was a prolific

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

composer.

Life and career

Born in Tokyo, she studied at the

Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music or is the most prestigious art school in Japan. Located in Ueno Park, it also has facilities in Toride, Ibaraki, Yokohama, Kanagawa, and Kitasenju and Adachi, Tokyo. The university has trained renowned artists in the fields of painting, scul ...

with Tomojiro Ikenouchi, graduating in 1957. She subsequently went to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

where she studied with

Henri Dutilleux Henri Paul Julien Dutilleux (; 22 January 1916 – 22 May 2013) was a French composer active mainly in the second half of the 20th century. His small body of published work, which garnered international acclaim, followed in the tradition of ...

and

Alexander Tcherepnin Alexander Nikolayevich Tcherepnin (russian: Алекса́ндр Никола́евич Черепни́н, link=no; 21 January 1899 – 29 September 1977) was a Russian-born composer and pianist. His father, Nikolai Tcherepnin (pupil of Nikol ...

. After that she returned to Japan to teach at the Osaka University of Music. Between 1978 and 1999 she wrote 18 operas, many of them performed in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

by the Nihon Opera Kyokai or the Nikikai Opera. One work was performed in Italy. In general, she has preferred Japanese subjects; exceptions include her second opera about

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

and an opera based on

Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...

's ''

Crime and Punishment ''Crime and Punishment'' ( pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform rus, Преступление и наказание, Prestupléniye i nakazániye, prʲɪstʊˈplʲenʲɪje ɪ nəkɐˈzanʲɪje) is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. ...

'' written for a large-scale production at the

New National Theatre, Tokyo The is Japan's first and foremost national centre for the performing arts, including opera, ballet, contemporary dance and drama. It is located in the Shinjuku area of Tokyo. Since 1997 more than 650 productions were staged. There are about 300 pe ...

in 1999. She died of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

on 30 November 2014.

Operas

* ''The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes (Confession)'' after

Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for ''A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Hol ...

(1981) * ''Iwai Uta ga Nagareru Yoruni'' (1984) * ''Shita wo Kamikitta Onna'' (1986) * ''Sute Hime'' (1989) * ''Yosakoi Bushi'' (1990) * ''Petro Kibe'' (1991) * ''Tsumi to batsu (Crime and Punishment)'' after

(1999)

Other works

*''Sonatine'' for piano (1957) *''Preludio, aria e toccata'' for guitar (1970)

Recordings

*''Yosakoi Bushi'' has been recorded and published on Laserdisc.

References

Sources

*Holledge, Simon
"Hara Kazuko: Crime and Punishment, 19th June 1999"
''Opera Japonica'' *
Biographical note for Daniel Quinn recital, accessed 20 January 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hara, Kazuko 1935 births 2014 deaths 20th-century classical composers 20th-century Japanese composers 20th-century women composers 21st-century classical composers 21st-century Japanese musicians 21st-century women composers Japanese classical composers Japanese women classical composers Japanese opera composers Pupils of Henri Dutilleux Tokyo University of the Arts alumni Women opera composers