John William Fenton (12 March 1828 – 28 April 1890) was an Irish musician of Scottish descent. He was the leader of a military band in Japan at the start of the Meiji period.
In 1869, Fenton realised that there was no national anthem; and leaders of Japan were convinced that a modern nation state needed a national anthem. So he decided to start composing a tune for it. Later, his tune would be changed.