Dr. Takuma Itoh, Professor of Music Composition and Theory at the UH Mānoa Department of Music, was recently honored by the New Music USA 2025 New Music Creator Fund in recognition of his commitment to music creation in the local community. His ongoing series of works comprised of the Symphony of the Hawaiian Birds, Symphony of the Hawaiian Forests, and the Symphony of the Hawai‘i Seas, is unique in that it has bridged music, conservationism and education by commissioning Hawaii-based composers to create new works that educate young audiences about conservation issues affecting our state. Through a collaboration with both the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra and the UH Mānoa Symphonic Wind Ensemble, these works have been heard by thousands of school children, and have even been performed as far away as Salt Lake City, by the Utah Symphony Orchestra.
An esteemed composer, Dr. Itoh has received numerous national awards and recognition for his work, and his compositions are regularly performed by orchestras and ensembles across the United States and internationally.