John William Fenton

John William Fenton (12 March 1828 or 1831 – 28 April 1890) was a British musician and the leader of a British military band in Japan at the start of the Meiji period. He is considered "the first bandmaster in Japan" and "the father of band music in Japan". Fenton is best known for having initiated the process through which Kimigayo came to be accepted as the national anthem of Japan.

Fenton was born in Kinsale, County Cork, in Ireland in 1828 or 1831. His father John Fenton (1790–1833) was born in Brechin, Scotland. Fenton lived in Montrose, Angus, around 1881. He died in California.

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