Biography

Japanese-born conductor Riku Okamoto is the 1st prize winner of the 4th BMI International Conducting Competition (2022/ ROM). He was 2 finalists of the Assistant Conductor Competition of the Orchestre national d’Île-de-France (2024/FRA). Also,he was invited to the final rounds of the 57th International Besançon Competition for Young Conductors (2021/FRA), the finalist of the 2nd Only Stage International Conducting Competition (2022/ GBR), the semi-finalist of the 6th Ionel Perlea International Conducting Competition (2022/ROM),Semi-Finalist of the 1st Erich Bergel Conducting Competition (2022/ROM).  

Born in Shiga,Japan in 1998. Riku began to study violin at the age of three,he won the 4th prize at the 26th Japan classical music competition. In 2017,he entered  the Tokyo College of Music as a Special Scholarship Student (Conducting Bachelor), also he was chosen as a scholar of Toda Scholarship Foundation by Tokyo College of Music from 2017 to 2020. And now he is studying at Jorma Panula Acadamy and Jorma's private lesson. 

Tacticart Orchestra (Japanese Professional Orchestra) has named Riku Okamoto as its Music Partner starting from April 2024. And Riku was an assistant conductor of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo Japan Tour 2024,Super Kids Orchestra (Artistic Director Yutaka Sado, belong to the Hyogo Performing Arts Center), Kyoto Junior Orchestra (belong to the City of Kyoto Symphony Orchestra). 

He has conducted orchestras such as Orchestre national d’Île-de-France, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Bucharest Symphony Orchestra, Ploiești Philharmonic Orchestra, Japan Century Orchestra, Pacific Philharmonia Tokyo,Kecskemét Symphony Orchestra, Siamo Orkest,Vaasa City Orchestra. 

He learnd conducting from Jorma Panula, Yutaka Sado, Junichi Hirokami, Toshifumi Tashiro, Nobutaka Masui, Akihito Mihara, Toshihiro Yonezu. He has participated in conducting masterclasses by Jorma Panula, Boris Belkin, Tsugio Tokunaga, Yasuhiko Shiozawa, Jin Wang, John Axelrod.