Who Was Seiji Ozawa Married to? Remembering the Man Behind the Music

Posted by Alex February 10, 2024
Who Was Seiji Ozawa Married to?
Who Was Seiji Ozawa Married to?

Japanese conductor Seiji Ozawa, who led the Boston Symphony Orchestra for three decades, died. According to a representative for the Seiji Ozawa International Academy Switzerland, he died in Tokyo on February 6. He was 88.

The cause of death was found to be heart failure. According to AP News, Ozawa died at home. Seiji Ozawa was formerly married to musician Kyoko Edo. Then he married Miki Irie (also known as Vera). She was a former actress and model born in Yokohama in 1944, with three-quarters Japanese and one-quarter Russian heritage. Here’s a brief look at his personal life and marriages.

Seiji Ozawa Married Twice and Had Two Kids

Kyoko Edo, Seiji Ozawa’s first wife, was a Japanese pianist. His second wife, Vera Ilyan, was Eurasian. Vera and Ozawa had two children: Yukiyoshi (boy) and Seira (daughter).

Kyoko Edo was born in Tokyo, Japan, on February 27, 1937. Her father’s name was Hideo Edo. She was a pianist from Japan. She obtained a degree from the Conservatoire de Paris, where she graduated in 1960.

Who Was Seiji Ozawa Married to?

According to Alchetron, she performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Radio France Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Chamber Orchestra, and other orchestras before establishing the Arion-Edo Foundation in 1985. Edo married Ozawa in 1962, and they divorced in 1966.

His second wife, Vera Ilyan Ozawa, was a performer who also made children’s costumes. According to the Boston Globe, almost little is known about Vera. However, in an interview, Ozawa described her as “very Russian, very strong.” When she met Ozawa, she was already a successful model and actor. Her parents were Russian and Japanese.

According to Wikipedia, Seiji Ozawa and his wife wanted their children to understand their Japanese heritage. Ozawa preferred to split his time between Boston and Tokyo during his tenure with the Boston Symphony Orchestra rather than relocate his family to the United States.

Classic FM (@ClassicFM) tweeted that 88-year-old Japanese conductor Seiji Ozawa had died. Rest easy, maestro:

Their daughter, Seira, graduated from Sophia University in Tokyo. She assisted Colin Graham, the stage director, for the world premiere of Andre Previn’s opera A Streetcar Named Desire in San Francisco.

Their son, Yukiyoshi, graduated from Tokyo’s Seijo University. He was an aspiring actor and director who appeared in a samurai-themed Japanese play. He is well-known for his role as the eponymous character in Sakeru Gummy’s Long Long Man advertisements.

He served as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1973 to 2002. This is his best-known position. His 29-year tenure was the longest at the institution, exceeding that of Russian-American conductor Serge Koussevitzky, who had 25 years.

Official Opera with Opera News Twitter message about RIP Seiji Ozawa. At 88, the legendary Japanese conductor died in Tokyo:

In addition, Ozawa received numerous domestic and international decorations, including the French Legion of Honor and the Japanese Order of Culture. However, he had to discontinue his musical activities in 2010 to have surgery for esophageal cancer.

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Alex
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Alex Hoffman-Ellis is a nerd who love technology and computers. He has been building computers for over 5 years now, and have always loved the challenge of learning how to make them faster, better, and more efficient. He's here to share his insights on these as a journalist, a designer and a technologist with love for writing and tech stuff. Words from Alex Hoffman: “Technology is best when it brings people together.”