Masato Honda

Lore & Background

Masato Honda was born in Nakamura City, Kochi Prefecture (now Shimanto City). He began playing saxophone in the 3rd grade under his father's influence, after trying flute and clarinet. In high school he played guitar and sang in a pop band. He studied classical saxophone at Kunitachi College of Music, winning the 14th Yamano Big Band Jazz Contest in 1983. After graduating at the top of his class in 1985, he joined Nobuo Hara's Sharps and Flats, then worked as a session musician with Toshiki Kadomatsu, Hiroshi Sato, and the Katsumi Horii Project, and formed the group WITNESS.

Honda first worked with T-Square as a session musician on the 1990 live album T-Square Live (featuring F1 Grand Prix Theme). He became an official member in 1991, debuting at the Farewell & Welcome live show and recording his first studio album with the group, New-S, where he composed the opening track Megalith. He remained with T-Square through the album Blue in Red, then left for unknown reasons. He later contributed to T-Square's 2022 album Wish and returned to the stage that year for the first time since 2000.

Beyond T-Square, Honda has played on numerous soundtracks including Cowboy Bebop, Mega Man X, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, and One Piece. He founded the group B.B.Station and has been a member of the Blue Note Tokyo All-Star Jazz Orchestra. He has served as a visiting professor at Showa University of Music and previously taught at Kunitachi College of Music.

Reader's Guide

Masato Honda's significance lies in his dual role as a core member of the influential Japanese fusion band T-Square and as a prolific session musician whose work spans anime, video games, and film. His tenure with T-Square from 1991 to 1998 helped define the band's sound during a peak period, with his compositions like Megalith becoming fan favorites. His return to the band in 2022 after decades of absence underscores his lasting connection to the group.

Honda's versatility as a multi-instrumentalist—playing saxophones, flute, EWI, guitar, bass, keyboards, trumpet, and more—allowed him to contribute to a vast range of projects. His work on the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack with The Seatbelts introduced him to a global audience beyond jazz fusion circles. He has also led his own solo career, releasing albums such as Carry Out where he played every instrument.

As an educator at Kunitachi College of Music and Showa University of Music, Honda has influenced younger generations of Japanese musicians. His legacy is that of a technically skilled, stylistically adaptable artist who bridged the worlds of Japanese jazz fusion, pop, and media scoring.

Did You Know?

• Honda started playing saxophone in the 3rd grade after trying flute and clarinet.
• He played every instrument and composed every song on his second solo album, Carry Out.
• Honda's first work with T-Square was as a session musician on the 1990 live album T-Square Live (featuring F1 Grand Prix Theme).
• He has been a visiting professor at Showa University of Music and previously taught at Kunitachi College of Music.

Roots in Kochi and the Road to Jazz

Masato Honda was born on November 13, 1962, in what was then Nakamura City in Kochi Prefecture, a place now known as Shimanto City. His musical journey began in the third grade when, under his father's influence and after brief forays with the flute and clarinet, he settled on the saxophone. During high school at Kochi Prefectural Nakamura High School, he broadened his range by playing guitar and singing in a pop band. He then enrolled at Kunitachi College of Music to study classical saxophone, but a turning point arrived in 1983 when he claimed victory at the 14th Yamano Big Band Jazz Contest. That win redirected his focus toward jazz and fusion. He graduated at the top of his class in 1985 and immediately joined Nobuo Hara's ensemble Sharps and Flats. The years that followed saw him building a reputation as a sought-after session musician, collaborating with names like Toshiki Kadomatsu, Hiroshi Sato, and the Katsumi Horii Project. He also co-founded the group WITNESS alongside Masaharu Ishikawa and Jun Kajiwara, laying the groundwork for the decades of high-profile work ahead.

The T-Square Chapter

Honda's connection to T-Square began in 1990 when he stepped in as a session player for the live recording T-Square Live (featuring F1 Grand Prix Theme). After the group's then-saxophonist Takeshi Itoh decided to pursue a solo path, Honda was invited in as a permanent member. His official debut came with the 1991 release T-Square Live – "Farewell & Welcome," a send-off for Itoh. That same year he had already begun recording New-S in January, contributing the composition for the opening track "Megalith," and the album hit shelves on March 21. The group also recorded Refreshest, their first project under the "T-Square and Friends" banner, and in 1994 released SOLITUDE in the wake of racing legend Ayrton Senna's death. By 1995, Miss you in New York brought in international jazz stars David Liebman, Michael Brecker, and Mike Stern. Honda remained through the Blue in Red era before departing for reasons never publicly explained. He still appeared on the 1998 Farewell & Welcome Live recording and the 20th-anniversary special. His 2022 album Wish marked his first creative contribution since a 2001 track, and the year-end live shows brought him back to the T-Square stage for the first time since a 2000 guest appearance.

Soundtracks and a Web of Collaboration

Beyond T-Square, Honda's name is woven through an extraordinary breadth of Japanese popular music and media. He is perhaps best known internationally for his saxophone work on the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack alongside The Seatbelts, the ensemble led by composer Shiro Sagisu. His session credits extend across anime and game scores including Souryuden, Gunstar Heroes, Tenchi-Muyo! Ryo-Ohki, Mega Man X, Arc the Lad, F-Zero X, Shenmue, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, multiple Detective Conan films, Evangelion Wind Symphony, One Piece, Sound! Euphonium, Kids on the Slope, Pandora Hearts, Prison School, and many others. On the artist side, he has contributed to recordings by Ringo Sheena, L'Arc-en-Ciel, Nana Mizuki, Aiko, Yui Makino, Junna, Ryo Takahashi, and numerous others. This sheer volume of cross-genre work—from rock and pop to orchestral anime scoring—underscores why he became one of Japan's most in-demand session players over the 1990s and 2000s.

Beyond the Saxophone: Multi-Instrumentalism and Teaching

Honda's instrumental palette stretches far beyond the four saxophone registers he is best known for. He has been observed performing on clarinet, flute, EWI, guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone, and even recorder, and he is also capable of jazz scat singing. His second solo album, Carry Out, is a testament to this range: he composed every track and played every instrument on the record. He has also led or joined numerous ensembles, including B.B.Station, which he founded as a bridge between jazz fusion and swing, the Blue Note Tokyo All-Star Jazz Orchestra, Four of a Kind (which performed at the 2004 JVC Jazz Festival in Seoul), and Voice of Elements, which streamed live sets during the pandemic. His 2008 solo album Across the Groove featured legendary keyboardist Bob James. On the academic side, Honda served as a professor of saxophone and jazz at Kunitachi College of Music before becoming a visiting professor at Showa University of Music, though his name was removed from the Kunitachi faculty list in 2020.