In a career that has spanned almost 30 years, Mitsuko Uchida (born 1948) has earned her title as one of the greatest classical pianists of the 20th century. She is most readily associated with her ability and recordings of Mozart's piano works and is a sought-after concert pianist worldwide.

Mitsuko Uchida was born in Tokyo, Japan, on December 20, 1948. She was the third child of Fukito Uchida, a diplomat, and Tasuko Uchida, a homemaker. Before Uchida was born her father had served in Europe in the Japanese diplomatic corps during World War II.

Uchida began her piano lessons when she was three years old as part of a traditional Japanese education. She quickly developed a love for classical music, especially Mozart, as she listened to her father's collection of European composers' recordings. She told the Detroit Free Press, "as a small child I remember vividly listening to Mozart again and again...