Dr. Yutaka Kono is currently Assistant Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. He has earned a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Tuba Performance at The University of Texas at Austin and has also received his Bachelors of Music from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, and his Master of Music in Tuba performance degree from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. He previously taught at The University of Texas at San Antonio and University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton, Texas.

Dr. Kono is a highly active performer on tuba. As a soloist, he is the winner of the concerto competition held at the University of Minnesota in 1996, and has appeared with numerous orchestras in this country. As a chamber musician, Yutaka has appeared with Austin Symphony Brass Quintet, Austin City Brass, Austin Brass Ensemble, and a jazz ensemble Tina Marsh’s Creative Opportunity Orchestra. His orchestral credits include San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, Austin Symphony Orchestra, New Texas Music Festival Orchestra, Bowling Green Symphony Orchestra, Perrysburg Symphony Orchestra and many others.

His transcription of Fugue by J.S. Bach for tuba-euphonium quartet has been published from the Tuba-Euphonium Press. Some of the other works have been published by SibeliusMusic.com. Yutaka studied with Steven Bryant, Ivan Hammond and Ross Tolbert of Minnesota Orchestra. He is a member of ITEA, TMEA, Pi Kappa Lambda, and the College Music Society.