Japanese Composers

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Piano arrangements of Ryuichi Sakamoto's compositions, for those who are interested.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lDlw8kReQgg5FdqqD2xUvUzubvHXxX4rQ

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Koto Concerto: Genji. Daron Hagen.
Not a Japanese-national composer, but wonderful Japanese music

[vers la flamme]

Piano arrangements of Ryuichi Sakamoto's compositions, for those who are interested.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lDlw8kReQgg5FdqqD2xUvUzubvHXxX4rQ

This is amazing! Thanks!! I don't know if I need 5 CDs of this music, but I have loved Sakamoto's soundtracks in the past and at this price, it's tempting.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

This is amazing! Thanks!! I don't know if I need 5 CDs of this music, but I have loved Sakamoto's soundtracks in the past and at this price, it's tempting.

Jfyi, Behind the Mask, Yellow Magic Orchestra. Sakamoto's composition. Eric Clapton and Michael Jackson modified the tune and sung it. I think the original is much better.

https://youtu.be/0HubIA-BGGI

[vandermolen]

This is amazing! Thanks!! I don't know if I need 5 CDs of this music, but I have loved Sakamoto's soundtracks in the past and at this price, it's tempting.

+1 Thanks for posting.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Enjoying Isao Tomita. Modern rendition of court music in the 11th century.

https://youtu.be/tB68S4edK5w

[Roy Bland]

Great romantic Piano Concerto

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Great romantic Piano Concerto

Wakasugi died about a decade ago. He was a well-regarded conductor in Japan. I have his Wagner works and I like it. I will look for this recording.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

VG.

[vandermolen]

Great romantic Piano Concerto

Looks interesting.

I looked him up on You Tube but got a video on how to make chewy meatballs. I then realised that I had mis-spelt his name 

[Artem]

VG.

Takemitsu's piano music is really great. I'm currently listening to a cd with some solo piano works played by Kumi Ogano.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Suite version of the film music of Kurosawa's "Ran", composed by Takemitsu.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_k_nYwixbMSbLJU-Yv-tdFvH6qXTAB5sqM

[T. D.]

Takemitsu's piano music is really great. I'm currently listening to a cd with some solo piano works played by Kumi Ogano.

Thanks. I have a CD of solo piano works played by Izumi Tateno in my wish list at Berkshire Record Outlet. Will bump it up near the top.

I have Mamoru Fujieda's two Patterns of Plants volumes on Tzadik (NOT the Sarah Cahill piano renditions), am about to add his Night Chant. Fujieda's music is considerably weirder than Takemitsu's. 

[vers la flamme]

I'm listening to Kôsçak Yamada's Symphony in F major, "Triumph & Peace", in an effort to hear more Japanese classical music. It's available to listen here...:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY7He5w_5cY

Sounds great to my ears! Very melodic. Yamada was the first major Japanese composer of Western music and it appears he wrote in a style that is very reverent of the old masters.

Anyway, I have this Naxos disc w/ Takuo Yuasa, and it looks like there is one more Naxos disc from the same forces, but other than that, I can't find any other Yamada music on disc. Anyone know of anything else? Looks like he was quite prolific!

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

I'm listening to Kôsçak Yamada's Symphony in F major, "Triumph & Peace", in an effort to hear more Japanese classical music. It's available to listen here...:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY7He5w_5cY

Sounds great to my ears! Very melodic. Yamada was the first major Japanese composer of Western music and it appears he wrote in a style that is very reverent of the old masters.

Anyway, I have this Naxos disc w/ Takuo Yuasa, and it looks like there is one more Naxos disc from the same forces, but other than that, I can't find any other Yamada music on disc. Anyone know of anything else? Looks like he was quite prolific!

Musically, he is very Western guy with Dvorak feel.
On Youtube, please use the spell "Kosaku" Yamada, then you will find several works. Also, you may want to check out Hisato Osawa (or Ohzawa).

[vers la flamme]

Musically, he is very Western guy with Dvorak feel.
On Youtube, please use the spell "Kosaku" Yamada, then you will find several works. Also, you may want to check out Hisato Osawa (or Ohzawa).

Thanks. I see a few piano works I didn't know about. Most of the results are recordings found on the two Naxos discs.

I agree, shades of Dvorák, but also hints of Strauss and Debussy in the tone poems on the disc I have (those being "The Dark Gate" and "Madara No Hana"). Very much a Westernized composer, but damn, he was a talented melodist and orchestrator. Yamada is quickly becoming a minor obsession, possibly helped in part by his obscurity. It would be great to see more recordings of his music.

I will have to check out Osawa.

[vers la flamme]

This also exists:

https://books.rakuten.co.jp/rb/13369300/

A recording of roughly 60 of Yamada's songs for voice and piano. Might be of interest sometime down the line...

[milk]

I was listening to this today and thinking this would be interesting on harpsichord. Actually, it's not super profound music, to my ears, but it's pleasant and achieves something of value.
My idea was that a baroque keyboardist could add ornamentation and more interesting rubato and make something pseudo-baroque.

[vandermolen]

just another plug for this, fine and memorable symphony from the WAYLT thread:

[vers la flamme]

just another plug for this, fine and memorable symphony from the WAYLT thread:

The blurb on the back of the disc calls Moroi "the greatest Japanese symphonist". Sounds like something I should hear.