top of Toshiyuki Watanabe Official Site for English

Toshiyuki Watanabe was born in Aichi Nagoya on February 3, 1955; he is a Japanese

composer, arranger and also record producer

His father, Chumei Watanabe, was also a composer whose music is well-known as theme

songs for popular cartoons, such as "Mazinger Z" and "Great Mazinger" and live-action

drama series, such as "Himitsu Sentai Gorenger" and "Denshi Sentai Denziman".

In 1974, his band Akai-tori disbanded and he became a record producer for the singer Masashi Sada who used to belong to the same company. He produced a lot of hit songs, such as "Senkohanabi" and "Amayadori".

In 1977, he watched "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" directed by Steven Spielberg at the theater and was very impressed by the music by John Williams.

His composition and arrangement were based on his self-taught knowledge back then, but the music from the movie made him desire to learn composition techniques systematically.

In 1979, he entered Berkley College of Music in Boston and studied techniques for composing and arranging classical music and jazz.

After coming back to Japan, he started his career as a composer for movies and TV series in earnest while working with Masashi Sada as a record producer.

In recent years, he dealt with music for Japanese immortal masterpieces, such as year-long historical fiction drama series "Mori Motonari" (1977) and "Toshiie to Matsu" (2002), TV drama series "Non chan no yume" (1988), "Karin" (1993), "Dondo hare" (2007), "Ohisama" (2011) etc. on Japan's national public broadcasting organization, NHK. As

for cartoons, his music was used in "Ginga Hyoryu Vaifamu" (1983), "Musekinin Kancho Taira" (1995), "Uchu Kyodai" (2012), "Ginga Kikoutai Majestic Prince" and so on.

At the opening ceremony of Expo 2005 in Aichi, he served wrote the music, directed, and also was the composer of the theme song. His music has been used as the theme music of news programs on NHK and Fuji Television Networks at noon and in the evening. It can be said that there is no one who hasn't heard music by him.

By 2013, he had spent 40 years in music. You can listen to his great works that were produced in his 40-years-career at his yearly concert called
Symphonic Entertainment.

He produces and conducts this concert with the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra. Musicians who have a good relationship with him join the concert as guests every year. Ayaka Hirahara, Akiko Yano, Hiromi Iwasaki and Masashi Sada have all appeared on the stage.

He is also an educator. In 2010, he became a professor of music and sound design at Senzoku Gakuen College of Music.

He teaches the techniques of composition and arrangement for pop songs and soundtracks as a project director at the music and sound design course.

His motto at work is "giving energy to warm gentle minds among people and positive feelings that people carry on through their music." The musician, Toshiyuki Watanabe shall keep producing music to give courage and hopes to people in the world.