, is a Japanese composer and was the chair of the

Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers The , often referred to as JASRAC, is a Japanese copyright collection society. It was founded in 1939 as a nonprofit organization, and is the largest musical copyright administration society in Japan. Overview JASRAC's main business activity ...

(JASRAC) from 12 August 2010 to 31 March 2016. In April 2021, he was appointed commissioner for Cultural Affairs of Japan.

Early life

Tokura began playing the violin at age 4. He spent his elementary and high school years in Germany where he gained a basic music education.

Education

Tokura debuted as a composer while still a student at the Faculty of Law at

Gakushuin University is a private university in Mejiro, Toshima, Tokyo. The Gakushūin (or "Peers School") was established during the Meiji period to educate the children of the Japanese nobility, but back then the institution had only the primary and secondary ...

. He further studied composition, conducting as well as screening and studio production in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Career

Tokura served as a member of the Council for Cultural Affairs, a managing director for the

Japan Composer's Association The Japan Composer's Association, or JACOMPA (日本作曲家協会 in Japanese) is an organization of Japanese composers, established in 1959. Among its members are some of Japan's most renowned composers of contemporary classical music Conte ...

(JACOMPA), a director for the All Japan Authors and Composers’ Association and the Japan Composers & Arrangers Association, and an advisor to the Song Writer's Union of Japan. On 7 December 2017 it was announced that Tokura would conduct the closing theme to the ''

68th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen The was the 68th edition of annual NHK's Kōhaku Uta Gassen, held on December 31, 2017, live from NHK Hall (Tokyo, Japan). It was broadcast in Japan through NHK General Television (TV) and NHK Radio 1 (Radio), and worldwide through NHK World Pre ...

'' (''68th NHK Red & White Song Festival''), 31 December 2017. The theme, " Hotaru no Hikari", was to have been conducted by Masaaki Hirao but Tokura replaced him following Hirao's death in July. In March 2021, he was appointed commissioner of the

Agency for Cultural Affairs The is a special body of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). It was set up in 1968 to promote Japanese arts and culture. The agency's budget for FY 2018 rose to ¥107.7 billion. Overview The age ...

following a decision by the Japanese government at a Cabinet meeting, effective on 1 April 2021. Between 2015 and 2025, he was also a member of the

Yokozuna Deliberation Council The , sometimes called Promotion Council, and usually abbreviated in Japanese as , is an advisory board, advisory body to the Japan Sumo Association. The council considers candidates for promotion to sumo's top rank of , before passing its reco ...

Selected works

* ''

Carmen '77 is Pink Lady's third single release in Japan. Inspired by the novella ''Carmen'', the song was written by Yū Aku and Shunichi Tokura, and was released on March 10, 1977. The single sold in excess of 1,100,000 copies, and reached the number-one ...

'' (Pink Lady) * ''

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO) is an object or phenomenon seen in the sky but not yet identified or explained. The term was coined when United States Air Force (USAF) investigations into flying saucers found too broad a range of shapes ...

'' ( Pink Lady) * ''Out of the Blue'' (musical) * ''Johnny Eno Dengon'' (Pedro & Capricious) * ''Dounimo Tomaranai'' (Brenda Vaughn) * ''Azusa 2 Gou'' (Karyudo)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tokura, Shunichi 1948 births Composers from Tokyo Gakushuin University alumni Japanese male composers Japanese musical theatre composers Living people Male musical theatre composers