, better known by his stage name , is a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

violinist, conductor, composer and music arranger. Saito is the leader of the Saito Neko Quartet, and is known for his many collaborations with musician

Ringo Sheena , known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer, songwriter and musician. She is also the founder and lead vocalist of the band Tokyo Jihen. She describes herself as "". She was ranked number 36 in a list of Japan's top 100 musicians compiled ...

Biography

Saito began playing the violin at the age of three, and in 1966 made his first appearance on the

NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...

television show ''Violin no Okeiko'' at the age of seven. In 1975, he began attending the

Tokyo University of the Arts or is a school of art and music in Japan. Located in Ueno Park, it also has facilities in Toride, Ibaraki, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Kitasenju and Adachi, Tokyo. The university has trained artists in the fields of painting, sculpture, crafts, inter ...

associated music high school, and in 1978 entered the university itself, majoring in composition. He joined the string ensemble Pivot while at university, and began working as the assistant of Hideo Ichikawa in 1979. From 1984, Saito worked as a violinist for the tours of musicians Akiko Kobayashi and Kosetsu Minami, and in 1987 began work as a commercial jingle producer. In 1988, Saito formed the Saito Neko Quartet. They released the album ''Friendly Games'' in 1990. In 1992, Saito released an album of classical music, ''Hajimete no Classic Series 17: Heishi no Monogatari''. From 1990, Saito began collaborating with Hiroko Taniyama, arranging three songs on her album ''Tsumetai Mizu no Naka o Kimi to Aruiteiku''. He continued to work on arranging songs from her original albums throughout the 1990s. In 1999, Saito began collaborating with singer Ringo Sheena, performing violins on her debut album ''

Muzai Moratorium , also known as ''Innocence Moratorium'', is the debut studio album by Japanese singer and songwriter Ringo Sheena, released on February 24, 1999, by Toshiba EMI. The album debuted at #2 and has sold over 1,433,000 copies. The album was certified ...

''. In 2003, Saito arranged Sheena's song "La salle de bain", and in 2007 the pair worked together to create ''

Heisei Fūzoku , also known as ''Japanese Manners'', is a studio album by Japanese singer-songwriter Ringo Sheena and Conducting, conductor and violinist Neko Saitō, released on February 21, 2007. The vinyl record version and the DVD "Daiginjou" were released o ...

'', a soundtrack album for the film ''

Sakuran , is a Japanese manga series by Moyoco Anno. The manga is about a girl who goes through different names throughout the story and becomes a , or high ranking (courtesan). North American publisher Vertical Inc published it in English in July 2 ...

''. The soundtrack was commercially successful, reaching number one in Japan and becoming certified gold by the

RIAJ The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969. The RIAJ's activities include prom ...

. Other than Taniyama and Sheena, Saito has collaborated with musicians

Sayuri Ishikawa is a Japanese enka singer who made her professional debut in 1973. With a career nearing five decades, she is one of the most-recognized and successful enka singers in history. Ishikawa is a popular contestant on the annual NHK ''Kōhaku Uta Ga ...

Hikaru Utada , also known mononymously as Utada, is a Japanese and American singer, songwriter, and producer. She is considered to be one of the most influential and best-selling musical artists in Japan. She is best known by international audiences for w ...

X Japan is a Japanese Rock music, rock band from Chiba Prefecture, Chiba, formed in 1982 by drummer and pianist Yoshiki (musician), Yoshiki and lead vocalist Toshi (musician), Toshi. Starting as a predominantly power metal, power/speed metal band with ...

Maaya Sakamoto is a Japanese actress and singer. She made her debut as a Voice acting in Japan, voice actress in 1992 as the voice of Chifuru in the anime ''Little Twins'', and became known as the voice of Hitomi Kanzaki in ''The Vision of Escaflowne''. Other ...

Seikima-II is a Japanese Heavy metal music, heavy metal band, formed in 1982. Throughout their career they have had numerous lineups, with lead singer Demon Kakka the sole constant member. The group has sold over 10 million records in Japan alone. The ...

Tamurapan is a Japanese pop songwriter and singer. Her real name is , was born in 1980 in Takayama, Gifu, Japan. The name Tamurapan is a combination of her surname: and the French word for rabbit: Lapin. During the first years of elementary school she ...

Radwimps is a Japanese rock band who debuted independently in 2003 and signed with Toshiba EMI in 2005. The band's name, Radwimps, was formed from two English slang terms, " rad" and "wimp". According to the band, the coined word had several meanings, ...

and Yuki.

Television programs

Saito arranged the soundtrack for the anime '' Mizuiro Jidai'' (1996–1997), alongside Harukichi Yamamoto. He arranged the soundtrack for the

Kyoko Fukada is a Japanese actress and singer. She is represented by the agency Horipro. She won the award for Best Actress at the Yokohama Film Festival for '' Kamikaze Girls''. Biography Kyoko Fukada was born and raised in Tokyo, on 2 November 1982. ...

-starring drama ''Imagine'' in 2001, and in 2009 started producing the music for the children's music program ''

Okaasan to Issho is a children's television program airing weekday mornings in Japan on NHK. The show consists of seasonal songs, the Fantane! segment, and animated shorts like Tomodachi Hachi Nin (previously also ''Deko Boko Friends is a children's televi ...

'' for the Monoran Monoran and Poco Potteito segments.

Discography

*''Friendly Games'' (1990) (with Saito Neko Quartet) * (1992) * (2000) (with Saito Neko Quartet) * (2000) (with Saito Neko Quartet) *''Palette'' (2000) (with Kōko Komine) * (2003) * (2007) (with Ringo Sheena)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saito, Neko 1959 births 20th-century Japanese classical composers 20th-century Japanese classical violinists 20th-century Japanese conductors (music) 20th-century Japanese male musicians 21st-century classical violinists 21st-century Japanese classical composers 21st-century Japanese conductors (music) 21st-century Japanese male musicians Composers from Tokyo Japanese contemporary classical composers Japanese male classical composers Japanese male conductors (music) Japanese music arrangers Living people Male classical violinists