Arissa Sato was born in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, USA. She began playing as a young child with private lessons at the Betty Haag Academy of Music in 1998 under Betty Haag. She then studied at the Music Institute of Chicago with Marko Dreher from 2007-2010. Under the guidance of Stephanie Preucil from 2010-2014, she participated and qualified in the Illinois Music Education Association All-State Honours Orchestra in 2011 and 2012. She also played in the Schaumburg Youth Symphony Orchestra from 2010-2014 and became the concert master in 2014. She has a master's degree from the University of Tokyo and is currently working towards a PhD at the University of Tokyo. She speaks native English, proficient Thai and advanced Japanese.