled to many parts of Japan with the bands and by himself as a guest conductor. Every concerts was a success. Audiences especially enjoyed his entertaining way of performing, which made brass band more popular.
As the Tuba soloist, he enjoyed playing concertos and solo pieces with the Brass and Beat, the Northern Christal Band Sapporo, the mass band of the Brass Band Camp in Hamamatsu, the Brass Band Xepher, the Nexus Brass Band, the Riverside British Brass and one of the most historical bands in Japan, the Tokyo Brass Society.
In 2014 and 2015, the brass band camp invited Kazz ad a tutor and soloist, and he held a masterclass, brass band workshop and recital to share his experiences with Japanese musicians.
Now Kazz is the Tuba player of the Stand-Up Classic Orchestra organized by Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) INC. He is also the principal Eb Bass player of the Xepher. Additionally, the resident conductor of the Nexus Brass Band, the Riverside British Brass, the Immortal Brass Eternally and the organizer of the mass band of the Tokyo Brass Band Festa.