Directed by Nagisa Oshima, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence is a film produced between 1982 and 1983. At this time, Ryuichi Sakamoto was "an amateur, new to both acting and film scoring" (Sakamoto, 2009: 147). It is said that he established a policy of adding music where the visual power was weak, drawing inspiration from the relationship between visuals and music in the American film Citizen Kane (1941).  Notes left by the composer during the creation of "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" include entries such as "pentatonic," "Oriental," and "Japanese-like." While the so-called "Yonuki scale" (pentatonic) is used in the melody of this piece, harmonic progressions frequently feature movements of IV→V→VI→III (or IV→V→III→VI). The "Yonuki scale" is a scale incorporated into Japanese shoka (school songs), folk songs, and enka, while the progression from the subdominant through the dominant to the VI chord is a basic cadential form in Western classical music (deceptive cadence). Therefore, it is not impossible to interpret this piece from the perspective of "the fusion of East and West," but referring to Sakamoto's own statements, it becomes clear that he envisioned the film's setting as "a fantastical Oriental place, neither East nor West, where both Westerners and Easterners can feel similarly, a place that is ancient and modern, meaning it could be anywhere in time"※.  Another characteristic of "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" is the repeated appearance of melodic patterns interspersed with perfect fourths. The repetition of the theme, in particular, functions as a kind of "device" to evoke emotion in the listener.  Furthermore, numerous artists have been captivated by this work, and it has been performed in various arrangements, including solo voice with piano accompaniment and guitar solo, notably David Sylvian's "Forbidden Colours" (Japanese title: "Kinjirareta Shikisai"). Sakamoto himself has performed it many times in albums and live performances, sometimes adding arrangements. Perhaps the flexibility to withstand various arrangements is precisely the charm of this work. ※Note: Quoted from Ryuichi Sakamoto: Complete Works (edited by Kunihiko Yamashita, Ohta Publishing, 1991), p. 163. According to the same book, the original text was published in Keyboard Magazine, May 1983 issue.

References

• Sakamoto, Ryuichi. Ongaku wa Jiyu ni Suru (Music Sets You Free). Shinchosha, 2009.
• Yamashita, Kunihiko (ed.). Ryuichi Sakamoto: Complete Works. Ohta Publishing, 1991.