AKIRAIFUKUBE.ORG - Kushiro Marshland

KUSHIRO MARSHLAND
Japanese title: Kushiro shitsugen
(1993)

Aerial view of Kushiro's marshes

Akira Ifukube's Kushiro Marshland music leads something of a double life. It can be considered both a movie soundtrack as well as a separate concert composition.

Kushiro Marshland was originally composed for a 1993 film about the Kushiro Marshland wildlife sanctuary in Hokkaido. Designated as a National Park in 1987, it is Japan's largest wetland and habitat to many endangered birds, particularly the Japanese Crane. The film's score is divided into four movements, one for each season ("Summer, "Autumn," "Winter" and "Spring").

The soundtrack was released in 1993 on Fontec Records, one of Japan's largest classical labels. Upon its release, Ifukube gave his Kushiro Marshland music a new designation: "four symphonic tableaux for orchestra." Thus, this music can be enjoyed completely separate from the film it was originally composed for; indeed, it can be thought of as a Japanese equivalent to Antonio Vivaldi's famous Four Seasons.

In 1994, Kushiro Marshland's score was re-released on the Futureland label, in tandem with another Ifukube documentary film score, Dozoku no ranjo.

Thanks to Sam Scali for contributing to this text.

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