tangotreats
02-05-2017, 11:41 PM
TAKASHI NIIGAKI
Symphony "Litany" (unofficially Symphony No. 2)
Piano Concerto "Rebirth"
Green Floating Eternally
Tokyo Chamber Orchestra
Takashi Niigaki, piano
conducted by Takashi Niigaki (Symphony, Green Floating Eternally)
conducted by Kunihiro Nakamura (Piano Concerto)
https://mega.nz/#!M4Qz2BaI!p4KKRkxafqUkL9Pxh6cZ-WxAjfbMDguFvSxNamigrw8
By now, I'm sure every musically-inclined person on the planet is aware of the sad tale of Mamoru Samuragochi - the famous deaf Japanese composer who penned a behemoth symphony in tribute to the victims of the Hiroshima bomb, but turned out to be a manipulative liar who paid Takashi Niigaki a pittance to write his music, and threatened to kill himself and his wife if Niigaki revealed the deception.
At the time, it looked like curtains not only for Samuragochi's career for also for the career of Niigaki - but thankfully public sympathy shifted to the underdog and Niigaki fashioned a career as a composer under his own steam.
(In the sleeve notes for the Hiroshima symphony, a thoroughly-duped Seiji Choki writes that Samuragochi had written TWELVE symphonies previously but destroyed them (presumably) in a fit of artistic perfectionism with the view of making the "Hiroshima" symphony his first official opus.)
This recent release showcases three new symphonic works; a symphony (which was at one point sniffily entitled "Symphony No. 2" but now carries only the title "Litany", a piano concerto (entitled "Rebirth" - with Niigaki himself playing the solo part under the baton of young conductor Kunihiro Nakamura), and a short and pastoral tone poem called "Green Floating Eternally".
The style is largely unchanged from his Samuragochi days - so if you liked the Hiroshima symphony, you'll like this - it's tonal though adventurous, late-romantic music that neatly disregards almost all of the nasty "conventions" that have over the past one hundred years conspired to kill classical music. It's very "paint by numbers" - it takes very few risks and doesn't try to reinvent the wheel - but I find it highly professional and overall a worthwhile listen. Though a chamber orchestra is credited with the performance, make no mistake - this is fully-throated, symphonic music played by a large ensemble. The performance itself (recorded live) is excellent as is the sound quality. The composer himself conducts the symphony and the tone poem, whilst Nakamura takes the podium for the concerto in order that the composer plays the solo part.
The "Hiroshima" symphony is now unavailable as Samuragochi's record label deleted it immediately following his confession. It can be downloaded here: Thread 57893
Enjoy! :)
TT
Symphony "Litany" (unofficially Symphony No. 2)
Piano Concerto "Rebirth"
Green Floating Eternally
Tokyo Chamber Orchestra
Takashi Niigaki, piano
conducted by Takashi Niigaki (Symphony, Green Floating Eternally)
conducted by Kunihiro Nakamura (Piano Concerto)
https://mega.nz/#!M4Qz2BaI!p4KKRkxafqUkL9Pxh6cZ-WxAjfbMDguFvSxNamigrw8
By now, I'm sure every musically-inclined person on the planet is aware of the sad tale of Mamoru Samuragochi - the famous deaf Japanese composer who penned a behemoth symphony in tribute to the victims of the Hiroshima bomb, but turned out to be a manipulative liar who paid Takashi Niigaki a pittance to write his music, and threatened to kill himself and his wife if Niigaki revealed the deception.
At the time, it looked like curtains not only for Samuragochi's career for also for the career of Niigaki - but thankfully public sympathy shifted to the underdog and Niigaki fashioned a career as a composer under his own steam.
(In the sleeve notes for the Hiroshima symphony, a thoroughly-duped Seiji Choki writes that Samuragochi had written TWELVE symphonies previously but destroyed them (presumably) in a fit of artistic perfectionism with the view of making the "Hiroshima" symphony his first official opus.)
This recent release showcases three new symphonic works; a symphony (which was at one point sniffily entitled "Symphony No. 2" but now carries only the title "Litany", a piano concerto (entitled "Rebirth" - with Niigaki himself playing the solo part under the baton of young conductor Kunihiro Nakamura), and a short and pastoral tone poem called "Green Floating Eternally".
The style is largely unchanged from his Samuragochi days - so if you liked the Hiroshima symphony, you'll like this - it's tonal though adventurous, late-romantic music that neatly disregards almost all of the nasty "conventions" that have over the past one hundred years conspired to kill classical music. It's very "paint by numbers" - it takes very few risks and doesn't try to reinvent the wheel - but I find it highly professional and overall a worthwhile listen. Though a chamber orchestra is credited with the performance, make no mistake - this is fully-throated, symphonic music played by a large ensemble. The performance itself (recorded live) is excellent as is the sound quality. The composer himself conducts the symphony and the tone poem, whilst Nakamura takes the podium for the concerto in order that the composer plays the solo part.
The "Hiroshima" symphony is now unavailable as Samuragochi's record label deleted it immediately following his confession. It can be downloaded here: Thread 57893
Enjoy! :)
TT