Masumi Arai started her musical training with her father, whose passion was German Lieder. After graduating as the inaugural class of the Tokyo University of the Arts Affiliated High School, she continued her studies at the Tokyo University of the Arts under Susumu Nagai. She went on to study in Europe in 1961 on scholarship, studying in Munich and Essen, and later in Paris and London. She concertized extensively throughout Europe, the U.S. and Japan. From 1981 to 2004, she taught at the University of the Arts Berlin. Her teaching series in Japan, including the complete Schumann "Album for the Young" and Chopin works, have received critical acclaim.
She has performed chamber music concerts with the members of the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Berliner Symphoniker, as well as regular appearances as accompanist for Lieder. In 1982, her performances were televised on TV Asahi's "Untitled Concert". Since 2006, she has been studying with Janusz Olejniczak, who played piano in the film "The Pianist".
In 2019, her book "The Way to Artistic Piano Playing Through Mindfulness" was published, available in German and French. In 2022, Arai made her first CD recording of works by Mozart and Schumann on the sonorité label. She currently resides in Berlin.