Roots Music Trio

Roots Music Trio is a Japan-based acoustic guitar group featuring award-winning fingerstyle artists Shohei Toyoda, Koyo Morita, and Hikaru Komatsu. Deeply inspired by legendary players such as Chet Atkins and Tommy Emmanuel, the trio blends masterful fingerpicking with a shared love for blues, jazz, country, and swing. Though each member has built an acclaimed solo career—releasing original albums and earning recognition in fingerstyle guitar competitions—they came together around 2016 through a mutual passion for roots music and the timeless spirit of acoustic guitar. Their performances combine virtuosic technique, rich musicality, and the joy of three distinct voices meeting in one sound. From soulful blues grooves to swinging rhythms and intricate guitar arrangements, Roots Music Trio delivers a dynamic celebration of traditional roots music with fresh energy. First time appearing at Natalies, will sure be a toe-tapping happy hour!
Shohei Toyoda – Residing in Kyoto Japan, Shohei grew up in Dublin OH and studied guitar at Berklee College of Music. He has won multiple awards (champion at 2011 Kentucky’s Home of the Legends International Thumbpicking contest, Winner of 2012 Japan’s National Fingerstyle Guitar Contest and 3rd place at 2013 International Fingerstyle Contest) and this music is heavily influenced by the fingerpicking greats like Tommy Emmanuel, Jerry Reed and Chet Atkins.
Koyo Morita – Having more than 60K followers throughout his social media platforms, Koyo is the Japanese winner of the “Player Plus Studio Sessions Contest” hosted by Fender. His country guitar instructional book published in 2025 was ranked number 1 on Amazon’s guitar book category. His new album “One Story” released in Nov of 2025 has gotten many positive feedbacks from guitar players all over the world.
Hikaru Komatsu – Japanese fingerstyle guitarist born in 1992. He began playing guitar in junior high and later studied composition at university, earning a music teaching license. In 2015, a year of busking in Sydney, Australia helped shape his solo acoustic style. Inspired by country blues, he draws influence from artists like Tokio Uchida and Chet Atkins. He placed 3rd at the 2017 Indiana State Fingerstyle Guitar Festival and won the 2018 Morris Fingerpicking Contest East Japan Regional Competition.
TIPS and RESERVATIONS are strongly encouraged for our FREE Happening Hour Shows!
Food & Bar: Our full food and drink menu will be available before and during the show.