Kitazume, Michio 1948
Author: Sugiura, Nanako
Last updated：July 12, 2021
Author: Sugiura, Nanako
Michio Kitazume
From Michio Kitazume's Official Website
Born in Tokyo in 1948.
From 1966 to 1974, he studied composition with Tomojiro Ikenouchi, Akio Yashiro, and Teizo Matsumura, piano with Shozo Tsubota, and conducting with Hideo Saito and Masamitsu Takashina at Tokyo University of the Arts and its graduate school. In 1977, he participated in the formation of Ensemble Vent d'Orient, a group based on collaboration between performers and composers, where he was responsible for composition, planning, and conducting. The group was active until 1985, striving to introduce contemporary works from Japan and abroad. In 1983, the group received the 1st Kenzo Nakajima Music Award.
From 1979, he trained in France for one year as an artist dispatched by the Agency for Cultural Affairs.
He participated as a Japanese representative in the "Japan-Hungary Festival" (Budapest 1984, Tokyo 1986). In 1987, he premiered Side by Side for percussion and orchestra at Orchestra Project '87.
Subsequent orchestral works include:
- Shoka (commissioned by Kyoto City, 1990)
- Eisho (commissioned by the Japan Symphony Foundation, 1993)
- Colored Topography No. 1 (commissioned by Shirakawa Hall, 1995)
- Ritual of Sky and Trees (commissioned by Yokohama Arts Foundation, 1997)
- From the Beginning Sea (commissioned by Shinsei Nihon Symphony Orchestra, 1999)
- Landscape of the Earth (commissioned by Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, 2000)
These works have been re-performed both in Japan and abroad. In 1994, Eisho received the Otaka Award. The same work was selected as the most outstanding work by the UNESCO International Rostrum of Composers (IRC) in 1995 and was included as a major work on the IRC 50th Anniversary CD (CD: QDisc 7418242, International Rostrum of Composers 1955-1999).
In 2001, he received the Otaka Award for Landscape of the Earth.
In 2004, he received the 22nd Kenzo Nakajima Music Award for his long-standing compositional activities, including Concerto for Orchestra.
In addition to his frequently performed orchestral works, his compositions for traditional Japanese instruments, including two works commissioned by the National Theatre such as Yuen - To the Birds, and works for various instruments and voices are diverse. These works, characterized by sounds spun from a dialogue with nature, have been introduced in concerts, broadcasts, and on CDs both in Japan and abroad.
CDs:
- Michio Kitazume Orchestral Works (FOCD2514)
- Michio Kitazume: Composer's Solo Exhibition (FOCD3505)
- and others.
Current/Past Positions:
- Visiting Professor at Tokyo College of Music
- Professor Emeritus at Aichi University of the Arts
- Board Member of the Japan Society for Contemporary Music
- Board Member of the Japan Composers & Arrangers Association
Author : Sudoh, Eiko
Last Updated: June 1, 2006
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Author : Sudoh, Eiko
Born in Tokyo. Studied at Tokyo University of the Arts and its graduate school, under Tomojiro Ikenouchi, Akio Yashiro, and Teizo Matsumura. In 1977, formed "Ensemble Vent d'Orient," a group of performers and composers. For approximately 10 years thereafter, he dedicated his efforts to introducing contemporary works from Japan and abroad. In 1979, he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris for one year, dispatched by the Agency for Cultural Affairs. He specializes particularly in orchestral works, characterized by transparent and pure sounds spun from dialogue with nature and the self. Perhaps due to his meticulous and cautious approach to composition, his works, unusually for contemporary music, are frequently re-performed. He is currently a professor at Aichi University of the Arts and a board member of both the Japan Society for Contemporary Music and the Japan Federation of Composers. He has received numerous awards to date, including the Otaka Prize (twice), the UNESCO IMC International Rostrum of Composers Grand Prize, and the Kenzo Nakajima Music Prize.
Works(38)
Piano Solo (3)
Various works (15)
Piano Ensemble (1)
Various works (2)
Chamber Music (1)
Various works (7)
Arioso Ⅲ for violin, flute, clarinet, saxophone and piano
Composed in: 1980 Playing time: 9 min 00 sec
The Ring Twinkles for guitar, piano, violon, viola and violoncello
Composed in: 1987 Playing time: 7 min 00 sec
Song from a distance Ⅱfor clarinet, violin, violoncello and piano
Composed in: 2004 Playing time: 7 min 00 sec
Lied (1)
Various works (11)