Masami Nagai studied double bass at Tokyo Gakugei University, Toho Gakuen School of Music and University of Graz, Austria. Prizes won in Japan include the Second Prize in strings at the Japan Musicians Competition and the top prize in strings at the Japan Classical Music Competition. Nagai has performed in orchestras, including the New Japan Philharmonic, Japan Philharmonic and Singapore Symphony. She has been Principal Double Bass of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta since 2008, and also enjoys playing jazz music with various groups in Hong Kong and Japan.