Toru Takemitsu
In an Autumn Garden / Voyage
Deutsche Grammophon/Polydor (Japan) 1974
MG 2457 (LP) Original pressing. w/insert(light color-faded.)
sleeve : EX-(SRW, slightly color-faded, light dirts on rear.)
media : EX-/EX-(some slightly surface noises.)
Late Toru Takemitsu, one of Japan's greatest composers, released this album in 1974. The A-side "Gagaku" is performed by the Imperial Household Agency's ceremonial music department. "Journey" is Takemitsu's first composition for biwa. The solo performance by Nishikishi Tsuruta, who also played in the movie "Kaidan" and his masterpiece "November Steps," is a masterpiece that beautifully depicts the providence of nature. It may be forcible to connect these modern music to ambient, but the definition has already collapsed and been swallowed by the heterogeneity of folk/traditional music, like the soundtrack of "The Tale of Genji" with music by Haruomi Hosono. A masterpiece among masterpieces.
B: Voyage