You wear a wide range of outfits when you’re playing piano. I’m sure comfort is a priority, but how do you approach fashion and fit? Does your style differ when you perform or practice versus everyday life?
Of course, when I wear formal clothes, my feelings change. I feel more formal as well. And that’s how I play in most classical concert venues. But feeling natural is also an important thing to me to play. As you said, being comfortable is very important. For social media or YouTube, I wear very casual clothes, and then I feel more relaxed and chill. I have a different mentality for the music as well. I prefer oversized clothing for comfort.
Do you see any parallels in how you approach style and how you approach playing piano?
When I choose my clothes, it’s always related to music. The purpose [of my style] is mostly for the music.
Well, I’m not a professional model. They also invited an architect, a chef, and a film director. I was honored to be there. It was quite an interesting experience. Nothing changes if I get nervous or not, similar to a piano performance. I have nothing to do other than walk. But I respect models. How they walk is totally different. I felt like the relationship between the clothes and the models is similar to composers and performers. For classical musicians, when we play, we have to understand what composers thought, what they wanted to express, and the performance is supposed to realize their ideas. I thought [the role of the] models was the same—to make the designer’s idea realized in a cool way.
What are some of your favorite brands to wear right now?
Issey Miyake. I want to name some unknown brands, but everything I wear pretty much is popular. I wear Saint Laurent a lot.
Casual stuff, too?
Not that much. Sometimes sweaters, but mostly for stage clothes. I like the form of Saint Laurent suits because it fits my body type, my shoulders. I like knits from The Row. Margiela. Lots of Marni. All of my Marni is for summer for some reason.
A lot of what you wore today was monochrome. Do you wear much color?
I do wear monochrome a lot. I used to wear more color before. Now I prefer more minimal, simple [outfits].
Why do you think that is?
I became old. And my travel schedule. When I travel, I really cannot bring many clothes. If I bring unique clothes and wear them every day, then people [will notice]. So, I prefer simple ones so that people wouldn’t think I’m wearing the same clothes every day.
What do you think about the differences in style between Tokyo and New York City?
In New York City, there’s more diversity of fashion than Tokyo. People also wear lots of styles in Tokyo, but I don’t know—in New York, fashion feels more radically diverse than in Tokyo. People seem more comfortable dressing in a way that openly reflects their identity, regardless of what others might think. In Tokyo, people often have a very polished and intentional sense of style.