yoshi ishikawa with bassoon
Chair, Woodwind Studies • Professor of Bassoon
Woodwinds

Professor of Bassoon Yoshiyuki Ishikawa is chair of woodwind studies at the University of Colorado Boulder College of Music. He has performed and presented solo recitals, master classes and workshops at prestigious conservatories, schools of music and festivals in North America, Eastern and Southeast Asia, Europe and Oceania. His most recent guest performances include concerto performances, chamber music recitals and masterclasses in Thailand, China and the United States.

A leader in the double reed community, Ishikawa  founded and is the president of the Asian Double Reed Association (ADRA), which maintains memberships in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand. From 1990 to 2020, he served as a member of the IDRS Executive Board holding positions of president, secretary and editor of IDRS online publications.

Ishikawa hosted the 51st annual conference of IDRS in July 2023 at the CU Boulder College of Music. The first IDRES live event in three years—due to COVID-19 pandemic-related delays—attracted more than 1,000 participants from around the globe. In addition to two concerto gala concerts, the five days included 137 events. In 2015, he co-sponsored the first Asian IDRS conference in Tokyo under the auspices of the third ADRA conference.

Ishikawa is chair of the International Bassoon Meetup Competition. He also has served on judging panels for the following: the IDRS Gillet and Young Artists Competition; the Tokyo Wind and Brass Competition; the Rimsky-Korsakov Competition and the Moscow Conservatory Wind and Percussion Competition; and the Asian Double Reed Association International Competitions. Ishikawa performs often with his pianist wife, Brenda Ishikawa, and his violinist daughter, Marisa Ishikawa, who is a member of the award winning Carpe Diem String Quartet.

Bassoon studio