Born in Tokyo 1984. Mariko Hara has debuted age of 16, playing Tchaikovsky violin concerto with The Japan philharmonic orchestra in Tokyo. She has been pursuing her career in viola since 2005.
Mariko has been a Prize winner including 1st prize of the Toshiya-Eto Violin Competition, 2nd prize of the International Brahms Competition. She studied at the Toho School of Music from the age of 5, at the pre college, high school and the college, and in June 2009 she graduated with the highest mark and distinction on her Soloist Diploma from The Geneva Conservatory under the tutelage of Nobuko Imai.She was awarded "Prix Albert Lullin“ of the Geneva Conservatory as the most outstanding student of her year. Followed after she studies with Antoine Tamestit at the Musikhochshule Köln. And with the cellist Steven Isserlis for 3 years at IMS Prussia Cove, which is very important for Mariko. As a soloist she has performed with the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, Duisburg Philharmoniker, Deutsche Kammer Akademie, Georgian SInfonietta, Orchestra Tunis, Georgian Philharmoniker amongst others.
She has given recitals and chamber music concert in such as Wigmore Hall, Beethoven Haus Bonn, Tokyo Opera City Hall, Toppan Hall.
Mariko Hara loves to play chamber musician and she performed with Nobuko Imai, Steven Isserlis, Christian Tezlaff, Tanja Tezlaff and Elisabeth Leonskaja and the Tokyo Quartet.
As a member of Jupiter Quartet Japan ( 2004 – 2010), with whom she successfully performed in Japan, USA and Switzerland. The Quartet studied with Gabor Takacs-Nagy and graduated with the "Prix Daisy de Saugy" for the most talented String Quartet. The quartet has been filmed for 3 years for a documentary which is broadcasted by the BS Asahi in 2011 and 2012. She has received invitations to the international festivals of Verbier, Norfolk, Yellow Barn, Kuhmo and Lucerne.
Her debut CD “Fantasie” received wonderful reviews; for example “Brilliant Vioal –everything is there, emotion, tone color, will to express and phrasing” by Magazin “Musik & Theater”. “Totally remarkable world” by Vienna Newspaper.
She was chosen for Best of NRW, which took her 14 recitals tour in Germany. 2016 she will debut in Vienna’s Konzerthaus.
