AKIRAIFUKUBE.ORG - Sound of Tomo

SOUND OF TOMO - ORCHESTRAL SHINBAN
Japanese title: Tomo no oto
(1990)

Japanese women playing a traditional drum (left) and a shamisen (right) circa 1900

Sound of Tomo is part a musical collaboration between Akira Ifukube and Shohin Hagioka, a noted koto performer and composer from a famous musical family.

Akira Ifukube wrote Sound of Tomo in 1990 with Hagioka's support. Ifukube's composition is actually the second half of a greater work; Hagioka composed the first part (Hagi no sanbasô) and Ifukube composed the second part (Tomo no oto). Hagioka's section is scored exclusively for traditional instruments and voices whereas Ifukube's section is similar to Kosaku Yamada's Nagauta Symphony in that it superimposes traditional Japanese instruments and singing on top of a Western-style orchestral backing.

Ifukube's Tomo no oto is written for a large orchestra (triple woodwinds), voice, koto, shamisen, ryûteki (a transverse bamboo flute), kotsuzumi and ôtsuzumi (traditional Japanese drums). The premiere of Ifukube and Hagioka's complete work was sponsored by NHK, Japan's public broadcasting company. This first performance took place at the National Theater of Japan in Tokyo.

A recording (NSC0016) was made of the 1990 premiere, but it was never sold to the public; it is only available on an extremely rare promotional compact disc.

Thanks to Sam Scali and Kiwami Ifukube for providing information about this piece.

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