Masakazu Ito

is recognized as one of today’s premiere guitarists, acclaimed by musicians, composers, conductors, and critics for his mastery of the instrument and its repertoire. Following his professional solo debut in Tokyo 1987, Ito won top prizes in seven major international guitar competitions, including the Andrés Segovia International Guitar Competition, the Tokyo International Guitar Competition, and the Guitar Foundation of America International Guitar Competition. A performance of Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquín Rodrigo with the National Repertory Orchestra marked his concerto debut in 1990. Over the years, Ito has performed under the batons of renowned conductors such as Marin Alsop, Jefferey Kahane, Douglas Bostock, and others.

He has a number of recordings to his credit.  In particular, London’s Classical Guitar magazine called his 1998 recording ¡España! Music from Spain “a recording of depth… most musically satisfying.”  The Los Angeles Times also wrote “Ito displayed conspicuous skill and tonal range… [he] proved himself to be a clean and technically adroit player, whizzing through thorny passages with aplomb.” upon listening to his solo concert in Los Angeles in 1996.

The Japanese government has invited Ito to perform solo concerts in honor of two historic milestones – 150 years of U.S.-Japan diplomatic relations in 2003, and the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in 2015. The latter was attended by the Japanese Ambassador to the United States, representatives of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, among others. Ito makes regular trips to Spain to be featured as a solo artist during the Andrés Segovia International Guitar Festival in Segovia’s birthplace, Linares.  Most recently he performed in a series of concerts in France during the summer of 2025. He currently serves as a music professor at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado, where he is the musical director and conductor of the Colorado School of Mines Philharmonic Orchestra.