Torakusu Yamaha (山葉寅楠) was a Japanese businessman and entrepreneur known as the founder of the Yamaha Corporation.
Yamaha was the first Japanese manufacturer of the reed organ and established Nippon Gakki Co Ltd in Hamamatsu to produce organs and other musical instruments including pianos and harmonicas. Nippon Gakki was later renamed the Yamaha Corporation in his honor.
Biography
Early life
Torakusu Yamaha was born on 20 April 1851 in Wakayama, Kii Province, the third son of Konosuke Yamaha, a low-ranking samurai of the Kishu-Tokugawa family, the ruling family of the Kishu Domain. Torakusu's father was an astronomer for the Kishu clan, who gave Torakusu access to books about astronomy. As a result, Torakusu became fascinated with machines and technology, in addition to his interests in martial arts and kendo. In his twenties, Japanese society changed rapidly with the arrival of the Meiji Restoration in 1868, and Torakusu saw many opportunities as the era brought Westernization and the introduction of new technologies to Japan. In 1871, Torakusu went to