Aya Kiyonaga, violin (Kobe, Japan), studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Gyorgy Pauk with the support of the Rohm Music Foundation. She graduated with an Acanthus music award and at the top of her class at the Tokyo University of the Arts, where she studied with Natsumi Tamai. Aya was also supported by the Meiji-Yasuda Foundation and the Nomura Foundation. Currently, she is a graduate certificate student at the Thornton School of Music at USC under the guidance of Midori Goto. She won First Prize at the All Japan Student Music Competition, First Prize at the Settsu Music Competition, Second Prize at the apan Music Competition, Grand Prize of the Matsukata Music Award, and First Prize and the Audience Prize at J&A Beare Solo Bach Competition. Aya gave her debut recital at Bishopsgate Institute, as part of the Northern London Festival in 2008. She has since given recitals in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, and Sapporo. She has performed with the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Japan Century Symphony Orchestra, Hyogo PAC Orchestra, Kansai Philharmonic Orchestra, Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, Kobe City Chamber Orchestra, and I Pomeriggi Musicali, among others. Aya was awarded the Aoyama Music Prize and the Music Prize of Hyõgo Prefecture.