Tomoko Akasaka is a highly versatile violist internationally acclaimed for her exceptional tone production, expressive artistry, and compelling stage presence, both as a soloist and chamber musician. She is the recipient of numerous prestigious international awards, including First Prize at the 12th International Japan Classical Music Competition and Third Prize at the renowned ARD International Music Competition in Munich in 2004.

As a soloist, she has performed with distinguished orchestras such as the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Munich Chamber Orchestra, Kremerata Baltica, Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, Estonian Chamber Orchestra, Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra, Venezuela Symphony Orchestra, and the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra. She has collaborated with internationally renowned conductors including Seiji Ozawa, Domingo Garcia Hindoyan, Johannes Kalitzke, Douglas Boyd, Michal Kaluza, Kazuki Yamada, Roman Kofman, and Günther Herbig.

A highly sought-after chamber musician, she has appeared alongside legendary artists such as Mstislav Rostropovich, Gidon Kremer, Emmanuel Pahud, Daniel Hope, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Ray Chen, and Philippe Jaroussky, as well as with ensembles including the Quatuor Ébène, Jerusalem Quartet, and Kuss Quartet. She has performed at internationally renowned festivals such as the Verbier Festival, Lucerne Festival, Salzburg Festival, Lockenhaus Festival, Kissinger Sommer, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Festival, Kronberg Festival, and the Schubertiade, among many others.

A central focus of her artistic work is her close collaboration with contemporary composers, particularly with György Kurtág and Toshio Hosokawa.

Tomoko Akasaka has appeared in some of the world’s most prestigious concert halls, including the Concertgebouw, Tonhalle Zürich, Wiener Konzerthaus, Elbphilharmonie, Wigmore Hall, the Berlin Philharmonie, Schloss Elmau, Suntory Hall, and Nymphenburg Palace.

In recent years, her recitals in Switzerland, France, Poland, Italy, Germany, and Japan have received outstanding critical acclaim. Her recital series in Tokyo was broadcast nationwide on Japanese television by NHK.

Deeply committed to music education, she is regularly invited to serve as a jury member for major international competitions, including the Concours de Genève, the International Max Rostal Competition at the Berlin University of the Arts, and the Kronberg Academy.

She studied at the Conservatoire de Genève with the legendary violist Nobuko Imai, for whom she also served as teaching assistant. She has held teaching positions at the music universities in Düsseldorf and Leipzig, and was a guest professor at the Conservatory of Neuchâtel. Since 2019, Tomoko Akasaka has been Professor of Viola at the University of Music Münster.