Seiji Ozawa / Toru Takemitsu
Asterism / Requiem / Green / The Dorian Horizon
RCA Red Seal (Germany) 1969
LSC-3099 (LP) Coated sleeve.
sleeve : VG+(color-faded, some peel-off of laminate)
media : VG+/VG+(some light surface noise and light pop noise)
A 1969 album featuring four compositions written in the 1960s by Toru Takemitsu, one of Japan’s true master composers, performed by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra under the musical direction of Seiji Ozawa. Recorded at Massey Hall in Toronto, with Yuji Takahashi appearing on piano. A1 is a work for solo piano and orchestra, receiving its world premiere recording here. A2 is a full orchestral piece composed in 1957 on commission from the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. B1 was written as the second piece related to November Steps, Takemitsu’s landmark exploration of Japanese instruments such as biwa and shakuhachi together with orchestra. B2 is a string quartet composed in 1966 on commission from the Koussevitzky Foundation. Takemitsu had already stated at the time that it would be foolish to merely adapt Japanese instruments into a Western framework out of some kind of sonic fetishism, and that intention can be strongly felt throughout this work. Rare German pressing with excellent, full-bodied sound.
A1: Asterism
B1: Green