Nobuyuki Tsujii

Born blind as a result of microphthalmia, Nobuyuki Tsujii has built a career on a method few performers would attempt. Braille scores for professional repertoire are scarce, so he learns each new work by ear, working from recordings that a team of pianists makes for him, complete with the composer's codes and instructions. Critics have praised that approach and the way he works with orchestras despite being unable to see the conductor. He is also a composer who performed his own piece, Street Corner of Vienna, at the age of twelve, and has since released numerous albums of his own compositions as well as film music.

His competition record includes a 1995 first prize at the All Japan Music of Blind Students contest and a 2005 Critics' Award at the Chopin Competition in Warsaw, where he reached the semifinal. In 2009 he tied for gold at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition with Haochen Zhang. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2011 and his BBC Proms debut in 2013 with the BBC Philharmonic under Juanjo Mena. In April 2024 he became the first Japanese pianist to sign an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon.