# Japanese (or more generally 'oriental') traditional music and classical music.



## aleazk (Sep 30, 2011)

I'm particularly attracted to this kind of mixtures. I love to hear that very particular japanese character, combined with 'western' colourful resources.
A classic example is Ravel:

_Ma Mère l'Oye - IX. Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes_






(that gong at 1:14 makes my day, and then the impressionist, 'western', harmonies at 1:53 , what a masterpiece!)

_Piano Concerto for the left hand_

(I love this interpretation, very violent )






(with its classic pentatonic introduction in the piano)

_L'Enfant et les sortilèges_






(great parallel fifths in the oboes at the beginning, accompanied with a 'dissonant' line in the flute; actually, it's a polytonal section; oriental sound again at the beginning here 



, the second part of the video)

Takemitsu is more abstract, in the sense that he don't use pentatonic scales, but you can hear the colors and moods typical of japanese music:

_Textures_






Simply amazing and very colourful:

_Akira Ifukube - Deux Caractères pour Violon et Piano_






Some koto music:






(I recommend you to watch the whole video, is really amazing)


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## Arsakes (Feb 20, 2012)

I don't know much about Japanese classic music. So please Name the 3 most talented/famous one who actually compose classic music (not combined with electric junk!).


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

Toru Takemitsu and Toshi Ichiyanagi are the "big" names that spring to mind.


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

Arsakes said:


> I don't know much about Japanese classic music. So please Name the 3 most talented/famous one who actually compose classic music (not combined with electric junk!).


But electric junk is the best kind of junk D: besides, classical music incorporates plenty of electric and electronic elements :3 perhaps you should change that to "Acoustic music"


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

Agree,such works can be refreshing. Other examples are

Alexander Tcherepnin: Piano Concerto no.4, 3rd Symphony
Aaron Avshalomov: Flute Concerto, Symphonic Poem Beijing Quarters
Maurice Delage: Quatre Poemes Hindous
Colin McPhee: Tabu-Tabuhan; Balinese Ceremonial Music
Stravinsky: The Song of the Nightingale
Ernst Toch: The Chinese Flute
John Fernström: Chinese Rhapsody
Sergei Vasilenko: ChineseSuite; Indian Suite
Roussel: Padmavati
Dukas: Le Peri


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

Arsakes said:


> I don't know much about Japanese classic music. So please Name the 3 most talented/famous one who actually compose classic music (not combined with electric junk!).


*Takemitsu* is the main figure. Some like *Yoshimatsu*, but his colourful style often approaches film music. *Hosakawa* is an upcoming name, but his style is often very discreet and tender. *Akutagawa* kan be quite striking and is rather traditionally Western (his studied in the USSR!). *Mayuzumi* is mostly avantgarde (Nirvana Symphony etc.). *Yamada* was very traditional.


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## aleazk (Sep 30, 2011)

Arsakes said:


> I don't know much about Japanese classic music. So please Name the 3 most talented/famous one who actually compose classic music (not combined with electric junk!).


Actually, the lady in the koto video (Kazue Sawai) is one of the leading figures in japanese 'pure and historic' traditional music. Her husband was a distinguished composer also. She has worked with John Cage.


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## norman bates (Aug 18, 2010)

joen_cph said:


> Colin McPhee: Tabu-Tabuhan; Balinese Ceremonial Music


i was going to mention this one.
And Hieroglyph of Daniel Ruyneman:


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## norman bates (Aug 18, 2010)

actually i don't know if there is a real influence, but Varese's Density 21.5 to me sounds like japanese music.


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

You know, Varèse sometimes puts me in mind of Noh theatre, especially in some of his "smaller" works.


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## LordBlackudder (Nov 13, 2010)




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## Arsakes (Feb 20, 2012)

Yamada works for me ...

Combining the cultural elements of a nation with a old style classic music creates the best music. Likes Dvorak, Ippolitov Ivanov, Korsakov etc.

I've also heard Chinese-classical combine and they're very beautiful.


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

Cage was pretty heavily influenced by Asian music in general. The harmonies and colors of his 40's works are heavily entrenched in that and the music of Satie. His later 'Number' pieces embody the stillness of many Chinese and Japanese classical works. I particularly see a similarity with Gagaku music. Cage even made use of the Japanese sho later in life.


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

Among the Japanese composers that I am familiar with... and enjoy (to a greater or lesser extent) I would include:

Toshio Hosokawa
Keiko Abe
Toru Takemitsu
Ryuichi Sakamoto
Takashi Yoshimatsu
Ryutaro Hirota
Ikue Mori
Toshiro Mayuzumi


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