is a Japanese composer, pianist, singer, record producer and actor who has pursued a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of
Yellow Magic Orchestra
Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO for short) is a Japanese electronic music band formed in Tokyo in 1978 by Haruomi Hosono (bass, keyboards, vocals), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums, lead vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards, vocals). The group is cons ...
(YMO). With his bandmates
Haruomi Hosono
, sometimes credited as Harry Hosono, is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is considered to be one of the most influential musicians in Japanese pop music history, credited with shaping the sound of Japanese pop f ...
and
Yukihiro Takahashi
Yukihiro Takahashi (高橋 幸宏 ''Takahashi Yukihiro'', born June 6, 1952) is a Japanese musician, singer, record producer and actor, who is best known internationally as the drummer and lead vocalist of the Yellow Magic Orchestra, and as the fo ...
, Sakamoto influenced and pioneered a number of
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...
genres.
Sakamoto began his career while at university in the 1970s as a session musician, producer, and arranger. His first major success came in 1978 as co-founder of YMO. He concurrently pursued a solo career, releasing the
experimental
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when ...
electronic
fusion
Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole.
Fusion may also refer to:
Science and technology Physics
*Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...
album ''
Thousand Knives'' in 1978. Two years later, he released the album ''B-2 Unit''. It included the track "Riot in Lagos", which was significant in the development of
electro and
hip hop music.
He went on to produce more solo records, and collaborate with many international artists,
David Sylvian
David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly ...
,
Carsten Nicolai
Carsten Nicolai (18 September 1965), also known as Alva Noto, is a German musician and visual artist. He is a member of the music groups Diamond Version with Olaf Bender (Byetone), Signal with Frank Bretschneider and Olaf Bender, Cyclo with Ry ...
,
Youssou N'Dour
Youssou N'Dour (, wo, Yuusu Nduur; also known as Youssou Madjiguène Ndour; born 1 October 1959) is a Senegalese singer, songwriter, musician, composer, occasional actor, businessman, and politician. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine describe ...
, and
Fennesz
Christian Fennesz (born 25 December 1962) is an Austrian producer and guitarist active in electronic music since the 1990s, often credited simply by his last name. His work utilizes guitar and laptop computers to blend melody with treated sample ...
among them. Sakamoto composed music for the opening ceremony of the 1992
Barcelona Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...
, and his composition "Energy Flow" (1999) was the first
instrumental
An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instru ...
number-one single in Japan's
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...
charts history.
As a
film-score composer, Sakamoto has won an
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology) ...
, a
BAFTA, a
Grammy
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
, and 2
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...
s.
''
Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
, also known in many European editions as , is a 1983 war film co-written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima, co-written by Paul Mayersberg, and produced by Jeremy Thomas. The film is based on the experiences of Sir Laurens van der Post (portrayed b ...
'' (1983) marked his debut as both an actor and a film-score composer; its main theme was adapted into the single "
Forbidden Colours
"Forbidden Colours" is a 1983 song by David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto. The song is the vocal version of the theme from the Nagisa Oshima film ''Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.'' It appears on the film's soundtrack album and was released as a s ...
" which became an international hit. His most successful work as a film composer was ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (1987),
after which he continued earning accolades composing for films such as ''
The Sheltering Sky
''The Sheltering Sky'' is a 1949 novel of alienation and existential despair by American writer and composer Paul Bowles.
Plot
The story centers on Port Moresby and his wife Kit, a married couple originally from New York who travel to the Nor ...
'' (1990), ''
Little Buddha
''Little Buddha'' is a 1993 drama film directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, written by Rudy Wurlitzer and Mark Peploe, and produced by usual Bertolucci collaborator Jeremy Thomas. An international co-production of Italy, France, and the United Kingdom, ...
'' (1993), and ''
The Revenant'' (2015). On occasion, Sakamoto has also worked as a composer and a
scenario writer on
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
and
video games
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
. In 2009, he was awarded the
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...
from the
Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to:
*Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania)
* Ministry of Culture (Algeria)
*Ministry of Culture (Argentina)
*Minister for the Arts (Australia)
*Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)
* Ministry of ...
of France for his contributions to music.
Career
1970s
Sakamoto entered 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 ...
in 1970,
earning a B.A. in
music composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called c ...
and an
M.A.
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
with special emphasis on both electronic and
ethnic music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
. He studied
ethnomusicology
Ethnomusicology is the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it. It encompasses distinct theoretical and methodical approaches that emphasize cultural, social, material, cognitive, biological, and other dim ...
there with the intention of becoming a researcher in the field, due to his interest in various
world music traditions, particularly the
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 ...
(especially
Okinawan),
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
and
African musical traditions. He was also trained in
classical music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...
and began experimenting with the
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...
equipment available at the university, including synthesizers such as the
Buchla,
Moog, and
ARP.
One of Sakamoto's classical influences was
Claude Debussy
(Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...
, who he described as his "hero" and stated that "
Asian music
Asian music encompasses numerous musical styles originating in many Asian countries.
Musical traditions in Asia
* Music of Central Asia
** Music of Afghanistan (when included in the definition of Central Asia)
** Music of Kazakhstan
** Music ...
heavily influenced Debussy, and Debussy heavily influenced me. So, the music goes around the world and comes full circle."
In 1975, Sakamoto collaborated with percussionist Tsuchitori Toshiyuki to release ''Disappointment-Hateruma''. After working as a session musician with
Haruomi Hosono
, sometimes credited as Harry Hosono, is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is considered to be one of the most influential musicians in Japanese pop music history, credited with shaping the sound of Japanese pop f ...
and
Yukihiro Takahashi
Yukihiro Takahashi (高橋 幸宏 ''Takahashi Yukihiro'', born June 6, 1952) is a Japanese musician, singer, record producer and actor, who is best known internationally as the drummer and lead vocalist of the Yellow Magic Orchestra, and as the fo ...
in 1977,
the trio formed the internationally successful
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...
band
Yellow Magic Orchestra
Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO for short) is a Japanese electronic music band formed in Tokyo in 1978 by Haruomi Hosono (bass, keyboards, vocals), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums, lead vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards, vocals). The group is cons ...
(YMO) in 1978. Known for their seminal influence on electronic music, the group helped pioneer
electronic genres such as
electropop/technopop,
synthpop
Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...
,
cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting that tends to focus on a "combination of lowlife and high tech", featuring futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cyber ...
music,
ambient house
Ambient house is a downtempo subgenre of house music that first emerged in the late 1980s, combining elements of acid house and ambient music. The genre developed in chill-out rooms and specialist clubs as part of the UK's dance music scene. It ...
,
and
electronica
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to r ...
.
The group's work has had a lasting influence across genres, ranging from
hip hop and
techno
Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...
to
acid house
Acid house (also simply known as just "acid") is a subgenre of house music developed around the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined primarily by the squelching sounds and basslines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synthesiz ...
and general
melodic music
A melody (from Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combinat ...
. Sakamoto was the songwriter and composer for a number of the band's hit songs—including "
Yellow Magic (Tong Poo)" (1978), "
Technopolis" (1979), "
Nice Age" (1980), "
Ongaku
''Ongaku'' (音楽; literally ''Music'') is the sixth studio album by Japanese rock band Tokyo Jihen, released on 9 June 2021 through EMI Records. The album was produced by the band and recording engineer Uni Inoue.
Background
Tokyo Jihen had ...
" (1983) and "
You've Got to Help Yourself" (1983)—while playing keyboards for many of their other songs, including international hits such as "
Computer Game/Firecracker" (1978) and "
Rydeen" (1979). He also sang on several songs, such as "
Kimi ni Mune Kyun" (1983). Sakamoto's composition "
Technopolis" (1979) was credited as a contribution to the development of
techno
Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...
music,
while the internationally successful "
Behind the Mask" (1978)—a synthpop song in which he sang vocals through a
vocoder
A vocoder (, a portmanteau of ''voice'' and ''encoder'') is a category of speech coding that analyzes and synthesizes the human voice signal for audio data compression, multiplexing, voice encryption or voice transformation.
The vocoder was ...
—was later
covered
Cover or covers may refer to:
Packaging
* Another name for a lid
* Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package
* Album cover, the front of the packaging
* Book cover or magazine cover
** Book design
** Back cover copy, part of co ...
by a number of international artists, including
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
and
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...
.
Sakamoto released his first solo album ''
Thousand Knives of Ryūichi Sakamoto'' in mid-1978 with the help of
Hideki Matsutake
Hideki Matsutake (born August 12, 1951 in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan) is a Japanese composer, arranger, and computer programmer. He is known for his pioneering work in electronic music and particularly music programming, as the assis ...
—Hosono also contributed to the song "Thousand Knives". The album experimented with different styles, such as "Thousand Knives" and "The End of Asia"—in which electronic music was
fused with traditional
Japanese music
In Japan, music includes a wide array of distinct genres, both traditional and modern. The word for "music" in Japanese is 音楽 (''ongaku''), combining the kanji 音 ''on'' (sound) with the kanji 楽 ''gaku'' (music, comfort). Japan is the world ...
—while "Grasshoppers" is a more
minimalistic piano song. The album was recorded from April to July 1978 with a variety of
electronic musical instrument
An electronic musical instrument or electrophone is a musical instrument that produces sound using electronic circuitry. Such an instrument sounds by outputting an electrical, electronic or digital audio signal that ultimately is plugged into ...
s, including various synthesizers, such as the
KORG PS-3100, a
polyphonic synthesizer
Polyphony is a property of musical instruments that means that they can play multiple independent melody lines simultaneously. Instruments featuring polyphony are said to be polyphonic. Instruments that are not capable of polyphony are monophoni ...
; the
Oberheim Eight-Voice; the
Moog III-C; the
Polymoog
The Polymoog is a hybrid polyphony (instrument), polyphonic analog synthesizer that was manufactured by Moog Music from 1975 to 1980. The Polymoog was based on Frequency divider, divide-down oscillator technology similar to electronic organs an ...
, the
Minimoog
The Minimoog is an analog synthesizer first manufactured by Moog Music between 1970 and 1981. Designed as a more affordable, portable version of the modular Moog synthesizer, it was the first synthesizer sold in retail stores. It was first popul ...
; the
Micromoog
The Moog model 2090 Micromoog is a monophonic analog synthesizer produced by Moog Music from 1975 to 1979.
During 1973 and 1974, Moog attempted to produce a synth system, possibly as a result of seeing Yamaha's massive GX-1. The bass and pol ...
; the
Korg VC-10
The Korg VC-10 is an analogue vocoder which Korg launched in 1978. Vocoding refers to voice encoding of speech and singing with musical synthesis. It gained popularity in the 1970s following utilisation by bands such as Kraftwerk and Electric Ligh ...
, which is a vocoder; the
KORG SQ-10, which is an
analog sequencer
An analog sequencer is a music sequencer constructed from analog (analogue) electronics, invented in the first half of the 20th century.
Raymond Scott designed and constructed some of the first electro-mechanical music sequencers in the 1940s. T ...
; the
Syn-Drums, an
electronic drum
Electronic drums is a modern electronic musical instrument, primarily designed to serve as an alternative to an acoustic drum kit. Electronic drums consist of an electronic sound module which produces the synthesized or sampled percussion sounds ...
kit; and the
microprocessor
A microprocessor is a computer processor where the data processing logic and control is included on a single integrated circuit, or a small number of integrated circuits. The microprocessor contains the arithmetic, logic, and control circu ...
-based
Roland MC-8 Microcomposer
The Roland MC-8 MicroComposer by the Roland Corporation was introduced in early 1977 at a list price of US$4,795 (¥1,200,000 JPY). It was one of the earliest stand-alone microprocessor-driven CV/Gate music sequencers, following EMS '' Sequencer ...
, which is a
music sequencer
A music sequencer (or audio sequencer or simply sequencer) is a device or application software that can record, edit, or play back music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically CV/Gate, MIDI, or Open Sound Cont ...
that was programmed by Matsutake and played by Sakamoto. A version of the song "Thousand Knives" was released on the Yellow Magic Orchestra's 1981 album ''
BGM''. This version was one of the earliest uses of the
Roland TR-808 drum machine, for YMO's live performance of "1000 Knives" in 1980 and their ''BGM'' album release in 1981.
1980s
In 1980, Sakamoto released the solo album ''B-2 Unit'', which has been referred to as his "edgiest" record
and is known for the electronic song "Riot in Lagos",
which is considered an early example of
electro music (electro-funk),
as Sakamoto anticipated the beats and sounds of electro.
Early electro and hip hop artists, such as
Afrika Bambaata and
Kurtis Mantronik
Kurtis el Khaleel (born Graham Curtis el Khaleel, September 4, 1965), known by the stage name Kurtis Mantronik, is a Jamaican-born hip hop and electronic-music artist, DJ, remixer, and producer. He was the leader, DJ, and keyboardist of the inf ...
, were influenced by the album—especially "Riot in Lagos"—with Mantronik citing the work as a major influence on his electro hip hop group
Mantronix
Mantronix was an influential 1980s hip hop and electro funk music group from New York City. The band was formed by DJ Kurtis Mantronik (Kurtis el Khaleel) and rapper MC Tee (Touré Embden). The group is primarily remembered for its pioneering ...
.
"Riot in Lagos" was later included in
Playgroup's
compilation album
A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...
''Kings of Electro'' (2007), alongside other significant electro compositions, such as
Hashim
Hashim ( ar, هاشم) is a common male Arabic given name.
Hashim may also refer to:
*Hashim Amir Ali
*Hashim (poet)
*Hashim Amla
*Hashim Thaçi
*Hashim Khan
* Hashim Qureshi
* Mir Hashim Ali Khan
*Hashim al-Atassi
*Hashim ibn Abd Manaf
*Hashim ib ...
's "Al-Naafyish" (1983).
According to ''Dusted Magazine'', Sakamoto's use of squelching
bounce
Bounce or The Bounce may refer to:
* Deflection (physics), the event where an object Collision, collides with and bounces against a plane surface
Books
* Mr. Bounce, a character from the Mr. Men series of children's books
Broadcasting, film and ...
sounds and mechanical
beats was later incorporated in early electro and
hip hop music productions, such as “
Message II (Survival)” (1982), by
Melle Mel
Melvin Glover (born May 15, 1961 in The Bronx), better known by his stage name Grandmaster Melle Mel (or simply Melle Mel) () is an American hip hop recording artist who was the lead vocalist and songwriter of Grandmaster Flash and the Furiou ...
and
Duke Bootee
Edward Gernel Fletcher, known by his stage name Duke Bootee (June 6, 1951 – January 13, 2021) was an American early record producer and rapper.
His best known single, " The Message", was released in 1982 on Sugar Hill Records. The hit song fe ...
; “
Magic's Wand” (1982), by
Whodini
Whodini is an American hip hop group that was formed in 1982. The Brooklyn, New York-based trio consisted of vocalist and main lyricist Jalil Hutchins; co-vocalist John Fletcher, a.k.a. Ecstasy (who wore a Zorro-style hat as his trademark; J ...
and
Thomas Dolby
Thomas Morgan Robertson (born 14 October 1958), known by the stage name Thomas Dolby, is an English musician, producer, composer, entrepreneur and teacher.
Dolby came to prominence in the 1980s, releasing hit singles including "She Blinded Me ...
; Twilight 22's “Electric Kingdom” (1983); and Kurt Mantronik's ''
Mantronix: The Album'' (1985). The 1980 release of "Riot in Lagos" was listed by ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' in 2011 as one of the 50 key events in the history of
dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...
.
Among other tracks on ''B-2 Unit'', "Differencia" has, according to ''
Fact'', "relentless tumbling beats and a stabbing
bass synth that foreshadows
jungle
A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century.
Etymology
The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''ja ...
by nearly a decade". Some tracks on the album also foreshadow genres such as
IDM,
broken beat
Broken beat (sometimes referred to as "bruk") is an electronic dance music genre characterized by syncopated beats and tense rhythms, including staggered or punctuated snare beats and/or hand claps. It has been heavily influenced by styles such a ...
, and
industrial techno
Industrial techno is a subgenre of techno and industrial dance music that originated in the 1990s. Characteristically, it incorporates influences from the bleak, noisy sound and aesthetics of early industrial music acts, particularly Cabaret Volt ...
, and the work of producers such as
Actress
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...
and
Oneohtrix Point Never
Daniel Lopatin (born July 25, 1982), best known as Oneohtrix Point Never or OPN, is an American experimental electronic music producer, composer, singer and songwriter. His music has experimented with tropes from various music genres and eras, s ...
. For several tracks on the album, Sakamoto worked with UK
reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...
producer
Dennis Bovell, incorporating elements of
afrobeat
Afrobeat is a Nigerian music genre that involves the combination of West African musical styles (such as traditional Yoruba music and highlife) and American funk, jazz, and soul influences, with a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersectin ...
and
dub music.
Also in 1980, Sakamoto released the single "War Head/Lexington Queen", an experimental
synthpop
Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...
and electro record, and began a long-standing collaboration with
David Sylvian
David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly ...
, when he co-wrote and performed on the
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
track "Taking Islands In Africa". In the following year, Sakamoto collaborated with
Talking Heads
Talking Heads were an American rock band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991.[Talkin ...](_blank)
and
King Crimson
King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...
guitarist
Adrian Belew
Robert Steven "Adrian" Belew (born December 23, 1949) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. A multi-instrumentalist primarily known as a guitarist and singer, he is noted for his unusual and impressionistic approach to ...
and
Robin Scott for an album titled ''Left-Handed Dream''. Following Japan's dissolution, Sakamoto worked on another collaboration with Sylvian, a single entitled "
Bamboo Houses/Bamboo Music" in 1982. Sakamoto's 1980 collaboration with
Kiyoshiro Imawano
, born , was a Japanese rock musician, lyricist, composer, musical producer, and actor from Tokyo, Japan. He was dubbed "Japan's King of Rock". He formed and led the influential rock band RC Succession. He wrote many anti-nuclear songs followin ...
, "Ikenai Rouge Magic", topped the
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...
singles chart.
In 1983, Sakamoto starred alongside
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
in director
Nagisa Oshima
NaGISA (Natural Geography in Shore Areas or Natural Geography of In-Shore Areas) is an international collaborative effort aimed at inventorying, cataloguing, and monitoring biodiversity of the in-shore area. So named for the Japanese word "nagisa ...
's ''
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
, also known in many European editions as , is a 1983 war film co-written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima, co-written by Paul Mayersberg, and produced by Jeremy Thomas. The film is based on the experiences of Sir Laurens van der Post (portrayed b ...
''. In addition to acting in the film, Sakamoto also composed the film's musical score and again collaborated with Sylvian on the film's main theme ("
Forbidden Colours
"Forbidden Colours" is a 1983 song by David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto. The song is the vocal version of the theme from the Nagisa Oshima film ''Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.'' It appears on the film's soundtrack album and was released as a s ...
") – which became a minor hit. In a 2016 interview, Sakamoto reflected on his time acting in the film, claiming that he "hung out" with Bowie every evening for a month while filming on location. He remembered Bowie as "straightforward" and "nice", while also lamenting the fact that he never mustered the courage to ask for Bowie's help while scoring the film's soundtrack as he believed Bowie was too "concentrated on acting".
Sakamoto released a number of solo albums during the 1980s. While primarily focused on the piano and synthesizer, this series of albums included collaborations with artists such as Sylvian,
David Byrne
David Byrne (; born 14 May 1952) is a Scottish-American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, writer, music theorist, visual artist and filmmaker. He was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of ...
,
Thomas Dolby
Thomas Morgan Robertson (born 14 October 1958), known by the stage name Thomas Dolby, is an English musician, producer, composer, entrepreneur and teacher.
Dolby came to prominence in the 1980s, releasing hit singles including "She Blinded Me ...
,
Nam June Paik
Nam June Paik (; July 20, 1932 – January 29, 2006) was a Korean American artist. He worked with a variety of media and is considered to be the founder of video art. He is credited with the first use (1974) of the term "electronic super hi ...
, and
Iggy Pop
James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...
. Sakamoto would alternated between exploring a variety of musical styles and focusing on a specific subject or theme, such as the Italian
Futurism
Futurism ( it, Futurismo, link=no) was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy, and to a lesser extent in other countries, in the early 20th century. It emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such ...
movement.
As his solo career began to extend outside Japan in the late 1980s, Sakamoto's explorations, influences and collaborators also developed further. ''
Beauty
Beauty is commonly described as a feature of objects that makes these objects pleasurable to perceive. Such objects include landscapes, sunsets, humans and works of art. Beauty, together with art and taste, is the main subject of aesthetics, o ...
'' (1989) features a track list that combines pop with traditional Japanese and
Okinawan songs, as well as guest appearances by
Jill Jones
Jill Jones (born July 11, 1962) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress, who performed as a backing vocalist for Teena Marie and Prince in the 1980s.
Overview
Jones was born in Lebanon, Ohio on July 11, 1962. Her mother, a fashion model ...
,
Robert Wyatt
Robert Wyatt (born Robert Wyatt-Ellidge, 28 January 1945) is a retired English musician. A founding member of the influential Canterbury scene bands Soft Machine and Matching Mole, he was initially a kit drummer and singer before becoming para ...
,
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...
and
Robbie Robertson. ''
Heartbeat'' (1991) and ''Sweet Revenge'' (1994) features Sakamoto's collaborations with a global range of artists such as
Roddy Frame
Roddy Frame (born 29 January 1964) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. He was the founder of the 1980s new wave band Aztec Camera and has undertaken a solo career since the group's dissolution. In November 2013, journalist Brian Do ...
, Dee Dee Brave, Marco Prince,
Arto Lindsay
Arthur Morgan "Arto" Lindsay (born May 28, 1953) is an American guitarist, singer, record producer and experimental composer. He was a member of the pioneering 1970s no wave group DNA, which featured on the 1978 compilation '' No New York''. I ...
,
Youssou N'Dour
Youssou N'Dour (, wo, Yuusu Nduur; also known as Youssou Madjiguène Ndour; born 1 October 1959) is a Senegalese singer, songwriter, musician, composer, occasional actor, businessman, and politician. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine describe ...
,
David Sylvian
David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly ...
and
Ingrid Chavez
Ingrid Julia Chavez (born 1965) is an American singer-songwriter, poet, actress, and visual artist.
Early life
Chavez was born on January 21, 1965, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and raised in Marietta, Georgia. She is of Mexican-American descent. ...
.
1990s
In 1995 Sakamoto released ''Smoochy'', described by the ''Sound On Sound'' website as Sakamoto's "excursion into the land of easy-listening and Latin", followed by the ''
1996'' album, which featured a number of previously released pieces arranged for solo piano, violin and cello.
During December 1996 Sakamoto, composed the entirety of an hour-long orchestral work entitled "Untitled 01" and released as the album ''Discord'' (1998).
The
Sony Classical
Sony Classical is an American record label founded in 1924 as Columbia Masterworks Records, a subsidiary of Columbia Records. In 1980, the Columbia Masterworks label was renamed as CBS Masterworks Records. The CBS Records Group was acquired by ...
release of ''Discord'' was sold in a
jewel case
Optical disc packaging is the packaging that accompanies CDs, DVDs, and other formats of optical discs. Most packaging is rigid or semi-rigid and designed to protect the media from scratches and other types of exposure damage.
Jewel case
...
that was covered by a blue-colored
slipcase
A slipcase is a five-sided box, usually made of high-quality cardboard, into which binders, books or book sets are ''slipped'' for protection, leaving the spine exposed. Special editions of books are often slipcased for a stylish appearance when ...
made of
foil
Foil may refer to:
Materials
* Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine
* Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal
* Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food
* Tin foil, metal foil ...
, while the CD also contained a data video track. In 1998 the
Ninja Tune
Ninja Tune is an English independent record label based in London. It has a satellite office in Los Angeles. It was founded by Matt Black and Jonathan More (better known as Coldcut) and managed by Peter Quicke and others.
Inspired by a visit ...
record label released the ''Prayer/Salvation Remixes'', for which prominent electronica artists such as Ashley Beedle and Andrea Parker remixed sections from the "Prayer" and "Salvation" parts of ''Discord''. Sakamoto collaborated primarily with guitarist David Torn and
DJ Spooky
Paul Dennis Miller (born September 6, 1970), known professionally as DJ Spooky, That Subliminal Kid, is an American electronic and experimental hip hop musician whose work is often called by critics "illbient" or "trip hop". He is a turntabli ...
—artist
Laurie Anderson
Laurel Philips Anderson (born June 5, 1947), known as Laurie Anderson, is an American avant-garde artist, composer, musician, and film director whose work spans performance art, pop music, and multimedia projects. Initially trained in violin and ...
provides spoken word on the composition—and the recording was condensed from nine live performances of the work, recorded during a Japanese tour. ''Discord'' was divided into four parts: "Grief", "Anger", "Prayer" and "Salvation"; Sakamoto explained in 1998 that he was "not religious, but maybe spiritual" and "The Prayer is to anybody or anything you want to name." Sakamoto further explained:
In 1998, Italian ethnomusicologist
Massimo Milano Massimo Milano (born Torino, 1967) is an ethnomusicologist, critic and sound experimentalist.
Member of "A.I.STU.GIA" (Italian Association for Japanese Studies, Venice) and of the International Jury of the Down Beat Annual Critics Poll (USA), he ...
published ''
Ryuichi Sakamoto. Conversazioni'' through the Padova, Arcana imprint. All three editions of the book were published in the
Italian language
Italian (''italiano'' or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. Together with Sardinian, Italian is the least divergent language from Latin. Spoken by about 85 m ...
. Sakamoto's next album, ''
BTTB
BTCL or Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited is the largest telecommunications company in Bangladesh. The company was founded as the Bangladesh Telegraph & Telephone Board (BTTB) following Bangladesh's independence in 1971. On July 1, 2008 ...
'' (1998)—an
acronym
An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...
for "Back to the Basics"—was a fairly opaque reaction to the prior year's multilayered, lushly orchestrated ''Discord''. The album comprised a series of original pieces on solo piano, including "Energy Flow" (a major hit in Japan) and a frenetic, four-hand arrangement of the Yellow Magic Orchestra classic "Tong Poo". On the ''BTTB'' U.S. tour, he opened the show performing a brief
avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
DJ set under the stage name DJ Lovegroove.
Sakamoto's long-awaited "opera" ''LIFE'' was released in 1999, with visual direction by
Shiro Takatani
is a Japanese artist. He currently lives and works in Kyoto.
Co-founder and visual creator of the group Dumb Type since 1984, he also became artistic director of the group from 1995 and also started an active solo career in 1998.
Biography
...
, artistic director of
Dumb Type
Dumb Type is an artist collective based in Kyoto, Japan founded in 1984.
Dumb Type is a group of creative art forms that express the new and daily life of the twentieth century modern and technological world of Japan. During the 1980s Dumb Type ...
. It premiered with seven sold-out performances in Tokyo and Osaka. This ambitious multi-genre multi-media project featured contributions by over 100 performers, including
Pina Bausch
Philippine "Pina" Bausch (27 July 1940 – 30 June 2009) was a German dancer and choreographer who was a significant contributor to a neo-expressionist dance tradition now known as . Bausch's approach was noted for a stylized blend of dance m ...
,
Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci (; 16 March 1941 – 26 November 2018) was an Italian film director and screenwriter with a career that spanned 50 years. Considered one of the greatest directors in Italian cinema, Bertolucci's work achieved international ...
,
Josep Carreras,
the Dalai Lama
, coatofarms =
, coatofarms_article =
, coatofarms_link =
, incumbent = Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
, incumbentsince = 22 February 1940
, image = Dalailama1 20121014 4639.jpg
, caption = Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
, first = Ge ...
and
Salman Rushdie
Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie (; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British-American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern and Wes ...
.
2000s
![Keigo Oyamada and Ryuichi Sakamoto](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Keigo_Oyamada_and_Ryuichi_Sakamoto.jpg)
Sakamoto teamed with cellist
Jaques Morelenbaum
Jaques Morelenbaum (() born 18 May 1954) is a Brazilian instrumentalist, arranger, conductor, composer and music producer.
Morelenbaum was born in Rio de Janeiro, the son of conductor Henrique Morelenbaum and piano teacher Sarah Morelenbaum. Hi ...
(a member of his ''1996'' trio), and Morelenbaum's wife,
Paula, on a pair of albums celebrating the work of
bossa nova
Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...
pioneer
Antonio Carlos Jobim
Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular ma ...
. They recorded their first album, ''Casa'' (2001), mostly in Jobim's home studio in
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, with Sakamoto performing on the late Jobim's grand piano. The album was well received, having been included in the list of ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''s top albums of 2002. A live album, ''Live in Tokyo'', and a second album, ''A Day in New York'', soon followed. Sakamoto and the Morelenbaums would also collaborate on N.M.L. No More Landmine, an international effort to raise awareness for the removal of landmines. The trio would release the single "Zero Landmine", which also featured
David Sylvian
David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly ...
,
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...
,
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk (, "power station") is a German band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the ...
,
Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper Thornton (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album ''She's So Unusual'' (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achi ...
, and
Haruomi Hosono
, sometimes credited as Harry Hosono, is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is considered to be one of the most influential musicians in Japanese pop music history, credited with shaping the sound of Japanese pop f ...
&
Yukihiro Takahashi
Yukihiro Takahashi (高橋 幸宏 ''Takahashi Yukihiro'', born June 6, 1952) is a Japanese musician, singer, record producer and actor, who is best known internationally as the drummer and lead vocalist of the Yellow Magic Orchestra, and as the fo ...
, the other two founding members of
Yellow Magic Orchestra
Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO for short) is a Japanese electronic music band formed in Tokyo in 1978 by Haruomi Hosono (bass, keyboards, vocals), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums, lead vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards, vocals). The group is cons ...
, amongst nearly one hundred other performers.
Sakamoto collaborated with
Alva Noto
Carsten Nicolai (18 September 1965), also known as Alva Noto, is a German musician and visual artist. He is a member of the music groups Diamond Version with Olaf Bender (Byetone), Signal with Frank Bretschneider and Olaf Bender, Cyclo with Ryoj ...
(an alias of
Carsten Nicolai
Carsten Nicolai (18 September 1965), also known as Alva Noto, is a German musician and visual artist. He is a member of the music groups Diamond Version with Olaf Bender (Byetone), Signal with Frank Bretschneider and Olaf Bender, Cyclo with Ry ...
) to release ''
Vrioon
''Vrioon'' is the debut collaboration album between Ryuichi Sakamoto and Alva Noto, released in 2002. This is the first album in the ''Virus Series'' followed by four other records: '' Insen'' (2005), '' Revep'' (2006), '' utp_'' (2008), and '' Su ...
'', an album of Sakamoto's piano clusters treated by Nicolai's unique style of digital manipulation, involving the creation of "micro-loops" and minimal percussion. The two produced this work by passing the pieces back and forth until both were satisfied with the result. This debut, released on German label
Raster-Noton
Raster-Noton was a German electronic music record label. It was established in 1999 in Chemnitz, Germany. It emerged from the fusion of Rastermusik, founded by Olaf Bender and Frank Bretschneider in 1996, and Noton (''Archiv für Ton und Nich ...
, was voted record of the year 2004 in the electronica category by British magazine ''
The Wire
''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...
''. They then released ''
Insen'' (2005)—while produced in a similar manner to Vrioon, this album is somewhat more restrained and minimalist. They keep on collaborating and have released two more albums: ''
utp_'' (2008) and ''
Summvs'' (2011).
In 2005,
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
mobile phone manufacturer
Nokia
Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications industry, telecommunications, technology company, information technology, and consumer electronics corporatio ...
hired Sakamoto to compose ring and alert tones for their high-end phone, the
Nokia 8800
The Nokia 8800 (pronounced ''eighty-eight-hundred'') is a luxury mobile phone produced by Nokia, based on the Nokia Series 40 operating system. The 8800 features a stainless-steel housing with a scratch-resistant screen and has a weight of 134 gr ...
. In 2006, Nokia offered the ringtones for free on their website. Around this time, a reunion with YMO cofounders Hosono and Takahashi caused a stir in the Japanese press. They released a single "Rescue" in 2007 and a DVD "HAS/YMO" in 2008. In July 2009, Sakamoto was honored as
Officier of Ordre des Arts et des Lettres at the French embassy in Tokyo.
2010s–present
![Ryuichi Sakamoto, Photographed by Ryota Nakanishi](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Ryuichi_Sakamoto%2C_Photographed_by_Ryota_Nakanishi.JPG)
Throughout the latter part of the 2000s, Sakamoto collaborated on several projects with visual artist
Shiro Takatani
is a Japanese artist. He currently lives and works in Kyoto.
Co-founder and visual creator of the group Dumb Type since 1984, he also became artistic director of the group from 1995 and also started an active solo career in 1998.
Biography
...
, including the installations ''LIFE - fluid, invisible, inaudible...'' (2007–2013), commissioned by YCAM, Yamaguchi, ''collapsed'' and ''silence spins'' at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo in 2012 and 2013 Sharjah Biennial (U.A.E.), ''LIFE-WELL'' in 2013 and a special version for Park Hyatt Tokyo's 20th anniversary in 2014, and he did music for the joint performance ''LIFE-WELL'' featuring the actor Noh/Kyogen Mansai Nomura, and for
Shiro Takatani
is a Japanese artist. He currently lives and works in Kyoto.
Co-founder and visual creator of the group Dumb Type since 1984, he also became artistic director of the group from 1995 and also started an active solo career in 1998.
Biography
...
's performance ''ST/LL'' in 2015.
In 2013, Sakamoto was a jury member at the
70th Venice International Film Festival
The 70th annual Venice International Film Festival took place in Venice, Italy from 28 August to 7 September 2013. American film director William Friedkin was presented with a lifetime achievement award. Italian film director Bernardo Bertoluc ...
. The jury viewed 20 films and was chaired by filmmaker
Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci (; 16 March 1941 – 26 November 2018) was an Italian film director and screenwriter with a career that spanned 50 years. Considered one of the greatest directors in Italian cinema, Bertolucci's work achieved international ...
.
In 2014, Sakamoto became the first Guest Artistic Director of
The Sapporo International Art Festival 2014 (SIAF2014).
On July 10, Sakamoto released a statement indicating that he had been diagnosed with
oropharyngeal cancer
Oropharyngeal cancer (OPC), also known as oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) and tonsil cancer, is a disease in which abnormal cells with the potential to both grow locally and spread to other parts of the body are found in the oral ca ...
in late June of the same year. He announced a break from his work while he sought treatment and recovery. On August 3, 2015, Sakamoto posted on his website that he was "in great shape ... I am thinking about returning to work" and announced that he would be providing music for
Yoji Yamada
is a Japanese film director best known for his ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series of films and his Samurai Trilogy (''The Twilight Samurai'', ''The Hidden Blade'' and '' Love and Honor'').
Biography
He was born in Osaka, but due to his father's job ...
's ''
Haha to Kuraseba'' (''Living with My Mother''). In 2015, Sakamoto also composed the score for the
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Alejandro González Iñárritu (; American Spanish: ; credited since 2016 as Alejandro G. Iñárritu; born 15 August 1963) is a Mexican filmmaker and screenwriter. He is primarily known for making modern psychological drama films about the hum ...
's film, ''
The Revenant,''
for which he received a Golden Globe nomination.
In January 2017 it was announced that Sakamoto would release a solo album in April 2017 through Milan Records; the new album, titled ''async'', was released on March 29, 2017 to critical acclaim. In February 2018, he was selected to be on the jury for the main competition section of the
68th Berlin International Film Festival
The 68th annual Berlin International Film Festival took place from 15 to 25 February 2018. German filmmaker Tom Tykwer served as Jury President. American film director Wes Anderson's animated film ''Isle of Dogs'' opened the festival, becoming f ...
.
On June 14, 2018, a documentary about the life and work of Sakamoto, entitled ''Coda'', was released. The film follows Sakamoto as he recovers from cancer and resumes creating music, protests nuclear power plants following the
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster, and creates field recordings in a variety of locales. Directed by
Stephen Nomura Schible, the documentary was met with critical praise.
Production work
Sakamoto's production credits represent a prolific career in this role. In 1983, he produced
Mari Iijima
is a Japanese actress and singer. She writes and produces most of her own music, and plays the piano and other instruments. After being signed to JVC Victor in 1982, Mari first became known for her voice-acting role as Lynn Minmay in the anime ...
's debut album ''Rosé'', the same year that the Yellow Magic Orchestra was disbanded. Sakamoto subsequently worked with artists such as
Thomas Dolby
Thomas Morgan Robertson (born 14 October 1958), known by the stage name Thomas Dolby, is an English musician, producer, composer, entrepreneur and teacher.
Dolby came to prominence in the 1980s, releasing hit singles including "She Blinded Me ...
;
Aztec Camera
Aztec Camera were a Scottish pop/ new wave band founded by Roddy Frame, the group's singer, songwriter, and only consistent member. Formed in 1980, Aztec Camera released a total of six studio albums: ''High Land, Hard Rain'' (1983), ''Knife'' ( ...
, on the ''
Dreamland'' (1993) album;
and
Imai Miki, co-producing her 1994 album ''A Place In The Sun''. In 1996, Sakamoto produced "Mind Circus", the first single from actress
Miki Nakatani
is a Japanese actress and singer. She began her career as a member of the girl group Sakurakko Club from 1991 to 1993, wherein she formed the duo Key West Club with member Keiko Azuma.
Nakatani focused on acting after her departure, making he ...
, leading to a collaboration period spanning 9 singles and 7 albums though 2001.
Roddy Frame
Roddy Frame (born 29 January 1964) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. He was the founder of the 1980s new wave band Aztec Camera and has undertaken a solo career since the group's dissolution. In November 2013, journalist Brian Do ...
, who worked with Sakamoto as a member of Aztec Camera, explained in a 1993 interview preceding the release of ''Dreamland'' that he had had to wait a lengthy period of time before he was able to work with Sakamoto, who wrote two soundtracks, a solo album and the music for the opening ceremony at the
Barcelona Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...
, prior to working with Frame over four weeks in a New York studio. Frame said that he was impressed by the work of YMO and the ''Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence'' soundtrack, explaining: "That's where you realise that the atmosphere around his compositions is actually in the writing - it's got nothing to do with synthesisers." Frame's decision to ask Sakamoto was finalized after he saw his performance at the Japan Festival that was held in London, United Kingdom. Of his experience recording with Sakamoto, Frame said:
Film work
Sakamoto began working in films, as a composer and actor, in
Nagisa Oshima
NaGISA (Natural Geography in Shore Areas or Natural Geography of In-Shore Areas) is an international collaborative effort aimed at inventorying, cataloguing, and monitoring biodiversity of the in-shore area. So named for the Japanese word "nagisa ...
's ''
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
, also known in many European editions as , is a 1983 war film co-written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima, co-written by Paul Mayersberg, and produced by Jeremy Thomas. The film is based on the experiences of Sir Laurens van der Post (portrayed b ...
'' (1983), for which he composed the score,
title theme, and the duet "
Forbidden Colours
"Forbidden Colours" is a 1983 song by David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto. The song is the vocal version of the theme from the Nagisa Oshima film ''Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.'' It appears on the film's soundtrack album and was released as a s ...
" with
David Sylvian
David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly ...
. Sakamoto later composed
Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci (; 16 March 1941 – 26 November 2018) was an Italian film director and screenwriter with a career that spanned 50 years. Considered one of the greatest directors in Italian cinema, Bertolucci's work achieved international ...
's ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (1987), which earned him the
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
with fellow composers
David Byrne
David Byrne (; born 14 May 1952) is a Scottish-American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, writer, music theorist, visual artist and filmmaker. He was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of ...
and
Cong Su :''This is a Chinese name; the family name is Su.''
Cong Su (; born 1957 in Tianjin, China) is a Chinese composer.
He studied at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, then in Germany. He has lectured on music theory, music analysis, film ...
. In that same year, he composed the score to the cult-classic
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
film ''
Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise''. Sakamoto also went on to compose the score of the opening ceremony for the
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...
in Barcelona, Spain, telecast live to an audience of over a billion viewers.
Other films scored by Sakamoto include
Pedro Almodóvar
Pedro Almodóvar Caballero (; (often known simply as Almodóvar) born 25 September 1949) is a Spanish filmmaker. His films are marked by melodrama, irreverent humour, bold colour, glossy décor, quotations from popular culture, and complex narr ...
's ''
Tacones lejanos (High Heels)'' (1991); Bertolucci's ''
The Little Buddha'' (1993);
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sc ...
's ''
Wild Palms'' (1993);
John Maybury
John Maybury (born 25 March 1958) is an English filmmaker and artist. He first came to prominence as the director of the music video for the Pet Shop Boys 1984 single "West End Girls". In 2005 he was named as one of the 100 most influential gay ...
's ''
Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon'' (1998);
Brian De Palma
Brian Russell De Palma (born September 11, 1940) is an American film director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for his work in the suspense, crime and psychological thriller genres. De Palma was a leading ...
's ''
Snake Eyes'' (1998) and ''
Femme Fatale
A ''femme fatale'' ( or ; ), sometimes called a maneater or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype of ...
'' (2002); Oshima's ''
Gohatto
, also known as ''Taboo'', is a 1999 Japanese film directed by Nagisa Ōshima. It is about homosexuality in the Shinsengumi during the ''bakumatsu'' period, the end of the samurai era in the mid-19th century.
Plot
At the start of the movie, the y ...
'' (1999); and
Jun Ichikawa
was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He was first a director of television commercials before adding filmmaking to his creative activities. His most famous film outside Japan was ''Tony Takitani'', an adaptation of a short story by Har ...
's (director of the Mitsui ReHouse commercial from 1997 to 1999 starring
Chizuru Ikewaki and
Mao Inoue
Mao Inoue (born January 9, 1987) is a Japanese actress. She debuted as an actress when she was five years old. She is best known to Japanese television drama audiences as in , as Makino Tsukushi in the popular ''Hana Yori Dango'' series, an ...
) ''
Tony Takitani
is a 2004 Japanese film directed by Jun Ichikawa, based on the short story by Haruki Murakami.
Inspiration
Haruki Murakami was intrigued by the name Tony Takitani when, at a garage sale on Maui, he found a yellow T-shirt that said, "Tony Takitan ...
'' (2005).
Several tracks from Sakamoto's earlier solo albums have also appeared in film soundtracks. In particular, variations of "Chinsagu No Hana" (from ''Beauty'') and "Bibo No Aozora" (from ''1996'') provide the poignant closing pieces for Sue Brooks's ''
Japanese Story
''Japanese Story'' is a 2003 Australian romantic drama film directed by Sue Brooks. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival.
Plot
Sandy Edwards (played by Toni Collette) is a director in a company tha ...
'' (2003) and
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Alejandro González Iñárritu (; American Spanish: ; credited since 2016 as Alejandro G. Iñárritu; born 15 August 1963) is a Mexican filmmaker and screenwriter. He is primarily known for making modern psychological drama films about the hum ...
's ''
Babel'' (2006), respectively. In 2015, Sakamoto teamed up with Iñárritu to score his film, ''
The Revenant'' starring
Leonardo DiCaprio and
Tom Hardy.
Sakamoto has also acted in several films: perhaps his most notable performance was as the conflicted Captain Yonoi in ''
Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence
, also known in many European editions as , is a 1983 war film co-written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima, co-written by Paul Mayersberg, and produced by Jeremy Thomas. The film is based on the experiences of Sir Laurens van der Post (portrayed ...
'', alongside
Takeshi Kitano
is a Japanese comedian, television presenter, actor, filmmaker, and author. While he is known primarily as a comedian and TV host in his native Japan, he is better known abroad for his work as a filmmaker and actor as well as TV host. With th ...
and British rock singer
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
. He also played roles in ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (as
Masahiko Amakasu
was an officer in the Imperial Japanese Army imprisoned for his involvement in the Amakasu Incident, the extrajudicial execution of anarchists after the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, who later became head of the Manchukuo Film Association.
B ...
) and
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
's "
Rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...
" music video.
Sports work
In 1994,
Japan Football Association
The Japan Football Association (JFA, ) is the governing body responsible for the administration of football, futsal, beach soccer and efootball in Japan. It is responsible for the national team, as well as club competitions.
History
The organisat ...
asked Ryuichi Sakamoto to compose the instrumental song - "Japanese Soccer Anthem".
This instrumental song played at the beginning of
Japan Football Association
The Japan Football Association (JFA, ) is the governing body responsible for the administration of football, futsal, beach soccer and efootball in Japan. It is responsible for the national team, as well as club competitions.
History
The organisat ...
-sponsored events, such as
Emperor's Cup
, commonly known as or also Japan FA Cup is a Japanese football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football match in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J.League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, J ...
matches.
Personal life
Sakamoto's first of three marriages occurred in 1972, but ended in divorce two years later—Sakamoto has a daughter from this relationship. Sakamoto then married popular Japanese pianist and singer
Akiko Yano
is a Japanese pop and jazz musician and singer born in Tokyo and raised in Aomori and later began her singing career in the mid-1970s. She has been called "one of the major musical talents of the Japanese popular music world", and her vocals and ...
in 1982, following several musical collaborations with her, including touring work with the
Yellow Magic Orchestra
Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO for short) is a Japanese electronic music band formed in Tokyo in 1978 by Haruomi Hosono (bass, keyboards, vocals), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums, lead vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards, vocals). The group is cons ...
. Sakamoto's second marriage ended in August 2006, 14 years after a mutual decision to live separately—Yano and Sakamoto raised one daughter,
J-pop
J-pop ( ja, ジェイポップ, ''jeipoppu''; often stylized as J-POP; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively also known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1 ...
singer
Miu Sakamoto
is a Japanese pop singer. She is the daughter of musicians Ryuichi Sakamoto and Akiko Yano.
Biography
Sakamoto provided a cover of "Miu" for the January 29, 2020 Buck-Tick tribute album ''Parade III ~Respective Tracks of Buck-Tick~''
Disco ...
. He has lived with his manager and wife Norika Sora since around 1990 and has two children with her.
Beginning in June 2014, Sakamoto took a year-long hiatus after he was diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer. In 2015, he returned, stating: "Right now I'm good. I feel better. Much, much better. I feel energy inside, but you never know. The cancer might come back in three years, five years, maybe 10 years. Also the radiation makes your immune system really low. It means I'm very susceptible to another cancer in my body."
On January 21, 2021, Sakamoto shared a link on his official pages, which contained a letter announcing that though his
throat cancer
Head and neck cancer develops from tissues in the lip and oral cavity (mouth), larynx (throat), salivary glands, nose, sinuses or the skin of the face. The most common types of head and neck cancers occur in the lip, mouth, and larynx. Symptoms ...
went into remission, he was now diagnosed with
rectal cancer
Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel ...
, and that he's currently undergoing treatment after a successful surgery. He wrote: "From now on, I will be living alongside cancer. But, I am hoping to make music for a little while longer."
Activism
Sakamoto is a member of the
anti-nuclear
The anti-nuclear movement is a social movement that opposes various nuclear technologies. Some direct action groups, environmental movements, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, natio ...
organization
Stop Rokkasho and has demanded the closing of the
Hamaoka Nuclear Power Plant
The is a nuclear power plant in the city of Omaezaki in Shizuoka Prefecture, on Japan's east coast, 200 km south-west of Tokyo. It is managed by the Chubu Electric Power Company. There are five units contained at a single site with a net ...
. In 2012, he organized the No Nukes 2012 concert, which featured performances by 18 groups, including Yellow Magic Orchestra and
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk (, "power station") is a German band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the ...
. Sakamoto is also known as a critic of
copyright law
A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
, arguing in 2009 that it is antiquated in the
information age
The Information Age (also known as the Computer Age, Digital Age, Silicon Age, or New Media Age) is a historical period that began in the mid-20th century. It is characterized by a rapid shift from traditional industries, as established during ...
. He argued that in "the last 100 years, only a few organizations have dominated the music world and ripped off both fans and creators" and that "with the internet we are going back to having tribal attitudes towards music."
In 2015 Sakamoto also supported opposition to the
relocation of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in the Oura bay in Henoko, with a new and Okinawan version of his 2004 single "Undercooled" whose sales partially contributed to the "Henoko Fund", aimed to stop the relocation of the base on Okinawa.
Commmons
In 2006 Sakamoto, in collaboration with Japanese music company
Avex Group
is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi Hamasaki and internet sensation PikoTaro. It has also shifted into other busi ...
, founded , a
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
seeking to change the manner in which music is produced. Sakamoto has explained that Commmons is not his label, but is a platform for all aspiring artists to join as equal collaborators to share the benefits of the
music industry
The music industry consists of the individuals and organizations that earn money by writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling recorded music and sheet music, presenting concerts, as well as the organizations that aid, train, ...
. On the initiative's "About" page, the label is described as a project that "aims to find new possibilities for music, while making meaningful contribution to culture and society". The name "Commmons" is spelt with three "m"s because the third "m" stands for music.
Awards and nominations
Sakamoto has won a number of awards for his work as a film composer, beginning winning the
BAFTA Award for Best Film Music
This is a list of winners and nominees for the BAFTA Award for Best Original Music, formerly known as the Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music, which is presented to film composers, given out by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts si ...
with his score for ''
Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
, also known in many European editions as , is a 1983 war film co-written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima, co-written by Paul Mayersberg, and produced by Jeremy Thomas. The film is based on the experiences of Sir Laurens van der Post (portrayed b ...
'' (1983).
His greatest award success was for scoring ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (1987), which won him the
Academy Award for Best Original Score
The Academy Award for Best Original Score is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by t ...
,
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
The Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score is a Golden Globe Award presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), an organization of journalists who cover the United States film industry, but are affiliated with publications o ...
, and
,
as well as a
BAFTA nomination.
His score for ''
The Sheltering Sky
''The Sheltering Sky'' is a 1949 novel of alienation and existential despair by American writer and composer Paul Bowles.
Plot
The story centers on Port Moresby and his wife Kit, a married couple originally from New York who travel to the Nor ...
'' (1990) won him his second
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...
, and his score for ''
Little Buddha
''Little Buddha'' is a 1993 drama film directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, written by Rudy Wurlitzer and Mark Peploe, and produced by usual Bertolucci collaborator Jeremy Thomas. An international co-production of Italy, France, and the United Kingdom, ...
'' (1993) received another
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
nomination. In 1997, his collaboration with
Toshio Iwai
is a Japanese interactive media and installation artist who has also created a number of commercial video games. In addition he has worked in television, music performance, museum design and digital musical instrument design.
Education and earl ...
, ''Music Plays Images X Images Play Music'', was awarded the Golden Nica, the grand prize of the
Prix Ars Electronica
The Prix Ars Electronica is one of the best known and longest running yearly prizes in the field of electronic and interactive art, computer animation, digital culture and music. It has been awarded since 1987 by Ars Electronica (Linz, Austria) ...
competition. He also contributed to the
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
winning
soundtrack for ''Babel'' (2006) with several pieces of music, including the closing theme "Bibo no Aozora". In 2009, he was awarded the
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...
from France's
Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to:
*Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania)
* Ministry of Culture (Algeria)
*Ministry of Culture (Argentina)
*Minister for the Arts (Australia)
*Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)
* Ministry of ...
for his musical contributions.
His score for ''
The Revenant'' (2015) was
nominated
A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example:
* to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs.
* ...
for the Golden Globe and BAFTA, and won Best Musical Score from the
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association
The Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association (DFWFCA) is an organization of 31 print, radio/TV and internet journalists from Dallas–Fort Worth-based publications. Current members include Robert Wilonsky and Chris Vognar of ''The Dallas Mo ...
.
The music video for "Risky", written and directed by Meiert Avis, also won the first ever MTV "
Breakthrough Video Award". The ground breaking video explores
transhumanist
Transhumanism is a philosophical and intellectual movement which advocates the enhancement of the human condition by developing and making widely available sophisticated technologies that can greatly enhance longevity and cognition.
Transhuma ...
philosopher
FM-2030's (Persian: فریدون اسفندیاری) ideas of "Nostalgia for the Future", in the form of an imagined love affair between a robot and one of
Man Ray
Man Ray (born Emmanuel Radnitzky; August 27, 1890 – November 18, 1976) was an American visual artist who spent most of his career in Paris. He was a significant contributor to the Dada and Surrealism, Surrealist movements, although his t ...
's models in Paris in the late 1930s. Additional inspiration was drawn from
Jean Baudrillard
Jean Baudrillard ( , , ; 27 July 1929 – 6 March 2007) was a French sociologist, philosopher and poet with interest in cultural studies. He is best known for his analyses of media, contemporary culture, and technological communication, as w ...
,
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch ( , ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His best known work, ''The Scream'' (1893), has become one of Western art's most iconic images.
His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dr ...
's 1894 painting "
Puberty
Puberty is the process of physical changes through which a child's body matures into an adult body capable of sexual reproduction. It is initiated by hormonal signals from the brain to the gonads: the ovaries in a girl, the testes in a boy. ...
", and
Roland Barthes
Roland Gérard Barthes (; ; 12 November 1915 – 26 March 1980) was a French literary theorist, essayist, philosopher, critic, and semiotician. His work engaged in the analysis of a variety of sign systems, mainly derived from Western popular ...
"
Death of the Author
"The Death of the Author" (French: ''La mort de l'auteur'') is a 1967 essay by the French literary critic and theorist Roland Barthes (1915–1980). Barthes's essay argues against traditional literary criticism's practice of relying on the intent ...
". The surrealist black and white video uses stop motion, light painting, and other retro in-camera effects techniques. Meiert Avis shot Sakamoto while at work on the score for "The Last Emperor" in London. Sakamoto also appears in the video painting words and messages to an open shutter camera. Iggy Pop, who performs the vocals on "Risky", chose not to appear in the video, allowing his performance space to be occupied by the surrealist era robot.
Sakamoto won the Golden Pine Award (Lifetime Achievement) at the 2013 International Samobor Film Music Festival, along with
Clint Eastwood
Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...
and
Gerald Fried
Gerald Fried (born February 13, 1928) is an American composer, conductor, and oboist known for his film and television scores. He composed music for well-known television series of the 1960s and 70s, including ''Mission: Impossible'', '' Gilli ...
.
Honorary awards
* 2009 –
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...
, from France's
Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to:
*Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania)
* Ministry of Culture (Algeria)
*Ministry of Culture (Argentina)
*Minister for the Arts (Australia)
*Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)
* Ministry of ...
* 2013 – Golden Pine Award (Lifetime Achievement), at 2013 International Samobor Film Music Festival
Soundtrack awards
Academy Award for Best Original Score
The Academy Award for Best Original Score is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by t ...
* 1987 – ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (won)
BAFTA Award for Best Film Music
This is a list of winners and nominees for the BAFTA Award for Best Original Music, formerly known as the Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music, which is presented to film composers, given out by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts si ...
* 1983 – ''
Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
, also known in many European editions as , is a 1983 war film co-written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima, co-written by Paul Mayersberg, and produced by Jeremy Thomas. The film is based on the experiences of Sir Laurens van der Post (portrayed b ...
'' (won)
* 1987 – ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (nominated)
* 2015 – ''
The Revenant'' (nominated)
Grand Bell Awards for Best Music
* 2018 – ''
The Fortress'' (won)
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
The Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score is a Golden Globe Award presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), an organization of journalists who cover the United States film industry, but are affiliated with publications o ...
* 1987 – ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (won)
* 1990 – ''
The Sheltering Sky
''The Sheltering Sky'' is a 1949 novel of alienation and existential despair by American writer and composer Paul Bowles.
Plot
The story centers on Port Moresby and his wife Kit, a married couple originally from New York who travel to the Nor ...
'' (won)
* 1993 – ''
Little Buddha
''Little Buddha'' is a 1993 drama film directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, written by Rudy Wurlitzer and Mark Peploe, and produced by usual Bertolucci collaborator Jeremy Thomas. An international co-production of Italy, France, and the United Kingdom, ...
'' (nominated)
* 2015 – ''
The Revenant'' (nominated)
* 1987 – ''
The Last Emperor
''The Last Emperor'' ( it, L'ultimo imperatore) is a 1987 epic biographical drama film about the life of Puyi, the final Emperor of China. It is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Peploe, which was adapted ...
'' (won)
* 1995 – ''
Little Buddha
''Little Buddha'' is a 1993 drama film directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, written by Rudy Wurlitzer and Mark Peploe, and produced by usual Bertolucci collaborator Jeremy Thomas. An international co-production of Italy, France, and the United Kingdom, ...
'' (nominated)
* 2015 – ''
The Revenant'' (nominated)
Other awards
* 1997 – Golden Nica, grand prize of
Prix Ars Electronica
The Prix Ars Electronica is one of the best known and longest running yearly prizes in the field of electronic and interactive art, computer animation, digital culture and music. It has been awarded since 1987 by Ars Electronica (Linz, Austria) ...
, for ''Music Plays Images X Images Play Music''
*
MTV Breakthrough Video Award, for music video of "Risky"
Discography
Solo studio albums
* ''
Thousand Knives'' (1978)
* ''B-2 Unit'' (1980)
* ''Left-Handed Dream'' (1981)
* ''Ongaku Zukan'' (1984)
* ''Esperanto'' (1985)
* ''
Futurista'' (1986)
* ''Illustrated Musical Encyclopedia'' (1986)
* ''
Neo Geo
Neo Geo is a family of video game hardware developed by SNK. On the market from 1990 to 2004, the brand originated with the release of an arcade system, the Neo Geo MVS and its home console counterpart, the Neo Geo AES.
The Neo Geo MVS was su ...
'' (1987)
* ''
Beauty
Beauty is commonly described as a feature of objects that makes these objects pleasurable to perceive. Such objects include landscapes, sunsets, humans and works of art. Beauty, together with art and taste, is the main subject of aesthetics, o ...
'' (1989)
* ''
Heartbeat'' (1991)
* ''
Sweet Revenge'' (1994)
* ''Smoochy'' (1995)
* ''
1996'' (1996)
* ''Discord'' (1997)
* ''
BTTB
BTCL or Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited is the largest telecommunications company in Bangladesh. The company was founded as the Bangladesh Telegraph & Telephone Board (BTTB) following Bangladesh's independence in 1971. On July 1, 2008 ...
'' (1999)
* ''Comica'' (2002)
* ''Elephantism'' (2002)
* ''
Chasm
In geology, a rift is a linear zone where the lithosphere is being pulled apart and is an example of extensional tectonics.
Typical rift features are a central linear downfaulted depression, called a graben, or more commonly a half-graben w ...
'' (2004)
* ''Out of Noise'' (2009)
* ''
Playing the Piano'' (2009)
* ''Three'' (2013)
* ''
async'' (2017)
* ''12'' (2023)
Notes
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
Commmons– Sakamoto's record label
Raster-Noton*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sakamoto, Ryuichi
1952 births
20th-century classical composers
20th-century classical pianists
20th-century Japanese composers
20th-century Japanese male actors
20th-century Japanese male musicians
21st-century classical composers
21st-century classical pianists
21st-century Japanese composers
21st-century Japanese male actors
21st-century Japanese male musicians
Anime composers
Avex Group artists
Avex Group people
Best Original Music BAFTA Award winners
Best Original Music Score Academy Award winners
Composers for piano
Electronic composers
Golden Globe Award-winning musicians
Grammy Award winners
Intellectual property activism
Island Records artists
Japanese anti–nuclear power activists
Japanese classical composers
Japanese classical pianists
Japanese contemporary artists
Japanese contemporary classical composers
Japanese dance musicians
Japanese electro musicians
Japanese electronic musicians
Japanese film score composers
Japanese house musicians
Japanese keyboardists
Japanese male classical composers
Japanese male classical pianists
Japanese male film actors
Japanese male film score composers
Japanese male television actors
Japanese opera composers
Japanese record producers
Japanese techno musicians
Japanese trance musicians
Living people
Male opera composers
Musicians from Tokyo
New-age composers
New-age musicians
Progressivism in Japan
Samadhi Sound artists
Tokyo University of the Arts alumni
Video game composers
Virgin Records artists
Yellow Magic Orchestra members