工藤重典出生於日本札幌，是當今世界著名長笛演奏家之一，在巴黎國家音樂學院學習，師承法國長笛大師尚－皮耶・朗帕爾（Jean-Pierre Rampal）。1979 年，他以第一名的成績畢業於巴黎國家音樂學院；同一年，他在香榭麗舍劇院（Theatre des Champs-Elysees）舉行巴黎首演，與朗帕爾一同演出。工藤重典在許多國際比賽中獲獎，包括第二屆巴黎國際長笛比賽（1978 年）冠軍與朗帕爾國際比賽冠軍（1980 年）。

工藤重典經常於歐美、非洲和亞洲等地舉辦音樂會，與世界著名指揮家合作，包括小澤征爾、潘德瑞斯基、萊特納、霍爾・史坦、史拉特金等人；合作過的樂團包括：巴伐利亞廣播管弦樂團、英國室內樂團、薩爾茲堡莫札特管弦樂團、維也納室內樂團、現代樂集、百雅室內管弦樂團、盧森堡愛樂樂團、布達佩斯李斯特管弦樂團、倫敦莫札特管弦樂團、法國國家管弦樂團、齋藤紀念管弦樂團、鹿特丹交響樂團、約翰尼斯堡國家交響樂團、NHK 交響樂團、東京、大阪、京都、廣島、札幌等地的樂團。

工藤重典也是世界各地音樂節的常客，包括維也納、漢堡、佛羅倫斯、紐約、齋藤、地中海等音樂節，經常能夠看到工藤重典的身影，他與朗帕爾、傑西・諾曼、安赫麗絲、帕斯卡・羅傑、帕基耶三重奏、蘇黎士三重奏、吉野（豎琴）、維也納絃樂四重奏、理查・西格爾（大鍵琴）、傑弗瑞・格萊斯（鋼琴）、羅斯托波維奇、小澤征爾、杜梅、夏漢、貝許米特和吉爾伯等眾多大師合作舉辦室內樂音樂會。

Shigenori Kudo was born in Sapporo, Japan, and studied at Toho Gakuen School of Music before completing his musical education with Jean-Pierre Rampal at the Paris Conservatory, where he gained his First Prize in 1979. The same year, he made his Parisian debuts with jean-Pierre Rampal at the Theatre des Champs-Elysees. Laureate of several international competitions, notably first prize-winner in the 2nd Paris International Flute Competition in 1978 and in the First Jean-Pierre Rampal International Competition in 1980, Shigenori Kudo's career takes him all over Europe, North and South America, Africa and Asia.

As well as giving many recitals, he is invited by Conductors such as Seiji Ozawa, Krzystof Penderecki, Ferdinand Leitner, Leonard Slatkin, Horst Stein and Jean-Francois Paillard to perform with orchestras including the NHK Symphony, Saito-kinen, Bavarian Radio Symphony, Johannesburg National, English Chamber Orchestra, Wiener Kammerorchester, Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, the Paillard Chamber Orchestra, Belgen chamber, Rotterdam Radio Symphony Orchestra, les Orchestres Philharmoniques du Luxembourg et des Pays-Bas, the French national orchestras of Montpellier, Lille, Toulouse and all major Japanese orchestras.(Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Sapporo, etc...)

Shigenori Kudo is a regular visitor to many international music festivals: Vienna, Hamburg, Firenze, New York Mostly Mozart, Saito-kinen, Mediterranean, Menton, Hong Kong, Seoul, Dvrovnic, Les Folles Journees (in Nantes and in Tokyo). His chamber music partners include Jessye Norman, Victoria des Los Angeles, Claude Bolling, Trio Pasquier, Zurich Trio, Marielle Nordmann, Pascal Roger, Anne Queffelec, Domnique de Williencourt and Vienna String Quartet. He was also a regular partner of Jean-Pierre Rampal, with whom he made 2 exceptional recordings for Sony Classical in 1987 and 1988.

He made about 60 recordings for different companies, including Erato, Sony, JVC, Meister Music, Pavane and Horizon, etc. Apart from several recitals with piano, harp or guitar, and numerous concertos, his discography also offers Mozart Concerto KV313 and Sinfonia Concertante for flute, oboe bassoon and horn KV297b under Seiji Ozawa, and CD devoted to Toru Takemitsu's flute music (Itinerant), both of them released by Sony. In 2004, his recital “Paysages” (20th century French repertoire/ Poulenc, Dutilleux, Gallois-Montbrun, Damase/ Sony Japan) was chosen as “Best Recording” by Stereo Magazine in Japan.

Shigenori Kudo currently resides in France and has been teaching since 1988 at the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris. He also give regularly masterclasses in Boston, New York, Washington, Pekin, Seoul, Taiwan, South America, South Africa, in Italy, Spain and Japan. Since 2010, he is a Professor of Tokyo College of Music.