Hayashi, Hikaru 1931 - 2012
Author: Maruyama, Yoko
Last updated：April 24, 2018
Author: Maruyama, Yoko
Educational Background
At age 4, he began studying with Kiyohide Sonoda of the Jiyu Gakuen Early Music Education Experimental Group. At age 10, he began studying composition with Hisatada Otaka (after Otaka's death, he studied with Tomojiro Ikenouchi). During his elementary school years, he watched performances by the Opera Small Theater Konnyakuza, which sparked his interest in opera. During his time at Keio High School, he took classes from Western music history teacher Kazuyuki Toyama and also formed a drama club with Keita Asari and Takeshi Kusaka, who would later found the Shiki Theatre Company. He entered Tokyo University of the Arts in 1951 but withdrew after the premiere of his Chapter One for Symphony Orchestra in 1953.
Activities
From an early age, he began composing chamber music and piano works. After his university years, he successively premiered orchestral works and boasts numerous awards, including three Arts Festival Awards (the first in 1953 for Symphony in G Major, recognized for its Japanese themes and Soviet music techniques), two Otaka Awards, the Moscow International Film Festival Composition Award, and the Suntory Music Award. From his student days, he engaged in a wide range of musical and artistic activities, deepening his interest in the Utagoe Movement and popular art.
In opera, he strived for a style that utilized the intonation of spoken Japanese, including dialects, earning high acclaim (e.g., the 1955 radio opera The Emperor's New Clothes, and the 1958 Amanjaku and Uriko-hime). From 1975 onwards, he served as Artistic Director and Resident Composer for Konnyakuza, premiering numerous Japanese-language operas. He also originated "piano operas," where a single piano provides all the music, as seen in Gauche the Cellist.
Meanwhile, he also composed film scores for various genres, including animation and documentaries. Notably, since Kaneto Shindo's Lucky Dragon No. 5 (1959), he composed for most of Shindo's films. On the other hand, in theatrical music, he worked on the Haiyuza production of The Marriage of Figaro as early as 1949. Later, his collaboration with Makoto Sato of the Kuro Tent theater company, starting with Ismene and the Subway in 1966, became well-known. Additionally, as a life's work, he dedicated himself to setting Kenji Miyazawa's works to music (e.g., Kenji's Music Room, a CD book, in 2000).
Musical Style
His creative activities reflect Hayashi's strong awareness of issues concerning music and society. As seen in his aforementioned operas, his style, which incorporates unique Japanese language and themes, reveals an attitude of respect for his own culture. The "Yagi no Kai" (Goat Society), which he co-founded with Yoshio Mamiya, Yuzo Toyama, and others, aiming to develop Japanese national music by viewing music as popular art, is another example. He also composed many works addressing political and social issues, such as Genbaku Shokei (Scenes of the Atomic Bomb), inspired by the poems of A-bomb survivor Tamiki Hara (first part premiered in 1958, final movement completed in 2000), and Symphony No. 3 "The Sun at Noon in August..." (1990), stimulated by the Tiananmen Square incident. His compositional language actively incorporates various expressive possibilities, such as tone rows, tone clusters, Sprechchor, and improvisation, in addition to ethnic elements from both Japan and abroad.
Author : Sudoh, Eiko
Last Updated: April 24, 2018
[Open]
Author : Sudoh, Eiko
Born in Tokyo in 1931. From around the age of 10, he studied composition under Hisatada Otaka, a close friend of his father, who was a doctor. From his late teens, he became involved with theatrical music, composing for performances by the Haiyuza Theatre Company, among others. After entering Tokyo University of the Arts in 1951, he studied under Tomojiro Ikenouchi. However, in 1953, he withdrew from the university, questioning its stance on “off-campus performances” and the established practices of existing composers.
In the same year, he formed "Yagi no Kai" (The Goat Group) with Yoshio Mamiya and Yuzo Toyama, aiming "to contribute to the development of Japanese national music across all fields of music." They pursued the connection between society and music, holding five subsequent concerts to present their works. In the same year, he received the Arts Festival Award for Symphony in G (1953), and in 1955, the 4th Otaka Award for Variations for Orchestra. His mixed chorus piece Mizu o Kudasai (Give Me Water), released in 1958 (later becoming the first movement of Genbaku Shokei), garnered immediate attention for its exquisite fusion of text and contemporary compositional techniques. He also excelled in the field of film music. For Kaneto Shindo's 1960 film The Naked Island, he received the Best Music Award at the 2nd Moscow International Film Festival. Thereafter, he composed music for most of Shindo's films.
From 1975, he served as Artistic Director and resident composer for Opera Theatre Konnyakuza. Collaborating with this group, which aimed to create operas that clearly convey words and performed them nationwide, he produced many masterpieces. His works include the piano opera Gauche the Cellist (1986), where a single piano takes on the roles of conductor and orchestra, and I Am a Cat (1998), which adds a few additional instruments.
His compositional style is characterized by its eclecticism, encompassing various musical elements, and its lightness. Early piano works include Piano Sonata No. 1 (1965) and Sonatine (1965). After his 1978 piano piece Tokkuri-ko, he began actively incorporating Okinawan scales and Ainu music. He also composed many piano works for children, such as Modotte Kita Hizu: 12 Months' Songs for Piano (1979) and 48 Songs for Piano (1983).
Furthermore, in his later years, he left behind many works with social themes, such as Symphony No. 3 "The Sun at Noon in August..." (1990), composed after the Tiananmen Square incident in China, and Viola Concerto "Elegy" (1995, Otaka Award), released after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake. He was awarded the Medal with Purple Ribbon. He passed away in 2012 at the age of 80.
Author : Maruyama, Yoko
Last Updated: April 24, 2018
[Open]
Author : Maruyama, Yoko
Education
At the age of four, Hayashi began to learn under Kiyohide Sonoda, a member of the Jiyu-Gakuen Elementary Music Educational Experimentation Group. At the age of 10, he started compositional study under Hisatada Otaka until the latter's death, subsequently studying under Tomojirō Ikenouchi. His interest in opera was inspired by the Opera Theater Konnyakuza, which he saw during his elementary school days. During his time at Keio High School, he attended a music history course held by Kazuyuki Toyama while also founding a new drama club alongside the founders of Shiki Theatre Company, Keita Asari and Takeshi Kusaka. He entered Tokyo University of the Arts in 1951 but left in 1953 after presenting his composition Symphony in G.
Musical Activity
From early childhood, Hayashi started composing chamber music as well as piano works, and after entering university, many orchestral works that garnered numerous accolades: three Arts Festival Awards (the first for Symphony in G in 1953, which incorporated Japanese themes and Soviet musical techniques), two Otaka Prizes, the Composition Award at the 2nd Moscow International Film Festival, Suntory Music Awards, and others.
Hayashi endeavored to utilize the intonation of the Japanese language within his operas, which received public acclaim (e.g., the radio-opera Hadaka no Osama (The Emperor’s New Clothes) 1955, Amanjaku to Uriko hime (Amanjaku and Princess Uriko) 1958). In 1975, he assumed the position of art director and exclusive composer for the company Konnyakuza, through which he presented many of his operas. He also initiated the presentation of his self-established ‘piano operas,’ such as Gauche the Cellist, where a single piano fulfills all musical roles.
He also composed a variety of scores for film, including animations and documentaries. Hayashi composed music for most of director Kaneto Shindo’s films, commencing with Lucky Dragon No. 5 (1959). For theater, his career began early with Haiyuza Theater Company's production of Le Nozze di Figaro in 1949. Among his theatrical activities, his collaboration with Makoto Sato of Black Tent Theatre, beginning with Ismene Underground (1966), is particularly well-known. Additionally, he dedicated himself to his life's work of setting Kenji Miyazawa’s works to music (CD book Kenji’s Music Room 2000).
Style
Hayashi’s creative activities reflect his strong awareness of music and society. As seen in his operas, his style of adapting words and themes unique to Japan suggests his profound respect for his homeland's culture. ‘Yagi no kai’ (The Goat Society), which he founded with Yoshio Mamiya and Yuzo Toyama with the conscious aim of regarding music as a public art, exemplifies this viewpoint. He also composed works addressing political or social problems as their themes, for example, Genbaku Shoukei (Atomic Bomb Scenery), inspired by the atomic bomb survivor and poet Tamiyoshi Hara (the first part premiered in 1958, the final part completed in 2000). Symphony No. 3 ‘At Noon, the August Sun...’ (1990) was a reaction to the Tiananmen Square protests.
In order to broaden the possibilities in expression, he actively adopted various musical idioms, such as indigenous Japanese musical features, ethnological musical elements from other cultures, serialism, tone clusters, Sprechchor, and improvisation.
Author : Sudoh, Eiko
Last Updated: April 24, 2018
[Open]
Author : Sudoh, Eiko
林光は1931年、東京に生まれた。父は医師。10歳から父の友人であった大高忠に作曲を師事。10代後半から俳優座の公演音楽など、演劇音楽に携わる。1951年、東京藝術大学に入学し、池内友次郎に師事。
しかし、学外発表や作曲家としてのあり方に対する大学の姿勢に疑問を抱き、1953年に同大学を中退。同年、間宮芳生、外山雄三らと「音楽のあらゆる分野にわたって、日本の国民音楽の発展に役立つ仕事をしたい」と「山羊の会」を結成。5回の作品発表会を行い、社会と音楽の結びつきを推進した。同年、「交響曲ト調」（1953）で芸術祭賞、1955年には「オーケストラのための変奏曲」で第4回尾高賞を受賞。1958年には混声合唱のための「水をください」（後に混声合唱のための組曲「原爆小景」の第1曲として組み込まれる）を作曲し、テキストと現代的な響きの絶妙な調和で注目を集めた。映画音楽の分野でも活躍。1960年代には、新藤兼人監督の映画「裸の島」の音楽で、第2回モスクワ国際映画祭作曲賞を受賞。以後、新藤作品のほとんどの音楽を手がけた。
1975年、オペラシアターこんにゃく座の芸術監督兼座付き作曲家に就任。言葉の意味を明確に表現するオペラの創造を目指す同歌劇団とともに、数々の傑作を生み出し、全国で上演した。その作品には、1台のピアノが指揮者とオーケストラの両方の役割を果たすピアノオペラ「セロ弾きのゴーシュ」（1986）や、ピアノと数少ない楽器のみを使用する「吾輩は猫である」（1998）などがある。
林の音楽スタイルは、多様な音楽を取り入れた雑食性と軽やかさが特徴である。多くのピアノ曲も手がけた。初期には「ピアノソナタ第1番」（1965）、「ソナチネ」（1965）などがある。「ベヴァット：トゥックイグヮ」（1978）以降、沖縄音階やアイヌ音楽を積極的に取り入れるようになった。
また、「もどってきた日付、12ヶ月のピアノの歌」（1979）や「48のピアノの歌」（1983）など、多くの子供のためのピアノ作品も作曲した。
晩年には、中国の1989年天安門事件直後に発表された「交響曲第3番『8月の太陽が真昼に…』」（1990）や、1995年の阪神・淡路大震災直後に発表された「ヴィオラ協奏曲『エレジア』」（1995、尾高賞）など、社会問題をテーマにした作品を多く発表した。紫綬褒章を受章。2012年、80歳で死去。
Works(42)
Concerto (1)
Works with orchestral accompaniment (2)
Piano Solo (10)
sonata (3)
pieces (2)
for children (3)
cadenza (2)
Various works (2)
Piano Ensemble (5)
Various works (10)
Chamber Music (3)
Reduction/Arrangement (3)
Various works (2)