Born in Fukushima, Japan, Kana Funayama is an active marimbist, percussionist, and arranger whose performance career sees her in a wide range of engagements as a soloist, ensemble player, and collaborative artist.

As a soloist, Kana has presented recitals in prominent venues and media outlets across the globe. Including performances in Tokyo, Sendai (Japan), Stuttgart (Germany), Sint-Truiden (Belgium), New York, Michigan, Los Angeles, Seattle, and on Classical KING FM, among others. Her recent appearance at the Classical KING FM's Northwest Live Session was featured among NPR Music Live Sessions’ Top 4 Most-Viewed Songs in February 2025. 

Kana has also been a featured soloist at La Folle Journée TOKYO, "Geisai" in Tokyo, the Chosen Vale International Percussion Seminar, Eastman Percussion Ensemble, to name just a few. She has performed concertos with the Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra (Japan), the Walla Walla Symphony (Washington), USC Thornton Symphony, and Whittier Regional Symphony (California). 

As an ensemble player, Kana has collaborated with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Santa Barbara Symphony, Tokyo Geidai Philharmonia, at venues such as The Hollywood Bowl and Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Kana is an active collaborator with instrumentalists and composers, regularly performing in recitals, album and film recordings, and the premiere performances of new works. She has been involved in premiering a wide repertoire of works including those by award-winning composer Billy Childs. Actively commissioning new compositions, she is dedicated to redefining marimba repertoire, taking influence across genres and cultures. In 2023, Kana founded a commission consortium that saw the premiere of Kaze no Sobyō (風の素描), a brand new work by composer Sana Fujimori.

As an educator, Kana has been invited to give masterclasses and guest lectures at the USC Thornton School of Music, Fullerton College, Oakland University, and Crane School of Music, among others. In 2021, she was invited to present as a guest artist at the Eastman Online Percussion Festival. She is an active visiting private instructor. She teaches at the Colburn School’s Intensive Piano Camp, and is the marimba instruction artist-in-residence at USC.

Kana earned her Bachelor of Music from Tokyo University of the Arts, her Master of Music from Eastman School of Music (where she received the esteemed Performance Certificate and the Milton Schlesinger Percussion Prize). She has received an Artist Diploma from the USC Thornton School of Music, of which she was the first ever percussionist to be accepted into the highly competitive program. She is the 2025 Outstanding Artist Diploma Graduate.

Kana is an Innovative Percussion Inc. Artist.