As a conductor for the City Theater of Bremerhaven in the north of Germany, Tonio Shiga is used to being at the center of the action whenever he leads a musical performance with his orchestra. He is equally at home, however, sitting behind a piano and accompanying the theater's performers for a rehearsal or concert. In fact, the two roles go hand in hand for this maestro.
"To pursue a career as a conductor in Germany, it's important to be an excellent pianist, as well as having conducting skills," Shiga says. "You need to be able to play all styles of music, including opera, classical and modern. When I first came to Germany to audition for music school, I was practicing the piano up to eight hours a day in order to get up to scratch."
Born and raised in Kanagawa Prefecture, Shiga is the son of a Japanese father and German mother. Although he grew up speaking both languages, he was educated entirely in the Japanese school system.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.