RYOSUKE SAKAMOTO was born in Nara (Japan). At the age of three, he first became interested in early music performance under the influence of his parents. He began to play medieval plucked instruments, later studied lute and the viola da gamba. He appeared in many concert in Japan, both as solo player and emsemble player, including the work with Bach Collegium Japan.
In 2007, the year of his graduation at Tokyo University (bachelor degree on aesthetics) he released his solo CD ‘Travels with my Lute’ from Musica Rediviva (MRCD-013), recorded in Sweden, where he spent three years in his yourth. This recording got a praised commentary on the CD magazine “Gramophone”, in November 2011.
He moved to Switzerland in 2008 and studied lute and various plucked instruments at Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel, with prof. Hopkinson Smith. He did his Masterconcert in June 2011, mostly focusing on 16th century repertoire for the lute. He continued further studies with Crawford Young (medieval lute) and Anne Smith (performance practice on renaissance music) there, and graduated in 2013, with Master degree of specialized music performance.
As a soloist, Ryosuke won the first prize (no second prize) and audience prize in the competition “III Consorso Maurizio Pratla” in L’Aquila (IT) in the department for Solo-Lute (July 2013). He was already invited to many international festivals to have recitals, like “Rezonanzen” (January 2011), “Les journées du luth” in Paris (March 2012, held by French Lute Society), “Fest für die Laute Wien” (May 2012), “Internationales Festival der Laute” in Bremen (May 2012, held by German Lute Society) and “Young musicians’ day” (September 2013, held by English lute Society).
Beside his activities as a soloist, he is playing mainly in small ensembles. Ryosuke is a member of the lute consort “Delight in Disorder” as well as the ensembles “Il Zabaione Musicale” (specialized in early Italian baroque music) and English broken-consort “The Queen’s Revels” as a principal lutenist. And he set up Ensemble Il bell’humore, which specializes in renaissance music in 2012. He also took part in some recording projects with “Profeti della Quinta” (“Il Mantovano Ebreo”, Linn records (UK) in 2013 and “Rapresentatione di Giuseppe e I suoi fratelli”, Pan Classics (CH) in 2014).