村松 健

東京生まれ、奄美在住の音楽家。幼少からピアノをおもちゃ代わりに東洋〜民謡やシマウタから、西洋〜クラシック・ジャズ・ブラジル音楽までボーダーレスな環境で成長し、独自のなつかしい音世界を育む。

1983年、SONYからデビュー。 以降、自作自演のスタイルで送り出したアルバムは通算51枚。“田んぼの風景に似合うピアノ曲がなかったから”自分で作り始めたという音楽はいつしか「JAPANESE PIANO(日本語ピアノ)」と呼ばれ、SONYやミズノ、住友林業、ミツカン、富士通、アフラックほか数々のCMに採用される。

1991年、蝶や唄、精神世界に導かれて奄美大島へ通い始め、自分が探求しているリゾートミュージック（拠りどころの音楽）と違和感のない制作環境を求めて、2004年、音楽制作の拠点を奄美に移す。島ではずっと伴奏楽器だった奄美三味線を自ら削って独奏楽器へと進化させるなど、伝統に新たな息吹を吹き込む表現者でもある。

2023年、デビュー40周年。 秋、これまでやらなかったこと、やれなかったことにトライすると宣言し、クラウドファンディングで40周年記念アルバムの制作を始める。その第１弾として、2025年3月に自身初の全曲カヴァーアルバム『ハナウタと足拍子』をリリース。続く第２弾では全曲オリジナル新作のアルバム制作を進めている。

Born in Tokyo and now based on Amami Oshima, Ken Muramatsu grew up with the piano as his favorite toy. Surrounded by a borderless world of music—from Asian folk traditions and the island songs of Amami to Western classical music, jazz, and Brazilian music—he developed a distinctive sound filled with warmth and nostalgia.

He made his debut with Sony in 1983. Since then, he has released 51 albums of music he composes and performs himself. He began writing his own pieces because, as he puts it, “I couldn't find piano music that suited the scenery of rice fields.” His music came to be known as JAPANESE PIANO—piano music that seems to speak in Japanese—and has been featured in numerous commercials for brands including Sony, Mizuno, Sumitomo Forestry, Mizkan, Fujitsu, and Aflac.

Drawn by butterflies, island songs, and the spiritual world of Amami, he began visiting Amami Oshima in 1991. Seeking a creative environment in harmony with his vision of “resort music”—music that offers a place of belonging—he relocated his music-making base to Amami in 2004. He is also an artist who brings new life to tradition, crafting his own Amami shamisen and developing the instrument, long used mainly for accompaniment, into a solo voice.

In 2023, he celebrated the 40th anniversary of his debut. That autumn, he launched a crowdfunded anniversary album project, determined to explore things he had never tried—or had never been able to do. The first release, Hanauta to Ashibyoshi, his first entirely covers album, came out in March 2025. A second album featuring all-new original compositions is now in progress.