FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Yudai Hironaka concentrates on how is expressing the piece of music when he is playing the euphonium.

He also draws inspiration from cooking.

Hironaka who is studying music as a graduate student at the University of Arkansas, imagines the rhythm of “cutting vegetables” while he is pressing the valves on his brass instrument. Just as importantly, he adds the “seasoning” to his performance, just as he would to a dish.

“This has a strong relationship with how I want to play musically,” Hironaka said.

His method works. Hironaka was the winner of the university’s concerto/aria competition last fall.

By winning the competition, Hironaka earned a feature role in a concert of the Arkansas Philharmonic Orchestra on Saturday, April 5. The concert will be held at 7:30 p.m. at Arend Arts Center at Bentonville High School. For ticket information, go to the philharmonic’s website or call 479-841-4644.

Hironaka will perform Vintage, a piece for solo euphonium and orchestra written by David R. Gillingham and arranged by Tomoyuki Niga.

Hironaka is one of nearly 26 students from Japan — and 1,400 international students overall — attending the U of A this semester. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in music from the Kunitachi College of Music in Tokyo and came to the University of Arkansas to study under Benjamin Pierce, an associate professor of music in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

“It is just terrific to have Yudai in our tuba and euphonium studio,” said Pierce, an acclaimed tuba and euphonium player who has won international tuba and euphonium artist competitions held in the United States, Japan, Germany, Finland, South Korea, England and Italy. 

“His work ethic and level of commitment to his musicianship serve as a positive influence on my other students,” he said. “It is also great to have the cultural color he brings from Japan.”

In Japan, Hironaka’s primary teachers were Kimihiko Hasegawa, Mitsuru Saito and Toru Miura. Miura is a founding member of the International Tuba Euphonium Association. As an undergraduate, Hironaka performed as a member of Kunitachi College’s brass band and wind ensemble, as well as other ensembles.

Hironaka, 24, began playing the trumpet at the age of 10.

 “I loved to watch baseball,” he said, “and in Japanese baseball, we use the trumpet to lead cheers. I switched to the euphonium and tuba when I entered junior high school.”

He said he was drawn to the euphonium because of its “warm sound.” Indeed, the euphonium drives its name from the Greek word euphonos, which means “well-sounded” or “sweet-voiced.”

 Pierce said it is becoming more common for euphonium players to win competitions.

“The euphonium’s repertoire is very young,” he said. “Our oldest concertos — with a couple barely noteworthy exceptions — date to the 1970s. So euphonium players are putting music written by fairly obscure modern composers up against Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and other classical music giants. However, I believe that judges in most cases do their best to evaluate the musicianship of the performers rather than the quality or depth of the works.”

After earning his master’s, Hironaka plans to return to his hometown of Fukuoka, teach music and play the euphonium professionally.