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EMIKO IINUMA (Founder/President/Producer/Artistic Director)
Emiko Iinuma was born in Tokyo, Japan, and now a United States citizen, is a graduate of Baylor University under a Presidential Scholarship and of the University of Southern California under the Hamilton Guild and Faculty Concert Fund Awards. In addition, she was accepted at the Juilliard School of Music as a SPECIAL STUDENT, and studied with Marion Freschl and subsequently with Claire Gelda, Eva Likova, and Eleanor Steber of Metropolitan Opera Company. Notable performances have included a debut recital and the opera LINDA DI CHAMOUNIX (Linda) at Town Hall; eight weeks of solo appearances at Radio City Music Hall with Symphony Orchestra; two recitals at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center; recitals at the Schubert Hall and Brahms Hall in Vienna, Austria appearances for the 150th anniversary of Johann Strauss in DIE FLEDERMAUS (Adele), and in RIGOLETTO (Gilda) on Austrian television; recitals at the Bunka Kaikan and Asahi Seimei Halls in Tokyo; and a special appearance on the "Evening Recital Series" of the NHK Broadcasting Company in Tokyo. She has been a frequent guest on WQXR-FM's Radio Program "The Listening Room" hosted by Robert Sherman and "Music Makers from Japan" hosted by Lee Graham. In 1981, she founded the Harmonia Opera Company and has sung the title roles of YUZURU (Tsu) by Ikuma Dan; MADAME BUTTERFLY (Cho Cho-san) of Puccini; MADAME CHRYSANTHEME (Kiku-fujin) of Messager; American Premiere of GOMBO GITSUNE (Kitsune) by Hirokazu Sugano, this last as a Benefit Fund-Raising for Mother Hale's "The Cradle" at the Schimmel Center for the Arts, Pace University, New York. In 1991 she brought the Harmonia Opera Company through its Tenth Anniversary Gala at Alice Tully Hall, singing the title role of Kitsune in KITSUNE-TO-KAWAUSO by Hirokazu Sugano. The Manhattan School of Music has been the site of her subsequent American Premiere performances of A STORY OF THREE WOMEN (Bekku) and AMANJAKU-AND-PRINCESS URIKO (Amanjaku) of Hikaru Hayashi, as well as American Premiere of TOJIN OKICHI by famous composer Tohroku Takagi. On June 11, 1994, she sang a role of "Helen Chao" in the musical play FLOWER DRUM SONG Rodgers and Hammerstein at Saint Peter's, Citi Corp. Center. On June 25, 1995, at the Merkin Concert Hall, New York City she was a featured soloist for the Benefit Concert for the Handicapped Children of New York City singing World Premiere English Song NEW HOPE, and American Premiere of Legendary Japanese Opera AYAME of internationally famous author Yukio Mishima. On September 7, 1996, she was a featured soloist in the World Premiere Japanese Folk Songs THE STREETS OF JAPAN arranged by Robin Berger for the 15th Anniversary of Harmonia Opera Company at the Sylvia and Danny Kaye Playhouse, Hunter College of New York City. On September 27, 1997, she sung the leading role in the American Premiere of Japanese Opera AKAI JINBAORI written by renown author Junji Kinoshita, and composed by Hiroshi Oguri at the Miller Theatre, Columbia University. On October 24, 1998, she performed the leading role in the World Premiere of PRINCESS KAGUYA, well known Japanese Classical Noble which Iinuma wrote a script, composed by Miyuki Ito at the Sylvia and Danny Kaye Playhouse, Hunter College. She has performed as AMANJAKU together with Lecture and Demonstration under the Japan Foundation, Center for Global Partnership at Middlebury College, Vermont on July 28, 2000. On October 11, 2000, Harmonia Opera had tremendous success, presenting the World Premiere of HAIBO in English, written and composed by Christian McLeer. On November 26, 2000, Harmonia Opera performed Highlights from Opera and Musicals in Guatemala. On November 1, 2001, Harmonia Opera Company celebrated its 20thAnniversary with highlights of four operas presented over the past 20 years: MADAMA BUTTERFLY, THE STORY OF THREE WOMEN, HAIBO, and the Japanese Version of Mozart's THE MAGIC FLUTE, with special performances by the renowned Metropolitan Opera singers Lucine Amara and Russell Christopher at Merkin Concert Hall. Harmonia Opera continued its tremendous successes with the World Premiere of the Noh Opera KANTAN by Robin Berger at Kaye Playhouse on November 5, 2003, and the American Premiere of NASU NO YOICHI by Kazuko Hara at Merkin Concert Hall on November 3, 2005. Harmonia celebrated its 25th Anniversary on November 6, 2006 at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center with the American Premiere of the great opera KUROFUNE composed by the renowned pioneer composer of Japan, Kosaku Yamada, and received excellent reviews including “Iinuma, Demster, Harmonia Triumph at Tully,” by Richard Malone and Patricia Stevens, Producer, Editor, and Music Critic at Time Warner Cable. It was broadcast on channels 34 and 67, with numerous rebroadcasts on the WWW.BCAT.TV. On November 9, 2007, Harmonia successfully continued its 26th Anniversary celebration with the American Premiere of ANJU AND ZUSHIO, and a popular demand revival of THE STORY OF THREE WOMEN at Kaye Playhouse, Hunter College. Harmonia celebrated its 27th Anniversary with the American Premiere of EN SAGA by Hirokazu Sugano, and popular demand revival of AMANJAKU AND PRINCESS URIKO by Hikaru Hayashi, on November 6, 2008 at Merkin Concert Hall. Harmonia will celebrated its 28th Anniversary on November 4, 2009, at Merkin Concert Hall with the American Premiere of MUMYO AND AIZEN by renowned Japanese novelist Junichiro Tanizaki, and World Premiere of Japanese Folksongs and Dance Medley, arranged for Chamber Orchestra by Tsubasa Matsuda. Ms. Iinuma has presenting fully choreographed galas of mixed-Broadway musical constituting an additional direction now characteristic of her leadership of the Harmonia Opera Company Training School. Most recently Harmonia Opera had a tremendous success at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., on April 10, 2010, for the National Cherry Blossom Festival under the patronage of the Japanese Embassy and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and received 5 Gold Stars Rating for Live Performance Broadcast and listed on www.kennedy-center.org.millenium. Further details on website: www.harmoniaopera.com.
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