Yoshikazu Mera Explained

Yoshikazu Mera
Background:	solo_singer
Native Name:	米良 美一
Native Name Lang:	jp
Birth Date:	21 May 1971
Birth Place:	Miyazaki, Japan
Instrument:	Vocals
Genre:	Classical music
Occupation:	Singer
Years Active:	1994–present

is a Japanese countertenor. His range is three and a half octaves.^[1]

Originally wanting to become a pop singer, Mera now primarily sings classical music from the West but also classical Japanese music.^[1] He appears frequently as a soloist with the Bach Collegium Japan, which under its conductor Masaaki Suzuki performs Baroque music.^[1] His 1998 recital disc "Nightingale" on Sweden's BIS Records was a major success in Japan.^[2]

It was revealed in a television documentary entitled "米良美一の實話" ("Yoshikazu Mera's true story") that he was born with congenital osteogenesis imperfecta.^[3]

Selected discography

• Nightingale – Japanese Art Songs
• Baroque Arias
• Baroque Arias, vol. 2
• The Best of Yoshikazu Mera
• (1997)
• Songs for Counter-Tenor and Orchestra
• Mera sings Bach

External links

• Yoshikazu Mera sings Bach: Widerstehe doch der Sünde, BWV 54, I. Aria

Notes and References

1. http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Bio/Mera-Yoshikazu.htm Biography with images at bach-cantatas.com
2. Billboard – January 24, 1998 – Page 42 Vol. 110, n° 4 "Plus, countertenor Yoshikazu Mera is a sensation in Japan, where his recital disc of Japanese art songs has sold 50,000 copies in four months, according to label reports."
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMdQI_SP5eA 米良美一の實話 (Yoshikazu Mela's a true story)