13-Year-Old Violinist Himari Signs with Decca Classics

Thirteen-year-old Japanese violinist Himari has officially signed an exclusive contract with Decca Classics, making her the youngest female artist ever signed by the renowned record label. She has been hailed as a “once-in-a-generation talent.”

Himari’s debut EP is set for release on May 23, 2025, with two lead singles: Carmen Fantasy by Franz Waxman and Romance by Amy Beach.

Born Himari Yoshimura on June 24, 2011, in Japan, she started playing the violin at the age of three and made her orchestral debut at six. Since 2022, she has been studying at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia under the renowned violin pedagogue Ida Kavafian.

Himari has won numerous international competitions, including the Grand Prizes at the 2019 Arthur Grumiaux International Violin Competition in Belgium and the 2021 International Competition for Young Violinists in Honor of Karol Lipinski and Henryk Wieniawski in Lublin, Poland. She has also claimed top prizes at the 26th Andrea Postacchini International Violin Competition in Italy and the Kogan International Violin Competition in Belgium.

From March 20–22, 2025, Himari will make her European debut at the Philharmonie in Berlin, performing Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in F-sharp minor with the Berlin Philharmonic under conductor Sebastien Wiegle.

Himari plays the 1717 “Hamma” Stradivarius, generously loaned by Yusaku Maezawa. Her bow is on loan from the Munetsugu Collection.