Born in 1968 in Japan. At the age of twelve, he won the 1st Prize at a national student competition in Japan. Following his studies in Tokyo, he joined the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris where he studied piano with Jean-Claude Pennetier and vocal accompaniment with Anne Grappotte. After graduating with highest honours in vocal accompaniment, piano and chamber music, he won prizes at several international competitions, including the Montreal and Maria Canals international music competitions. In 1998, he received the Muramatsu and Idemitsu Awards for talented young musicians in Japan, and in 1994 he obtained the Prix Samson François at the 1st International 20th-Century Piano Competition in Orléans. He joined the Ensemble intercontemporain in 1996.

It has always been important for Hidéki Nagano to pursue relationships with contemporary composers and to promote and play unusual repertoire. His solo recordings include works by Antheil, Boulez, Messiaen, Murail, Dutilleux, Prokofiev, and Ravel, and he regularly performs in Europe and Japan as a soloist and with chamber ensembles. He has been a guest soloist with the NHK Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Charles Dutoit. His most recent recording is Jonathan Harvey’s Bird Concerto with Pianosong, recorded for NMC together with David Atherton and the London Sinfonietta.