Megumi Hamaya, the organ virtuoso from Japan, captivates her audience with technical brilliance and colorful playing.
Alongside her extensive classical repertoire, she is deeply committed to collaborating with contemporary composers such as Nicolaus A. Huber, Toshio Hosokawa, Jukka Tiensuu, Bernd Richard Deutsch, Eiko Tsukamoto, and Elżbieta Sikora. In this context, she has premiered numerous works and is a highly sought-after performer at international contemporary music festivals.
Recently, she released her first portrait CD Vision (2025) with Kreuzberg Records, featuring works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Nicolaus A. Huber, Toshio Hosokawa, Tōru Takemitsu, and Akira Nishimura.
Even in her early childhood, she began playing the piano and harmonium, developing her love for the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. From the age of 18, she studied organ with Kimiko Nakayama and completed her bachelor's degree in Kyoto, Japan.
Starting in 2009, she studied organ at the Freiburg University of Music under Helmut Deutsch, graduating with a master's degree. In 2015, she completed her concert exam (Konzertexamen) under Leo van Doeselaar at the Berlin University of the Arts.
She won second prize as well as the Flentrop Prize at the renowned International Schnitger Organ Competition in Alkmaar, Netherlands.
Megumi Hamaya has given concerts in major Berlin churches, including the Berlin Cathedral and the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. Furthermore, she has performed at international organ festivals in Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Poland, Ireland, Portugal, Japan, China, Austria, and France. Her venues include the Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre, the Xinghai Concert Hall, the Shenzhen Concert Hall, and the Philharmonie de Paris.
From 2017 to 2024, she worked as a cantor for the Protestant Church in Berlin.
In addition to her distinguished solo career, she regularly performs duo concerts with the internationally renowned sheng player Wu Wei. She has also created several arrangements of classical works for this duo. Furthermore, both artists share a great passion for contemporary music, through which they create their very own unique sound world.
Current projects include:
In December 2026, she will perform as a soloist in Organ Concerto No. 2 by Polish composer Elżbieta Sikora at the Philharmonie de Paris, alongside conductor Christian Vásquez and the Orchestre Pasdeloup.
In 2026, she will also record her second solo CD on the new organ of the Allerheiligen (All Saints) Parish Church, which was built in 2024. The recording is being made to mark the 100th anniversary of the renowned organ-building company Weimbs Orgelbau.
In September 2027, she will perform a double concerto by Finnish composer Jukka Tiensuu at the Hong Kong Philharmonic, together with sheng player Wu Wei.