Gorō Yamaguchi (山口五郎; February 26, 1933 – January 3, 1999) was a Japanese

shakuhachi A is a Japanese 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 who worked in both solo and ensemble performances. He was noted for his influential recordings of

traditional Japanese music Traditional Japanese music is the folk or traditional music of Japan. Japan's Ministry of Education classifies as a category separate from other traditional forms of music, such as (court music) or (Buddhist chanting), but most ethnomusic ...

and one of his pieces was selected by

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to be included on the

Voyager Golden Record The Voyager Golden Records are two identical phonograph records, one of each which were included aboard the two Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. The records contain sounds and data to reconstruct raster scan images selected to portray the di ...

and launched into space.

Career

Yamaguchi headed the Chikumeisha

shakuhachi A is a Japanese 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 .

guild and became a world-famous Japanese performer and teacher. In 1967–1968, he was appointed Artist in Residence at

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...

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, United States along with Yamada-school koto performers Namino Torii and Yamaguchi Hozomi, his wife. While at Wesleyan, Yamaguchi recorded his LP, ''A Bell Ringing In The Empty Sky'', which was released by

Nonesuch Records Nonesuch Records is an American record company and label owned by Warner Music Group, distributed by Warner Records (formerly Warner Bros. Records), and based in New York City. Founded by Jac Holzman in 1964 as a budget classical label, Nonesuch ...

on its ''Explorer Series''. This was an influential first recording of shakuhachi in the United States; in 1977,

selected a honkyoku from the LP, "Tsuru No Sugomori" ("Depicting the Cranes in their Nest"), to be included on the

, a gold-plated copper record that was sent into space on the Voyager space craft. The record contained sounds and images which had been chosen as examples of the diversity of life and culture on Earth. In 1992, the Japanese government designated Yamaguchi a Living National Treasure (''Ningen Kokuhô'').

Major recordings

* ''A Bell Ringing In The Empty Sky'' Nonesuch Explorer Series H-72025 * ''Shakuhachi no Shinzui: Shakuhachi Honkyoku'' (Soul of Shakuhachi: Shakuhachi Honkyoku). Solo performance of complete Kinko school honkyoku repertoire: 38 compositions on 12 CDs. Boxed set with 44-page booklet. Japan Victor VZCG-8066-8077. * ''Shakuhachi no Shinzui: Sankyoku Gassô'' (Soul of Shakuhachi: Trio Ensemble). Ensemble performances with voice, koto, and shamisen. Four CDs in boxed set with 44-page booklet. Japan Victor VZCG-8078-81.

Audio link

Brief excerpt from "Nesting of Cranes" perf. by Yamaguchi

Obituaries

References

1933 births 1999 deaths 20th-century Japanese flautists 20th-century Japanese male musicians Living National Treasures of Japan Musicians from Tokyo Shakuhachi players Wesleyan University faculty {{Japan-musician-stub