SIBF2010 Les Trois Notes du Japon by Philharmonic Youth Winds

By Toshio Mashima. Great performance by Philyouth at the SIBF in 2010.

Cultural soundscapes isn’t new – but I always wonder why the Japanese manage to create such a successful identity, whether it’s musical scales, native instruments, etc. and how composers generation after generation can keep drawing from the same elements to create more.

I once asked how come the soundscape for south east asia is so blend. But now the more I think about it, the more I felt that it’s because we prefer to borrow. Like I prefer to borrow John Williams scoring for my fanfare, borrow Kitaro for my eastern sounds, borrow all the way back to Bach for my ensembles, and did not give a chance for “odd” sounding instrument/structure/harmonies/melodies to be surfaced and performed. And enough pieces of the same genre has to be performed enough times to enough people before the new sound will converge into a cultural “identity”. But the only things that get air time these days are the less than a handful rhythms of the kompang, the vanilla version of gamelan, etc.

I. La Danse des Grues
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II. La Riviere Enneigee
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III. La Fete du Feu
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