San Jose State University, San Jose, CA USA
Santa Clara University
Dubbed “The Rockstar of the Flute” by the Informador de Guadalajara (Mexico), Mexican-Japanese American flutist Ráyo Furuta has performed worldwide as a commanding and versatile performing artist. Officiated as a cultural ambassador to the United States of America at the age of 25, Furuta has toured as a performer and teacher world-wide. He has performed for internationally recognized names including Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad Ensemble, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, The United Nations, and the Mainly Mozart, Okayama, Sarasota, and Yellowbarn Music Festivals. As a dedicated teaching artist, Furuta is the Professor of Flute and Chamber Music at San Jose State University, as well as a Lecturer of Performance Practice and Community Engagement at Santa Clara University. He has held residencies and given master classes at institutions including the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Stanford University, Lebanese American University of Beirut, UC San Diego, San Jose State University, University of Victoria (BC), and New York University, among others. Ráyo Furuta’s passion for social justice has led much of his musical career to bring music to marginalized communities around the world. Under his initiative “Mas Amor Arts,” his ongoing projects include a presence in local juvenile detention centers and collaborative projects with homeless women of color to address injustices of gender, race, finances, healthcare, and homelessness. In addition, he has established an annual project in the disenfranchised districts of Tijuana, Mexico to bring music education to youth in an effort to keep them out of the streets. He has also performed
for Syrian Refugees in the Middle East.
As a recipient of the prestigious Staller Scholar and distinguished alumni “40 under 40” awards, Ráyo Furuta holds his doctor of musical arts degree from Stony Brook University where he was a pupil of Carol Wincenc and the Emerson String Quartet. Ráyo Furuta performs on Lillian Burkart Professional 9K Gold Drawn and Elite 998 Flutes.