Tadatoshi Miyagawa

Tadatoshi Miyagawa (水谷川忠俊, Miyagawa Tadatoshi), born on December 9, 1935, is a Japanese composer, performer, researcher of Gagaku (Japanese imperial court music), and music arranger. He was formerly known by the name Konoe Toshitake (近衛俊健). Miyagawa is a direct patrilineal descendant of Emperor Go-Yōzei, being the 13th generation in the male line from the emperor.

He was born in Osaka, Higashi-ku, Kyuhoji, as the second son (born out of wedlock) to Hidemaro Konoye of the Konoe family. His mother was Fumiko Tsuboi (坪井文子). His birth was registered at the Osaka city hall in the East Ward (Higashiku) on July 22, 1937. On October 19, 1939, Miyagawa was adopted by Tadamaro Miyagawa, the youngest brother of his biological father, Hidemaro Konoye, and was consequently renamed Tadatoshi (忠俊). Miyagawa's earliest memories include time spent in Tadamaro Miyagawa's atelier in Sendagaya, Tokyo. He has no recollection of his biological mother.

During his childhood, Miyagawa attended Gakushūin Elementary School. His family moved to Nara during his school years, where he completed elementary, junior high, and high school education at an attached school of Nara Women's University. After graduating from high school, Miyagawa moved back to Tokyo and became an assistant to composer and conductor Naozumi Yamamoto.

In August 1962, Miyagawa sat for and passed the exam for a full scholarship to the Madrid Royal Conservatory of Music in Spain. He continued his studies in 1963 at the Berlin Municipal Conservatory of Music, now known as the Berlin University of the Arts (UdK). During his time in Europe, he fathered his first daughter, Yoko, in Berlin, West Germany. He returned to Japan in 1968, shortly before the birth of his second daughter, Yuko.

His family includes Hidetake Konoe, his brother, who is also a composer and conductor. Miyagawa's wife, Sakiko, is the daughter of Viscount Suefusa Ano from the Ano family, which claims descent from the Northern Fujiwara clan. Miyagawa and Sakiko were classmates at Gakushūin Elementary School in Tokyo, an institution for children of the Japanese aristocracy (Kuge).

His children include Yoko Miyagawa, a violinist, and Yuko Miyagawa, a cellist.

Miyagawa has contributed to film and television music, including theme songs and scores for various productions. His work encompasses folk songs, such as the theme song for "Summer Festival," and music for TV dramas like TBS's "Yasubee's Ocean" (1969–1970), Fuji TV's "White Terror" (1975), NHK's "New Western Circumstances (3): Miso Soup Fanatics Go to Europe" (1977), and TV Tokyo's "The Dangerous Evening that Wives Bought" (1988).

Regarding his ancestry, Miyagawa belongs to the Miyagawa family, which traces its origins to Takaoki Miyagawa, a member of the Nara aristocracy and descendant of Tadahiro Konoe. The Konoe family, founded by Konoe Motozane, is one of Japan’s five regent houses and is historically linked to the Fujiwara clan.

Miyagawa's familial ties connect him to the imperial family of Japan through his ancestor, Konoe Nobuhiro, born as the fourth son of Emperor Goyozei. Nobuhiro was adopted by Konoe Nobutada and inherited the Konoe family line. His father, Hidemaro Konoye, was the son of Konoe Atsumaro and established a branch of the family. Miyagawa is related to the former Prime Minister Konoe Fumimaro and is a first cousin once removed of Hosokawa Morihiro and Tadateru Konoe.

He is recognized as a descendant of Emperor Go-Yōzei through the male line and thus holds a connection to the Japanese imperial lineage.

**References:**

Ohno Yoshi, "Konoe Hidemaro - A man who made a Japanese orchestra," Kodansha, 2006. ISBN 4-06-212490-4.