was a Japanese ''

shakuhachi A is a Japanese and ancient Chinese longitudinal, end-blown flute that is made of bamboo. The bamboo end-blown flute now known as the was developed in Japan in the 16th century and is called the .

'' player. He became well-known for using the ''shakuhachi'' to play jazz music, which was influential on popularizing the instrument in contemporary Japanese music.

Life and career

Minoru Muraoka was born in 1923 in Yamada, Japan. Muraoka learned from folk singer Tansui Kikuchi to play folk songs in the classical style of Nakao Tozan on the ''

'', a Japanese end-blown flute. He worked in the editorial department of Zen-On Music Company until 1959. In 1962, Muraoka joined a ''shakuhachi'' trio called Shakuhachi San-Jyuso-dan, together with Katsuya Yokoyama and Kohachiro Miyata, with the aim of popularizing the instrument. In 1964, he went on to become a freelancer and recording artist, and had several popular songs in Japan such as "Ju", "Oyaji no Umi", and "Yosaku". He also played ''shakuhachi'' on Hibari Misora's Japan Record Award-winning song "Soft". Muraoka released ''Harlem Nocturne'', one of the first ''shakuhachi'' jazz albums, through

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

in 1967. In the late 1960s, as part of the group The Life Theaters, he released the album ''Shakuhachi Rock''. Muraoka recorded and privately released his live album ''Osorezan'', which was dedicated to Mount Osore, in April 1970. It was reissued through Yupiteru Records in 1976 as ''Osorezan Suite''. His next album, ''Bamboo'', was released later that year as part of the "New Emotional Work Series" for United Artists, and later reissued in 2019 through Mr Bongo Records. He formed the group the New Dimensions in 1970, who released 11 albums, including 1972's ''Yuri Furi Suri''. He released the album ''So'' in 1973, and he and the New Dimensions collaborated with jazz flautist Herbie Mann on his album ''

Gagaku & Beyond ''Gagaku & Beyond'' is an album by jazz flautist Herbie Mann featuring shakuhachi player Minoru Muraoka which was recorded in Japan in 1974 but only released on Atlantic Records' subsidiary label, Finnadar, in 1976.Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

subsidiary label Finnadar. Muraoka died on 2 January 2014 at 90 years old due to multiple organ failure.

Musical style

Muraoka's music was mostly jazz, but included elements from a variety of other genres, including folk,

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

, rock, psychedelia, enka, and free jazz. He first started playing jazz music with the ''shakuhachi'' in the late 1950s, and his music has been considered influential on popularizing the ''shakuhachi'' in contemporary Japanese music. His 1967 album ''Shakuhachi Rock'' was his first foray into jazz-rock, while his 1970 album ''Bamboo'' combined jazz-funk with

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

. Other instruments used in Muraoka's music, specifically with his group the New Dimensions, were electric bass, organ, '' shō'', '' shinobue'', ''

koto Koto may refer to: * Koto (band), an Italian synth pop group * Koto (instrument), a Japanese musical instrument * Koto (kana), a ligature of two Japanese katakana * Koto (traditional clothing), a traditional dress made by Afro-Surinamese women * ...

'', ''

shamisen The , also known as the or (all meaning "three strings"), is a three-stringed traditional Japanese musical instrument derived from the Chinese instrument . It is played with a plectrum called a bachi. The Japanese pronunciation is usual ...

'', and '' taiko''. Muraoka's music was described by Now-Again Records founder Egon as "haunting, difficult-to-compare music that you file as 'jazz' only by default."

References

Shakuhachi players Jazz fusion musicians 2014 deaths Japanese jazz musicians Columbia Records artists RCA Victor artists Teichiku Records artists United Artists Records artists King Records (Japan) artists Mr Bongo Records artists Pony Canyon artists Polydor Records artists Musicians from Iwate Prefecture 1923 births Japanese folk musicians {{Japan-musician-stub