http://sound.jp/banjo/
At age 8 he loved the sound of the banjo and purchased his first banjo at age 13. For the first three years he was self-taught and at age 16 he took lessons from Motonobu Nagao. Other banjo players that he learned from were Charlie Tagawa and Miyoko Onishi.
His first professional job was at age 17 and he has been working full time as a musician ever since. He is one of the top musicians in his field.