Satoshi Yoneda

Japanese conductor Satoshi Yoneda came to international prominence in September 2025 when he won the Grand Prix at the 59th Besançon International Competition for Young Conductors, one of the world’s most prestigious conducting prizes. Leading the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern in the final round, he was awarded First Prize unanimously by the jury, marking a decisive moment in his career and launching him onto the international stage.
Praised for his poised authority, musical insight, and natural rapport with musicians, Yoneda is a conductor of compelling presence whose artistry combines clarity of gesture with expressive depth. His success at Besançon follows a series of important milestones in Japan, including his selection as a finalist at the 19th Tokyo International Music Competition for Conducting in 2021, which established him as a significant emerging talent within the country’s professional music scene.
Since then, Yoneda has appeared with many of Japan’s leading orchestras, including the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra, Sapporo Symphony Orchestra, New Japan Philharmonic, Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra, Pacific Philharmonia Tokyo, Aichi Chamber Orchestra, Mt. Fuji Shizuoka Symphony Orchestra, Osaka Symphony Orchestra, and the Okayama Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as the Tokyo Philharmonic Chorus.
Committed to continual artistic development, Yoneda has sought guidance from leading international figures. In 2017, he was selected through audition to participate in the Special Conducting Public Masterclass at Tokyo College of Music, where he worked closely with Paavo Järvi. Later that year, he took part in an open masterclass led by Kazuki Yamada at the Kumamoto Prefectural Theater, experiences that helped shape his communicative rehearsal style and interpretative outlook.
Yoneda graduated from the Conducting Department of the Faculty of Music at Tokyo University of the Arts. He studied conducting with Hiroyuki Odano and Ken Takaseki, developing a musical approach noted for its precision, refinement, and expressive breadth. During his studies, he received the Ataka Prize awarded to outstanding students in recognition of exceptional academic and artistic achievements.