Sat., Nov. 15, 3 pm - Master Class
Sun., Nov. 16, 3 pm - Recital
Recital Package $27, Individual tickets $10 in advance,
$12 at the door.  Performances held in Stage II.

Born in Tokyo, Naoko began to study the marimba at the age of eight.  At the age of 11, she performed her first solo with orchestra when she played with the Tokyo Symphony and Tokyo Chamber Orchestra.  In Japan, she attended Waseda University in Tokyo, majoring in psychology.  She decided to turn her focus to her marimba studies and entered California State University at Northridge as a student of Karen Ervin-Pershing, earning her a Bachelor of Music degree.  She then earned a Master of Music degree from Ithaca College, working with Gordon Stout.  Among her many competitive First Prize awards are the 2002 Young Concert Artists International Auditions.  Her most recent accomplishment, in March 2007 Naoko Takada released her first CD, Marimba Meets the Classics.

"Naoko Takada plays a thrilling marimba, moving with speed, grace, and extraordinary accuracy.  If you have any doubts that a solo mallet instrument can sustain your attention throughout an entire concert, Takada might make you change your mind."
- The Washington Post

website:  www.yca.org