Tomoko Nakayama, originally from Japan, holds a Bachelor of Music in Harpsichord Performance and a Master of Music in Collaborative Piano from The Juilliard School. An alumna of the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program at the Washington National Opera, she has built an international career as a pianist, vocal coach, and assistant conductor.
Her professional experience includes collaborations with institutions such as the International Vocal Arts Institute (Israel), Opera on the Avalon (Canada), Tanglewood Music Center, Wolf Trap Opera, New York Lyric Opera Theatre, Opera Theater of Connecticut, and the Washington National Opera.
Renowned for her expertise in multiple languages and diverse vocal repertoires, Nakayama has also served as an artist-teacher at the University of Hartford, where she taught diction, led a French vocal seminar, and coached voice performance majors. She currently serves as a Lecturer in Music and vocal coach at the Yale School of Music and Yale Institute of Sacred Music.
At Yale, she works closely with graduate voice students, focusing on art song, early music, oratorio, opera, and chamber ensemble repertoire. Her coaching emphasizes expressive clarity, stylistic nuance, and authentic musical communication.
A dedicated chamber musician, Nakayama is the co-founder of the woodwind trio ETA3, which debuted at Alice Tully Hall in New York City and toured nationally to critical acclaim. She has also performed as a guest artist with the New York Philharmonic Ensemble at Merkin Concert Hall and with members of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra at the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival.
Recent artistic highlights include a recital with tenor Joseph Calleja at World Expo 2025 in Japan, a performance with mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink at the German Consulate in New York City, and a concert celebrating 150 Years of Ives with the Yale Voxtet as part of Generations of Music at Yale at Carnegie Hall.
Nakayama credits her collaborative piano training to Margo Garrett, with whom she studied while completing her master’s degree at The Juilliard School.