Kento Masuda

 is a Japanese composer and recording artist. He is a member of The Recording Academy, and his work has been described as "one of this world's artistic treasures." As an exclusive player for KAWAI pianos, Masuda is the sole player of the one million dollar Crystal Grand Piano.
Biography.
Early life.
Kento Masuda began playing keyboards at the age of 5. While preferring to compose his own music instead of playing standard repertoires, Masuda took part in a variety of contests for talented young musicians. By the age of 10, he began winning competitions including the Junior Original Competition of Yamaha Music Foundation.
Early music career.
From 1990, Masuda began conducting professional public performances as YAMAHA's employed musician at age of 17, while playing classical and modern compositions for events, ceremony halls and Yamaha shop on 5th Ave in New York. Just a year later Masuda released his original first album "Wheel of Fortune". Between 1993 and 1995, Masuda lived in New York where he worked in the area of music production. His success at such a young age set the foundation for a lifetime of performances, composing, and music production.
During this time, Masuda worked on several musical projects and jobs, including radio, game, and TV/CM music offerings in Tokyo. These were written (both music and lyrics), arranged, and performed on keyboards by Masuda. Masuda also produced his original solo album entitled "MYOJYOW" (a non-standard transliteration of , the Japanese word for "Morning Star" or Venus) on 19 June 1998. Since then he has used the alias "Kent Masuda". "MYOJYOW" was audio mastered by Bobby Hata. On 26 October 1999, Masuda released "MEMORIES". Both albums were submitted in the U.S. which resulted in Masuda receiving positive feedback from major companies, including Steve Vai's management office of Sepetys Entertainment Group in Santa Monica. CEO Ruta Sepetys (who is also a music producer) suggested that Masuda join forces with recording artist Steve Vai, but Masuda chose to remain a solo artist.
2000s.
In 2000, Masuda established his own publishing company and label, Kent on Music, Inc. (ASCAP) as well as producing and recording studio "Externalnet" in Tokyo. The 6th album "HANDS" released on August 26, 2003, was mixed with a producer Tadashi Namba and mastered by Bobby Hata in Los Angeles CA. Masuda used the alias "KENT" on the 1st edition of this album. The album was promoted to MIDEM in Cannes, France. It then entered the European music market, particularly among German audiences, which led to Masuda's interview with Klassik Radio Hamburg. Additionally, program sponsor Galerie ATTA's owner Ruth Atta along with artist Delphine Charat, who painted Masuda's portrait, showed the connection of music to painting to masterpiece.
In 2005, Masuda signed with JPMC Records, a Swiss label based in New York and became a member of the ASCAP. Since then, he has used no alias and only uses his real name of "Kento Masuda". His 7th album, "GlobeSounds," was released on 13 June 2006, and mixed with Grammy-nominated producer Charles Eller and Lane Gibson. "GlobeSounds" was mastered by Bobby Hata. During the recording of "GlobeSounds", Hon. Ambassador Madeleine M. Kunin visited at Eller's music studio in Charlotte, Vermont, US.
In 2007, Masuda's music has enjoyed continued growth from Myspace and Last.FM along with recent airplay on radio stations internationally. His catalog of compositions and recordings has been featured on MTV, NME Magazine, and BBC Music. In 2009, Masuda created several music videos: ""So We Are" "Shine On" a documentary film "Down to Earth" which describe his album "GlobeSounds" and "Musical Notation and Concrete Poetry"" (featuring the author Diana Macs and the Portuguese poet, ).
2010s.
Masuda's 8th album "Light Speed+" was released on 11 September 2010. With a strong emphasis and weight on composition, Masuda also showcased his unique style with a full-length synthesis album. After that, Masuda received honorable mention in the "International Songwriting Competition", with "Tree" (from the album "GlobeSounds") in the instrumental category. This was followed by achieving an honorable mention in 2012 in the same category.
In 2011, Masuda composed music for renowned designer Yohji Yamamoto's Femme Autumn Winter 2011–2012 Paris Fashion Week fashion show which featured his compositions ""Hands" and "Little Tokyo Poetry"". They continued to collaborate on Masuda's creative short music film "Godsend Rondo" directed by Tomo Oya in Hokkaido. In this film Masuda dressed in Yamamoto's Ready-to-wear collection. The film "Godsend Rondo" has already been viewed worldwide by over 100,000 on YouTube and this work has won numerous awards.
On 26 September 2012, Masuda's first piano solo album and piano book "All in the Silence" was released, followed by two live performances "Force in the Silence" and "Force in the Silence 2" at Musicasa Acoustic Concert Hall in Tokyo, Japan. His performances featured classic pieces that highlighted his career thus far, with themes that touch upon the many feelings of life along with those unspoken but shared thoughts that transcend all borders.
On 16 April 2014, Kento Masuda released his 10th album "Loved One," which was produced by Masuda and multiple award-winning Miami producer Gary Vandy. "Loved One" was recorded at Gary Vandy's Studio Center in Miami, which has produced recordings that have won 8 Grammy awards along with multiple platinum albums. "Loved One" features musicians Paul Messina (Flashpoint) and Kevin Marcus Sylvester (Black Violin) and utilizes the HQCD process for superior sound quality.
On 14 November 2014, Masuda, along with Japanese singer/songwriter Hiroko Tsuji, Italian harpist Fabius Constable (Celtic Harp Orchestra), soprano Donatella Bortone, and Lebanese and Arab lutist Ghazi Makhoul, performed in the dynamic and multi-cultural concert "5 ELEMENTS LIVE" at CASA DEI DIRITTI in Milan, Italy. This unique evening of music connected the sounds and voices of the east and west, while producers and collaborators Masuda and Constable shared their vision that music is both absolute and life affirming.
On 6December 2014, Masuda performed at the "Associazione dei Cavalieri di San Silvestro" celebration of Monumentalis Ecclesiae Sancti Silvestri Societas in Tivoli, Italy.
On 8 February 2015, Kento Masuda attended the prestigious 57th GRAMMY Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles. Kento had four official submissions for this year's GRAMMY consideration from his latest album, "Loved One", produced by Kento and Gary Vandy. 2015 continued to be a landmark year for Kento, as he was nominated to the Hollywood Music in Media Awards for his 2002 composition "Tree," a classic piece in Kento's repertoire. He also received global recognition of the Global Music Awards and was honored as a winner with a silver medal for "Addicted" (featuring Paul Messina) from his latest release "Loved One" (2014).
On 5 July 2017, Kento Masuda received an Artisan World Festival Peace International Initiative "Music, Performance & Humanitarian" Award at the United Nations in New York. This selection is based on his continued engagement with the performing arts and commitment to humanitarian projects that promote cultural diversity, cultural preservation, and world peace in addition to your innovative contribution in music. This group is a part of New Generation In Action an organization supported by the United Nations with Special Consultative Status with the United Nations for Economic and Social Development.
Style and influence.
Masuda's composing style is characterized by intricate keyboard lines with obvious melodies, deep percussion grooves, and layers of rhythm and sound that draw the listener into a whole new world with each note. From his interview, Masuda says that he was influenced by both Johann Sebastian Bach; "His music theory has a major impact on everything, even today". And Alan Menken; "The music of Disney films has so much magic in himself and always promises a happy ending".