Background
Takashi Yoshimatsu was born in Tokyo, Japan, and like Toru Takemitsu, the composer generally considered to be Japan"s greatest in the western classical style, did not receive formal musical training while growing up.
吉松 隆
Takashi Yoshimatsu was born in Tokyo, Japan, and like Toru Takemitsu, the composer generally considered to be Japan"s greatest in the western classical style, did not receive formal musical training while growing up.
Keio University.
He is well known for composing the 2003 remake of Astro Boy. He left the faculty of technology of Keio University in 1972, and joined an amateur band named NOA as a keyboard player, emulating the music of Pink Floyd. He became interested in the jazz and progressive rock scenes, particularly in the possibilities being explored through electronic music
He was a fan of the Walker Brothers and the Ventures when he was 13, but symphonies of Beethoven and Tchaikovsky fascinated him when he was 14.
Since then he composed a number of pieces before making his name with the serialist "Threnody for Toki" in 1981. Soon afterwards, he became disenchanted with atonal music, and began to compose in a free neo-romantic style with strong influences from jazz, rock and Japanese classical music, underscoring his reputation with his 1985 guitar concerto.
As of 2007, Yoshimatsu has presented six symphonies, 11 concertos: one each for bassoon, cello, guitar, trombone, alto saxophone, soprano saxophone, chamber orchestra, traditional Japanese instruments, and two for piano (one for the left hand only and one for both hands), a number of sonatas, and various shorter pieces for ensembles of various sizes. His "Atom Hearts Club Suites" for string orchestra explicitly pay homage to the Beatles, Pink Floyd and Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
The majority of his work is triadic and contains simple, repeated progressions, or in some cases pandiatonicism.
Often extended tertian harmonies are followed by whole tone harmonies (such as in the first movement of Symphony Number 5. Or the first movement of his "Cyber Bird" Concerto for alto saxophone, which, in addition, makes use of free atonal jazz. Or the final movement of his "Orion Machine" Concerto.
Or in his Saxophone Concerto "Albireo Mode").
He has published some essays and primers about classical music He likes to draw pictures and has illustrated his own books
Saxophone Concerto "Cyber Bird" for Alto Saxophone, Piano, and Orchestra, Operation 59 (1994)
Kamui-Chikap Symphony (Symphony Number 1), Operation
40 (1990)
Symphony Number.
2 "At Terra", Operation 43 (1993)
Symphony Number. 3, Operation 75 (1998)
Symphony Number.
4, Operation 82 (2000)
Symphony Number.
5, Operation 87 (2001)
Symphony Number. 6 "Birds and Angels", Operation
113 (2014)
Guitar Concerto "Pegasus Effect", Operation
23 (1984)
Bassoon Concerto "Unicorn Circuit", Operation 36 (1988)
Trombone Concerto "Orion Machine", Operation 55 (1993)
Saxophone Concerto "Cyber Bird", Operation
59 (1994)
Saxophone Sonata "The fuzzy bird", (1991)
Piano Concerto "Memo Flora", Operation
67 (1997)
Threnody to Toki, Operation 12 (1980)
Atom Hearts Club Suite I for String Orchestra, Operation
70b (1997)
Atom Hearts Club Suite IIa for String Orchestra, Op.79a (1999)
Pleiades Dances I, Operation 27 (1986)
Pleiades Dances II, Operation
28 (1987)
Pleiades Dances III, Operation
35 (1988)
Pleiades Dances IV, Operation 50 (1992)
Pleiades Dances V, Operation 51 (1992)
Pleiades Dances VI, Operation
71 (1998)
Pleiades Dances VII, Operation
76 (1999)
Pleiades Dances VIII, Operation 78a (1999)
Pleiades Dances IX, Operation
85 (2001)
Cello Concerto, "Centaurus Unit" Operation 91 (2003)
Tapiola Visions (for the left hand), Operation
92 (2004)
Ainola Lyrical Ballads (for the left hand), Operation
95 (2006)
Gauche Dances (for the left hand), Operation 96 (2006).