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Go Onomitsu and Erica Yokoyama

Classical Music Incorporated: The CEO Also Plays Chopin

Pianist Kyohei Sorita at his training studio in Nara, Japan. (Bloomberg)

Meet Kyohei Sorita, pianist, aspiring conductor and chief executive officer of Japan’s first orchestra operating as a stock-issuing company.

Classical music isn’t exactly a booming business these days, but the 27-year-old Chopin specialist is betting that he’ll be able to make money by holding concerts and tours, producing and distributing music and running an online salon that connects performers with their fans and students.

Sorita founded Japan National Orchestra Co. just a year ago, during the pandemic. He’s planning to take the orchestra to perform overseas later in 2022. As an entrepreneur and musician, Sorita sees the for-profit endeavor as a way to nurture talent and promote wider appreciation for Mozart, Beethoven and Rachmaninoff.

Clockwise from top left: Sorita practices in Nara, rehearses on the stage, dresses up in backstage, and gets ready for a concert in Higashiosaka. Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg

“My vision is to have all the members’ concerts always packed with audiences,” Sorita said. “It’s my mission to make their characters shine.”

Most orchestras, from the London Symphony Orchestra to the Berlin Philharmonic, are usually run as a foundation or non-profit organization. Given the risks of launching a for-profit orchestra in the pandemic era, Sorita’s musical venture is backed by an established business that’s also an unlikely source DMG Mori Co., a Japanese manufacturer of high-precision lathes, metal cutting robots and other machine tools.

The Tokyo-based company owns 70% of JNO through a foundation, while the rest is held by Sorita’s own management firm. The seeds of the partnership were planted in November 2018 at a concert in Bielefeld, where DMG Mori’s German arm is based and was hosting a concert.

Sorita with JNO musicians after the concert. His ultimate goal is to establish a musical academy. Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg (Bloomberg)

Sorita stepped in on short notice, flying over from Tokyo, after the concert’s own pianist was injured in an accident before the performance.

“There aren’t many you can ask to play Rachmaninoff’s No. 2 at such a short notice,” said Akihiko Kawashima, a senior executive officer at DMG Mori, now also JNO’s chairman.

From there, they held discussions for two-plus years to decide on how to set up and run an orchestra company. DMG Mori’s approach of reinvesting its profits matched his vision, Sorita said. At the same time, operating an orchestra is relatively simple because most of the expenditures are labor costs, Kawashima said, adding that JNO was on track to “break even as soon as this year.”

Kyohei Sorita conducts the Japan National Orchestra in March. (Bloomberg)

Musicians get salaries for regular concerts and recitals they're asked to perform, with extra compensation paid for additional performances. Some are paid millions of yen in annual remuneration depending on their contribution, Sorita said.

JNO also operates a subscription-style membership service called Solistiade, which charges 5,000 yen ($39) a year for a regular membership and 30,000 yen for a premium tier. The services include access to early ticket sales, and group or one-on-one tutorials depending on the subscription.

The first year “wasn’t too bad” for concerts, Sorita said. Demand was so strong that tickets sold out for the latest tour, he said. 

Sorita’s journey to musical entrepreneurship began at a young age, when he decided that he didn’t want to become a salaryman, like his father. Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg (Bloomberg)

Sorita’s journey to musical entrepreneurship began at a young age, when he decided that he didn’t want to become a salaryman, like his father.

“I couldn’t think of going to an office every morning at 8 a.m.,” said Sorita, who began playing piano at the age of 4.

When he was 11, young Sorita was handed the baton at a workshop and given the opportunity to conduct Tchaikovsky for a professional orchestra. After that, he decided to dedicate his life to classical music. Sorita wants to establish himself as a conductor, not just as a pianist.

Kyohei Sorita, a Japanese pianist and a conductor in the backstage during the photo shooting before the concert in Osaka, Japan, on Monday, March. 21, 2022. Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg (Bloomberg)

Another goal for Sorita is to help foster younger musical talent. Right now, he’s seeking to ease the financial burden for student musicians, by giving them a chance to fine-tune their skills while giving them a salary.

Eventually, his goal is to establish a musical academy, a sort of Berklee College of Music or The Juilliard School, for Japan.

“This company is a step toward establishing an orchestra that lasts for 10, 20, 50 and 100 years,” Sorita said.

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.

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