Queensland Symphony Orchestra Appoints Co-Concertmaster

Violinist Natsuko Yoshimoto will now sit alongside concertmaster Warwick Adeney in her new position

For 12 years, the Japanese-born violinist led the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra (ASO), leaving that position in 2020. 

Throughout this year, she performed with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO) and served as guest co-concertmaster before taking on the official role. She is also married to QSO’s principal violist, Imants Larsens. 

An alumnus of the Yehudi Menuhin School, Royal Northern College of Music, and the Curtis Institute of Music, her mentors included Yehudi Menuhin and Wen Zhou Li.

She was a gold medalist in the 1994 Shell/London Symphony Orchestra Competition and a recipient of the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa Award and Japan’s Iwaki Award.

Yoshimoto’s solo engagements have included performing with the London Symphony Orchestra, London’s Philharmonia, Halle Orchestra, Denmark’s Odense Symphony, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic, and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

Currently, she is a staff member at Queensland’s Conservatorium of Music and a member of Ensemble Q. She previously led the Australian String Quartet and the Grainger Quartet. 

She plays on a Giovanni Battista Guadagnini violin, on loan from UKARIA Trust.

“We are excited to share that Queensland Symphony Orchestra now has two Concertmasters!” reads QSO’s Facebook Page. 

“We both come from different perspectives, ideas, and inputs,” said Yoshimoto on her dual leadership with Adeney."“I hope it broadens and enriches the orchestra. It’s really about finding that balance together and not stepping on each other’s toes and just really supporting each other’s roles."