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Akio Suzuki has always been an artist in search of unexpected sound, and curiosity has been his guiding principle. Whether that be curiosity for objects, spaces or places, his work has been guided by a porousness and pliability which has allowed him to explore an enormous sonic terrain. This freedom has also allowed him to develop a language in sound that remains utterly his own. Nowhere is this more evident than in his approach to instrument creation. During the 1970s Akio Suzuki devised a series of instruments that would become his sonic signatures. The Analapos and De Koolmees are perhaps his most readily identifiable instruments and it is these two that make up the core of material from which Soundsphere is created. Soundsphere, recorded in 1990 at Hut Apollphuis in Eindhoven, captures Suzuki at the height of his powers. It is a document of his music shaped by patience and dynamism, in equal measure. Few other recordings capture both the tenderness and the presence of Suzuki’s ways of discovering sound in his instruments. On pieces such as Analapos A: Voice, he creates a wavering oceanic vocal drone that echoes up and down, tracing the coils of the Analapos’ springs. The results are simultaneously minimal and expansive, reminding us that sound exists in the vertical and well as horizontal planes. Similarly his performance on De Koolmees: Suzuki Type - Glass Harmonica shares this intensity of focus. Suzuki’s strikes and strokes on the glass tubes, creating an endlessly evolving array of tonal inflections and pulses. Soundsphere, which is celebrating its 45th anniversary, is an essential capture of the ways in sound Akio Suzuki has developed over his now six decades of practice.

With concentration, or elevated tension as he has called it, Akio Suzuki enters completely into the substance of sound, its emergence and its passing. What he does with sound may propose a rarefied world to many people, and yet it possesses a persuasive quality of rightness. One of the most difficult aspects of music and soundwork to explain is the concept of ‘right action’. How is that music can be evaluated almost immediately, just as quickly as a fire alarm or a baby’s cry? When Akio performs, certain qualities (grace, warmth, a quiet authority of mind and action, an engagement with the vessel of nothingness through which sound can emerge) are evident as presences, as soon as he begins. He begins from a state we call silence, by listening, yet at the same time raises questions about our ideas of what this silence might be. Time passes; fixity gives way to destruction; visual perfection is relinquished within the faintest of sound fields. As for the work, this ceremony returns us to nothing, ‘to the feeling of not knowing exactly what is before us’, so to the uncanny, to the shell-like ear found by the sea, the ‘ungraspable phantom of life’, the record of a haunting, time regained. The sound is a parabola, a finger tracing on skin, a brush point, bird in flight.

In May 1984 I appeared at a German festival called Pro
Musica Nova, organized by Radio Bremen. I then travelled to
Berlin by car with Rolf Langebertels, the owner of Galerie
Giannozzo who had driven to Bremen to hear me perform. I still
remember very vividly the experience of passing through the
checkpoint to enter West Berlin, a city that floated like an island
in the middle of the still socialist GDR. I had previously visited
Berlin in 1982 to perform at Kunstlerhaus Bethanien at an event
that Rolf had organized. This time too Rolf had organized a
concert for me at the Technische Universitat. Playing off the title
of the piece (“Study Time”) I had performed at Pro Musica
Nova, I titled the piece for this concert “Zeitstudie”.

I owe Rolf a great deal of gratitude, as it was him who
encouraged me by releasing my very first cassette tape,
“Zeitstudie von Akio Suzuki”. In recent years it has become
difficult for me to carry heavy instruments around with me, and
I have started to do simpler performances with objects
assembled on site. So it feels wonderful to have the sound of
the battery of instruments I used back then to be returned to the
light of day.

On “Zeitstudie von A.S.” I used an ANALAPOS, the echo
instrument I invented in 1970, and the Suzuki-type glass
harmonica that I created in 1975. The ANALAPOS resembles the
tin-can telephone that children used to play with: two metal
cans, open at one end and connected by a coil spring. You
play it by stretching out the spring horizonally and then
projecting your voice into the open end of one of the
cylinders. The second piece features a variation, where I
would suspend several ANALAPOS vertically and play them like
a percussion instrument.

The Suzuki-type glass harmonica is in a simpler form than the
pre-existing glass harmonica, and consists of five long glass
tubes of varying diameters suspended horizontally in a metal
frame. As well as rubbing the tubes with wet hands, I developed
my own style of playing it using sticks. Once when I was
practicing with it in the Netherlands, outside the window I was
surprised to hear a bird imitating my sounds. However, later I
discovered that the bird always sang that way, and as a token
of my regret for having ever doubted it, I borrowed the bird’s
Dutch name, De Koolmees, and I s till use it for my instrument.
Recently, as I listened back to the cassette of “Zeitstudie von
A.S.”, one of Hiromi Miyakita’s drawings was lying in front of me.
There was a sympathetic resonance between the sounds and the
drawing, so I decided to use it on the cover. This is a joyful music. 

Space in the Sun was one of Akio Suzuki’s major sound projects, a unique construction completed in 1988 and located on the merdian line, which took around 18 months to build. Its purpose was to allow Suzuki to spend one day, on the autumnal equinox, purifying his sense of hearing in nature. This release comprises a 44 page book containing plans and materials from the time alongside texts, and two CDs of environmental recordings created on site at Space in the Sun. To date only tiny fragments of the recordings made between those massive clay brick walls have been used in performances and no environmental recordings of the objective of the project, i.e. the space itself, have been released. The first disk consists of the first release of “person-less” field recordings made at the same spot that Akio sat at during the event (recorded in 1993, 60 minutes). The second disk consists of a performance that took place in the space. Space in the Sun’s earthen walls have since been demolished, so these recordings represent a return to life of their soft echo, an experience accessible nowhere else.

民俗学・宗教学・芸能史・演劇史という学問的枠組みを超えて、神楽の継承に携わる全ての人に向けて、神楽とは何だったのかを問う。

第一章は神楽研究の始まりになった備後の荒神神楽を取り上げて、伝承を維持してきたものとは何かを問い直す。
第二章は神楽の神がかりに焦点を当てて、担い手である巫者の変遷を論じ、社会の変動と関連付けて検討する。
第三章は石見の大元神楽を取り上げ、備後の荒神神楽と比較して伝承の維持・継承の状況を検討する。
第四章は強固な伝承を維持してきた南信濃の霜月神楽の意味と機能を探る。
第五章は神楽の近代を主題とし、東北の修験系神楽である大乗神楽を検討して近代の在り方を再考する。
第六章は中国との比較の観点を入れ込み、「目連の能」を手掛かりに死者供養の神楽の考察を行う。
第七章は神楽を研究の主題とすることとは何かを問い、学術研究に至る過程や、芸能の舞台化という近代の実践に着目する。
第八章は神楽に関する研究方法が不安定なことに鑑み、今後の神楽研究の課題を提示した。

目次
まえがき

第一章　伝承を持続させるものとは何か――比婆荒神神楽の場合
１　伝承とは何か
２　比婆荒神神楽を巡る「名付け」と「名乗り」
３　比婆荒神神楽との出会い
４　大神楽の構成
５　前神楽
６　本神楽
７　神がかり
８　灰神楽
９　大神楽の変遷
10　祖霊加入の儀式としての荒神神楽
11　荒神と土公神の複合的性格
12　「古海の一夜」から浄土神楽へ
13　荒神神楽を支える人々
14　文化財への道
15　博物館展示
16　竹森の大神楽
17　映像の暴力
18　神楽を持続させるものとは何だったのか
19　伝承母体の変容
20　将来に向けての課題

第二章　神楽の中の巫者
１　巫女とは何か
２　精霊統御者
３　修験道の影響
４　神楽と女性
５　神楽の歴史的変遷
６　荒神
７　法者
８　死霊の鎮め
９　能舞の変遷と神殿
10　荒平の出現
11　土公祭文
12　周縁の衰退
13　巫者の行方

第三章　大元神楽の変容
１　大元神楽とは
２　大元神楽との出会い
３　大元神と大元神楽
４　大元神楽の変容
５　明治以後の変動
６　大元神楽の構成
７　五龍王
８　神歌
９　神がかり
10　式年の特色と神がかりを巡る言説
11　大元神楽の特徴
12　伝承の変化と持続
13　再興とイベント化
14　伝承の持続と再検討

第四章　湯立神楽の意味と機能――遠山霜月祭の考察
１　湯立神楽
２　天龍川中流域の祭祀
３　遠山霜月祭の特徴
４　冬の到来を告げる季節祭
５　起源伝承
６　供物と湯立
７　山と竈と土公神
８　五大尊法と不動明王
９　九字護身法
10　立願と湯立
11　死霊の鎮めと湯立
12　湯立とは何か

第五章　神楽の近代――大乗神楽の事例から
1　神楽の近代という問題設定
２　山伏神楽
３　大乗神楽の発見
４　江釣子の「大乗會」
５　「大乗會」以前――岩崎の伍大院
６　「大乗會」の出現―南笹間の萬法院
７　幕末期の修験の動向
８　「大乗會」から大乗神楽へ――煤孫の貴徳院
９　神仏分離と「大乗會」
10　法印の意味の変化
11　巡行と権現舞と火防祭
12　文化財から文化遺産へ
13　行政の関与と「大乗會」の復元
14　「大乗會」の意味の変化
15　コスモロジーの行方

第六章　目連の系譜――死者供養の神楽
１　目連とは
２　目連と盂蘭盆会
３　備後の「目連ノ能」
４　「目連ノ能」と浄土神楽
５　「目連ノ能」の特徴
６　「目連ノ能」の時代的背景
７　「語り物」としての目連
８　盆踊りの目連
９　目連救母の読み替え
10　「目連ノ能」と祭文の比較
11　東アジアの中の目連戯

第七章「民俗藝術」の発見――小寺融吉の学問とその意義
１　民俗芸能研究の始まり
２　小寺融吉の位置付け
３　小寺家の人々
４　小寺融吉と舞踊
５　小寺融吉の著作活動
６　小寺融吉の研究の特徴
７　小寺融吉の転機
８　文化財行政の展開
９　日本青年館と小寺融吉
10　「郷土」と「民謡」
11　民俗藝術から民俗芸能へ
12　澁澤敬三の貢献
13　「民間学」としての舞踊研究の誕生
14　「民俗藝能の会」の成立

第八章　神楽研究の再構築へ向けて
１　神楽研究への視座
２　神楽の発生と御神楽
３　鎮魂の近代
４　鎮魂と神楽
５　近代における神楽の創出
６　中世神楽という視座の再検討
７　中世神楽論の問題点
８　浄土神楽をめぐって
９　『神楽源流考』への疑義
10　再び中世神楽へ
11　死者供養の神楽
12　神楽研究の可能性

参考文献
図版クレジット
あとがき
索引

判型・ページ数    4-6・514ページ

鈴木 正崇
1949年、東京都生まれ。慶應義塾大学大学院文学研究科博士課程修了。文学博士。慶應義塾大学名誉教授。前日本山岳修験学会会長。 主な著書に、『中国南部少数民族誌』（三和書房、1985年）、『山と神と人』（淡交社、1991年）、『スリランカの宗教と社会』（春秋社、1996年）、『神と仏の民俗』（吉川弘文館、2001年）、『女人禁制』（吉川弘文館、2002年）、『祭祀と空間のコスモロジー』（春秋社、2004年）、『ミャオ族の歴史と文化の動態』（風響社、2012年）、『山岳信仰』（中央公論新社、2015年）、『東アジアの民族と文化の変貌』（風響社、2017年）、『熊野と神楽』（平凡社、2018年）、『女人禁制の人類学』（法藏館、2021年）、『日本の山の精神史』（青土社、2024年）、『山岳信仰と修験道』（春秋社、2025年）。受賞歴として、1997年に義塾賞、2014年に第11回木村重信民族藝術学会賞、2016年に第18回秩父宮記念山岳賞（日本山岳会）を受賞。 受賞歴として、1997年に義塾賞、2014年に第11回木村重信民族藝術学会賞を受賞。2016年，「日本の山岳信仰と修験道に関する宗教学的研究」の業績で第18回秩父宮記念山岳賞（日本山岳会）を受賞。

“Morning Picture”, the work of 1984, became the pioneer of the trend of ambient music that flourished in the mid-1980s.

This work, in which he knitted all the songs by himself and confined a beautiful melody, was released by Klaus Schulze’s “Innovative Communication”at that time, and Floating Points picked it with his own DJ MIX, both domestically and internationally. It is being evaluated.

In recent years, the long-awaited recurrence of the masterpiece, which is recognized as a masterpiece of high-purity modern new age-ambient, and also as a representative work of Japanese Balearic.

It has been 50 years since its release. This album, which can be called the bible for guitarists, has never faded away, and is a memorable first solo album produced in the fall of 1974, when he went to the U.S. on his own. The intense guitar playing from his beloved Stratocaster set members of Little Feat, Sly & the Family Stone, Santana, and Tower of Power on fire, and created an overwhelming band sound with a funky groove. Combined with Takashi Matsumoto's windy lyrics, a unique world unfolds. This is an unprecedented historical masterpiece that changed the standard of Japanese rock music. BAND WAGON,” a milestone set by Shigeru Suzuki, one of Japan's leading guitar legends who is still active as a musician, rings out!

Killer JPN New Age/Walearic! Shigeru Suzuki's alias works are back on LP!

This LP reissue is the most new age of Shigeru Suzuki's works from 1987, which debuted as a guitarist for Happiendo, produced many songs, and supported the Showa music history and new music scene.

The conceptual content, which advocates resort ambient with a graceful touch, has recently been reevaluated in the context of "Japanese Rarealic" ("Japanese mono" + "Balearic"). It is a well-known masterpiece that is popular both domestically and internationally. The music is provided by Tetsuji Hayashi, Mari Iijima, Kazuo Zaitsu, Hajime Mizoguchi, Meiko Nakahara, and Asami Kado.

Ecological Plantron" (1994) is a radical installation that uses sound to experience the ecological chain that surrounds our bodies from the perspective of plants.
This is a reprint of "Ecological Plantron" (1994), a radical installation that uses sound to let us experience the ecological chain that surrounds our bodies from the perspective of plants.

Bio-artist Yuji Dohkin researched and developed an epoch-making system in the early 1990s to create a device that speaks to plants and is spoken to by plants, which is "Plantron" (*I have a related doctoral thesis).
(*There is also a related doctoral dissertation.) This device, which extracts ecocurrents from plants (orchids) and converts them into physical phenomena that can be perceived by humans, is primarily intended to explore whether humans can perceive the intelligence of plants, and is not intended to entertain physical phenomena themselves. Ecological Plantron" is the "sound" record of the first installation of this "Plantron" in operation.

In this work, the copper-plated "Plantron" is constructed by composer Mamoru Fujieda into a sound system for installation, and the ecological current generated by the communication between plants and the human environment is programmed and converted into electronic sound, emitting irregularly shaped and irregular electronic sound particles.
(*Note) If I were to use a strong analogy, I might imagine an atmosphere somewhat similar to that of Xenakis or Penderecki's graphic notation music. Ecological currents remind us of the experimental music of Rosenboom and Lussier, who used human brain waves, but this work is not human-centered but plant-first, and it should be noted that it is not presented as a "musical work" in the first place.

For this reissue, we have remastered the independent recordings made at the gallery and included two works derived from Ecological Plantron, "Mangrove Plantron" and "Pianola Plantron," on a bonus disc. The first LP version is also available.
Since the experimental release of this device in 1991, pseudo-similar attempts have appeared, but it should be noted that the original was "Plantron". The commentary includes the latest contribution by Copper Gold, which reexamines the story of this experiment and its development, as well as the intentions of this work.

Note: Fujieda rediscovered the "melody" that modern music had left behind in the process of trying to extract some kind of regularity from this uncontrollable mass of sound, and this led him to compose and publish a series of works called "Plant Patterns.

Ecological Plantron" (1994) is a radical installation that uses sound to experience the ecological chain that surrounds our bodies from the perspective of plants.
This is a reprint of "Ecological Plantron" (1994), a radical installation that uses sound to let us experience the ecological chain that surrounds our bodies from the perspective of plants.

Bio-artist Yuji Dohkin researched and developed an epoch-making system in the early 1990s to create a device that speaks to plants and is spoken to by plants, which is "Plantron" (*I have a related doctoral thesis).
(*There is also a related doctoral dissertation.) This device, which extracts ecocurrents from plants (orchids) and converts them into physical phenomena that can be perceived by humans, is primarily intended to explore whether humans can perceive the intelligence of plants, and is not intended to entertain physical phenomena themselves. Ecological Plantron" is the "sound" record of the first installation of this "Plantron" in operation.

In this work, the copper-plated "Plantron" is constructed by composer Mamoru Fujieda into a sound system for installation, and the ecological current generated by the communication between plants and the human environment is programmed and converted into electronic sound, emitting irregularly shaped and irregular electronic sound particles.
(*Note) If I were to use a strong analogy, I might imagine an atmosphere somewhat similar to that of Xenakis or Penderecki's graphic notation music. Ecological currents remind us of the experimental music of Rosenboom and Lussier, who used human brain waves, but this work is not human-centered but plant-first, and it should be noted that it is not presented as a "musical work" in the first place.

For this reissue, we have remastered the independent recordings made at the gallery and included two works derived from Ecological Plantron, "Mangrove Plantron" and "Pianola Plantron," on a bonus disc. The first LP version is also available.
Since the experimental release of this device in 1991, pseudo-similar attempts have appeared, but it should be noted that the original was "Plantron". The commentary includes the latest contribution by Copper Gold, which reexamines the story of this experiment and its development, as well as the intentions of this work.

Note: Fujieda rediscovered the "melody" that modern music had left behind in the process of trying to extract some kind of regularity from this uncontrollable mass of sound, and this led him to compose and publish a series of works called "Plant Patterns.

The Vimalakirti Sutra, one of the representative Mahayana sutras, features the lay Buddhist believer Vimalakirti as its protagonist. It elucidates fundamental Mahayana Buddhist concepts such as “emptiness” and the “non-dualistic teaching”—the principle that seemingly opposing concepts like “delusion and enlightenment” or “good and evil” are fundamentally one. This introductory guide to the Vimalakirti Sutra offers accessible explanations by a leading authority in Buddhist scriptural studies.

Hakushi Hasegawa is a musician/singer-songwriter based in Tokyo, Japan, and the first Japanese artist signed to the Brainfeeder label. Brainfeeder announced the signing back in July 2023 and shared a single – “Mouth Flash (Kuchinohanabi)” – featuring bass by the super-talented Sam Wilkes (Leaving Records). A few days later Hakushi blew fans away, making their debut at the iconic music festival Fuji Rock in Japan. In September Hakushi created the soundtrack for the noir kei ninomiya Spring/Summer 2024 runway show for Comme des Garçons at Paris Fashion Week. Now Hakushi is the focus of a cover-to-cover takeover at Yuriika [Eureka] for November’s issue of the historical Japanese literary magazine specializing in poetry and criticism.

Consistent with Brainfeeder’s ethos of seeking out artists operating outside the confines of genre since the label started in 2008, Hakushi’s music is tricky to categorize as it straddles a few genres: alternative, electronic, jazz, pop/J-pop. Sometimes it’s pretty, at times it’s very intense and fast-paced. Releasing since 2018, they’ve already made a name for themselves domestically in Japan with a string of wonderfully wild releases and started to build a cult following internationally. Collabs to date have included Kid Fresino, yuigot, TOKYO SKA PARADISE ORCHESTRA, Yukichikasaku/men and Eye from Boredoms.

“Somoku Hodo” was Hakushi’s debut release in 2018 as a teenager, featuring fan favourites ‘Somoku’ and ‘Doku’ – a hyperspeed junglist jazz workout that makes early Squarepusher material sound positively pedestrian. Their debut album “Air Ni Ni” followed a year later in 2019, cementing their reputation as one of Japan’s most exciting, adventurous artists. Hakushi performed at the online festival “Secret Sky” in May 2020 hosted by Porter Robinson (4M viewers) and they graced the cover of influential music publication “MUSIC MAGAZINE” in September 2020. 

Hakushi Hasegawa is a musician/singer-songwriter based in Tokyo, Japan, and the first Japanese artist signed to the Brainfeeder label. Brainfeeder announced the signing back in July 2023 and shared a single – “Mouth Flash (Kuchinohanabi)” – featuring bass by the super-talented Sam Wilkes (Leaving Records). A few days later Hakushi blew fans away, making their debut at the iconic music festival Fuji Rock in Japan. In September Hakushi created the soundtrack for the noir kei ninomiya Spring/Summer 2024 runway show for Comme des Garçons at Paris Fashion Week. Now Hakushi is the focus of a cover-to-cover takeover at Yuriika [Eureka] for November’s issue of the historical Japanese literary magazine specializing in poetry and criticism.

Consistent with Brainfeeder’s ethos of seeking out artists operating outside the confines of genre since the label started in 2008, Hakushi’s music is tricky to categorize as it straddles a few genres: alternative, electronic, jazz, pop/J-pop. Sometimes it’s pretty, at times it’s very intense and fast-paced. Releasing since 2018, they’ve already made a name for themselves domestically in Japan with a string of wonderfully wild releases and started to build a cult following internationally. Collabs to date have included Kid Fresino, yuigot, TOKYO SKA PARADISE ORCHESTRA, Yukichikasaku/men and Eye from Boredoms.

“Somoku Hodo” was Hakushi’s debut release in 2018 as a teenager, featuring fan favourites ‘Somoku’ and ‘Doku’ – a hyperspeed junglist jazz workout that makes early Squarepusher material sound positively pedestrian. Their debut album “Air Ni Ni” followed a year later in 2019, cementing their reputation as one of Japan’s most exciting, adventurous artists. Hakushi performed at the online festival “Secret Sky” in May 2020 hosted by Porter Robinson (4M viewers) and they graced the cover of influential music publication “MUSIC MAGAZINE” in September 2020. 

Japanese musician Hakushi Hasegawa/長谷川白紙 proudly announces their new album Mahōgakkō/魔法学校 for LA-based Brainfeeder Records, out July 24th. As part of the announcement, Hasegawa shares a new single and video – “Boy’s Texture” – serving as the album’s second single after last year’s “Mouth Flash (Kuchinohanabi)”. The news arrives alongside Hasegawa’s grand gesture of revealing their face to fans for the very first time, unveiling a new side of the elusive and compelling artist.

“Boy’s Texture” sprints with all the energy of springtime. A warm, easygoing guitar forms the track’s main center, a through line as skittering synths, pounding drums, and a chorus of voices swirl around it. The video, directed by Gauspel (Brandon Saunders), explores the desire to find a missing piece of yourself in the wild. “Most people hold this preconceived notion that your being will be complete upon this revelation and that the broken pieces that comprise you will find their final puzzle piece,” he explains. “But there is no such grand revelation, just self-reflection… just you.”

Mahōgakkō, translating to “Magic School,” also seeks to make sense of a chaotic, vibrant world by letting itself get swept up in it. A balance of pop and pandemonium, the album is one of extremes, where chipmunk-pitched voices square off against percussion set to speed metal’s tempo and volume. Noise and melody, cutesy and aggressive, acoustic and electronic — all come to a head in a process Hasegawa calls the Explanatory Ratio.

“The balance is probably the only thing in my work that is intentional and very important to me,” shares Hasegawa. “In many of my songs, I use a scale that I personally call the ‘Explanatory Ratio’ to guide my work. This is not a sophisticated musical theory at all, but simply a subjective scale that looks at the balance of sounds that are explainable to me and sounds that are not explainable to me, and whether or not they are distributed in the ratio that I set for each piece.”

Mahōgakkō finds Hakushi pushing their boundaries to the absolute limit, with hyperspeed jungle and breakcore traded up for the even more pummeling onslaughts inspired by Tanzanian singeli so that they become just another texture in the wild sonic landscapes. And just when your senses are bordering on overloaded, Hakushi gifts you a moment of sweet reprieve before the roller coaster sets off again with hectic syncopations and harmonic jumps not for the faint of heart.

Impressively, the eye of this maelstrom revolves solely around Hasegawa, who taps only a few select collaborators to enliven their vision. Those who caught lead single “Mouth Flash (Kuchinohanabi)” will recall bassist Sam Wilkes added depth to the track juxtaposed against Hasegawa’s high-pitched singing. The lone featured vocalist rapper KID FRESINO lends his voice to “Gone,” where FRESINO’s determined flow seems to ground the skittering drums from spiraling out of control. NYC-based jazz composer Miho Hazama likewise lends her own form of control to “KYŌFUNOHOSHI”, guiding horns and saxes brought in by Yohchi Masago, Ryo Konishi, and Tomoaki Baba (J-Squad).

With Mahōgakkō there is no doubt that this is the sound of a once-in-a-generation artist not just breaking boundaries for Japanese music but global music culture and it will leave you with no doubt that Hakushi Hasegawa is only really just getting started. 

From the label established by Satoshi Ashikawa, a pioneer of Japanese environmental music, Takashi Sekiguchi's film music collection linked to Hiroshi Yoshimura, Inoyamaland and others has been made into analog LP for the first time.

A world of nostalgic sounds, subtle sounds that are easy to forget.
It was nearly 40 years ago that I began searching for a tone and music that could only be found at this time, as if the instruments and tools were talking to each other through multi-track recording at home.
When I re-listen to the sound source recorded this time, I remember the time when various sounds took shape for the first time, and the bamboo from Asia of that time is revived. ― Takashi Sekiguchi

Released as a CD in 1998, "Bamboo From Asia Plus" contains the contents of Sekiguchi's own self-produced cassette tapes, as well as sound sources composed for six video works released between 1984 and 1994. Acoustic sounds that make extensive use of Asian folk instruments, mainly guitars and percussion, are clear throughout, accompanied by a variety of images, and the passion that slowly overflows. The essence of his music that transcends borders is summarized here.


In 1972, he studied under the late Masayuki Takayanagi, mastering basic music theory through jazz guitar. After that, he learned composition techniques of contemporary music and joined a progressive rock band at the same time. Around this time, he began researching ethnic music and collecting musical instruments in Southeast Asia, and learned how to perform from local musicians in Thailand, South Korea, Indonesia, and other places. Around 1983, he started working on film music. In 1990, Takashi Kogo, Yu Watanabe, and Sekiguchi formed the unit Bamboo from Asia, aiming for new Asian music. In 1993 he released his first CD "Bamboo From Asia" and in 1997 his second CD "Sacral Dance". In 1998, he released his solo album "Bamboo From Asia Plus".

・Remastered for vinyl by Kuniyuki Takahashi
・Liner notes by Yuji Shibasaki
・For fans of New-age, Ambient & World music

Silent River Runs Deep · Bamboo From Asia Plus

Nana Vasconcelos meets Midori Takada! ?? !! "Beginning" is a threatening work in which static and dynamic are delicately and boldly intermingled with ambient closed-door exotic fantasy dance music born from the exploration of the devilish world of a single overdubbing orchestra. The coupling is that Lena Willikens REMIX!

M Records will deliver the world debut of Mari Sekine, a percussionist who is active in the band! With over 10 minutes of masterpieces, you can easily control more than 15 types of percussion instruments such as kalimba, marimba, udu drum, goblet drum, djembe, talking drum, cajon, berimbau, etc. by multiple recording, and combine them with tape reverse rotation and voice. Unsurprisingly, this "Beginning" is Sekine's first "solo" recording. And it is clear from listening to this song that Sekine's musicianship was not cultivated yesterday and today. Midori Takada's fans, who seem to be the biggest hidden talents in recent years, will be surprised and welcomed. Overdubbing by multi-percussionists is also found in contemporary music, but has there ever been a work that has such overwhelming power and is compatible with everything from home listening to the floor? Expectations are high for the 1st album being produced!

The coupling is a angry funky uppercut that extracts the tribal component of "Beginning" with REMIX by the popular DJ Lena Villikens!

* "Beginning" is a rework of the song released as her 1st single "midori" (Tongs International), returning to the original title at the beginning of the recording, extending it almost three times, and reworking it into a reggae disco 12-inch composition.

Mari Sekine Profile:
Touched percussion instruments at university and started activities after graduation. After working as a JAZZ FUNK band, he joined the big band "Shibusashirazu" in 2000. Currently, he is active in sessions such as Goko Nishikawa (ex. Shang Shang Typhoon) "Hoshi no Hibuya", Michiro Endo (ex. THE STALIN) "THE END", percussion instrument group "Orquesta Nudge! Nudge!" There are many activities in theatrical works, such as Kazuyoshi Kushida's "Caucasus's White Ink Ring", "Sunshine Bo", "Sanjin Yoshizo", "Kiri no Yozo", Yang Jung Eun's "Peer Gynt", and the theater group "Kaze". Participated in "Matsurowanu Min" and "Mud Rear" of "Brick Dance".

Nana Vasconcelos meets Midori Takada! ?? !! "Beginning" is a threatening work in which static and dynamic are delicately and boldly intermingled with ambient closed-door exotic fantasy dance music born from the exploration of the devilish world of a single overdubbing orchestra. The coupling is that Lena Willikens REMIX!

M Records will deliver the world debut of Mari Sekine, a percussionist who is active in the band! With over 10 minutes of masterpieces, you can easily control more than 15 types of percussion instruments such as kalimba, marimba, udu drum, goblet drum, djembe, talking drum, cajon, berimbau, etc. by multiple recording, and combine them with tape reverse rotation and voice. Unsurprisingly, this "Beginning" is Sekine's first "solo" recording. And it is clear from listening to this song that Sekine's musicianship was not cultivated yesterday and today. Midori Takada's fans, who seem to be the biggest hidden talents in recent years, will be surprised and welcomed. Overdubbing by multi-percussionists is also found in contemporary music, but has there ever been a work that has such overwhelming power and is compatible with everything from home listening to the floor? Expectations are high for the 1st album being produced!

The coupling is a angry funky uppercut that extracts the tribal component of "Beginning" with REMIX by the popular DJ Lena Villikens!

* "Beginning" is a rework of the song released as her 1st single "midori" (Tongs International), returning to the original title at the beginning of the recording, extending it almost three times, and reworking it into a reggae disco 12-inch composition.

Mari Sekine Profile:
Touched percussion instruments at university and started activities after graduation. After working as a JAZZ FUNK band, he joined the big band "Shibusashirazu" in 2000. Currently, he is active in sessions such as Goko Nishikawa (ex. Shang Shang Typhoon) "Hoshi no Hibuya", Michiro Endo (ex. THE STALIN) "THE END", percussion instrument group "Orquesta Nudge! Nudge!" There are many activities in theatrical works, such as Kazuyoshi Kushida's "Caucasus's White Ink Ring", "Sunshine Bo", "Sanjin Yoshizo", "Kiri no Yozo", Yang Jung Eun's "Peer Gynt", and the theater group "Kaze". Participated in "Matsurowanu Min" and "Mud Rear" of "Brick Dance".

The content is good with surprise and excitement. Faust-This Heat's krautrock / post-punk, free rock / industrial such as Smegma and Z'ev, and the sound of emptiness turns into a violent passion. Highly recommended.

Japan Indie's hottest work !!
The initial collection of works has finally arrived !!

The improvisational trio of Yokohama, Inryofen, which was formed in 1978 and released the new work "Hugging" [EM1125CD] for the first time in 29 years, is far left and heretical even in the Japanese underground music scene. , The reason is thoroughly disclosed in this collection. Is there any other band like this at that time and now?

Their starting point was the idea of "converting surrealism to the sound of" automatic writing "", and they were active in the Tokyo / Yokohama underground scene, recording vigorously from 1980 to 1982, and three works. announced. This "early work collection" is the definitive edition that remastered all of these works from the master tape, expanded and recorded the unrecorded parts that were edited and cut, and remastered with high sound quality. In addition, for this release, the five works other than "Uncompromising" were given "song titles" for the first time (see the work description for the reason).

= Work description =
-"Uncompromising" at the beginning is a mysterious work that made known the shadow hunting rottenness, and it was also the first release of the prestigious indie, Cragale Records, known to those in the know. According to them, "Cover of Tony Conrad & Faust", but perhaps during the recording of this performance, a student activist broke into the stage and started a horse mackerel speech. The band that keeps playing silently, the activist who incites, the PA who tries to prevent the speech, the ending of the three-way! ?? !! This version is a complete version that contains all the patterns of this "legend".

-The "hammer clock" and "aiming cat" (included only in the CD version), in which the crazy electronic percussion instrument pulse is delivered, are forcibly called "articles" from the symbol with three squares on the jacket. A work recorded in the popular 7-inch EP.

-The band's true essence, the 23-minute automatic descriptive performance "Grand Rock", the masterpiece "The one that came down from the sky" where heavy percussion with a sense of mass trembles and cuts through the space, and the suspicious "Forest record" "(CD version only) is a 1st album recording work in which the band name, song name, and kata number are not written in a pure white jacket, and the agency company has declared that it cannot be distributed.


CD version:
＋ CD bonus 2 songs
＋ Normal jewel case / liner included
＋ Commentary: Atsushi Harada
＋ Japanese / English notation / Rare photos posted

The content is good with surprise and excitement. Faust-This Heat's krautrock / post-punk, free rock / industrial such as Smegma and Z'ev, and the sound of emptiness turns into a violent passion. Highly recommended.

Japan Indie's hottest work !!
The initial collection of works has finally arrived !!

The improvisational trio of Yokohama, Inryofen, which was formed in 1978 and released the new work "Hugging" [EM1125CD] for the first time in 29 years, is far left and heretical even in the Japanese underground music scene. , The reason is thoroughly disclosed in this collection. Is there any other band like this at that time and now?

Their starting point was the idea of "converting surrealism to the sound of" automatic writing "", and they were active in the Tokyo / Yokohama underground scene, recording vigorously from 1980 to 1982, and three works. announced. This "early work collection" is the definitive edition that remastered all of these works from the master tape, expanded and recorded the unrecorded parts that were edited and cut, and remastered with high sound quality. In addition, for this release, the five works other than "Uncompromising" were given "song titles" for the first time (see the work description for the reason).

= Work description =
-"Uncompromising" at the beginning is a mysterious work that made known the shadow hunting rottenness, and it was also the first release of the prestigious indie, Cragale Records, known to those in the know. According to them, "Cover of Tony Conrad & Faust", but perhaps during the recording of this performance, a student activist broke into the stage and started a horse mackerel speech. The band that keeps playing silently, the activist who incites, the PA who tries to prevent the speech, the ending of the three-way! ?? !! This version is a complete version that contains all the patterns of this "legend".

-The "hammer clock" and "aiming cat" (included only in the CD version), in which the crazy electronic percussion instrument pulse is delivered, are forcibly called "articles" from the symbol with three squares on the jacket. A work recorded in the popular 7-inch EP.

-The band's true essence, the 23-minute automatic descriptive performance "Grand Rock", the masterpiece "The one that came down from the sky" where heavy percussion with a sense of mass trembles and cuts through the space, and the suspicious "Forest record" "(CD version only) is a 1st album recording work in which the band name, song name, and kata number are not written in a pure white jacket, and the agency company has declared that it cannot be distributed.


CD version:
＋ CD bonus 2 songs
＋ Normal jewel case / liner included
＋ Commentary: Atsushi Harada
＋ Japanese / English notation / Rare photos posted

Formed in 1978 and still active, Yin Hunting Rotten is a heretic presence in Japanese indie games with its overwhelming name and works. They are an "impossible" group who were in the Tokyo / Yokohama underground scene in the early 80's but were not influenced by punk-post-punk itself.
Members Naoyuki Masuda (g), Masamichi Oyama (key), and Atsushi Harada (dr) met through a surrealist research douujinshi, and based on the idea of converting to the sound of "automatic writing", improvisation was the main axis. Started activities. He released various works in 1980-84, but his name was difficult to read, his songs were like symbols, and his titles and works with pure white bindings that didn't even have a sword were all crushed, but his unique personality was unparalleled. Since then, it has been a mysterious existence and has received strong support until now.
 This "Houaku" was recorded in 1985, but after many twists and turns, it will be submitted here as a "new work" and a second album. The recorded music was recorded by improvisational performance based on the image recalled from the video by projecting a photograph taken by Masuda in Spain into the studio, and it was edited and completed later.
Using an electrified / synthesized instrument, the amorphous music that sometimes looks like Sun Ra (unintentional) is timeless, and it's hard to tell when and where it works. The unknownness is a word of "cool !!" "I learned for the first time at this time that the time difference of" several decades "in improvisation does not mean much. I think there is no such thing as" evolution of rising shoulders "in music," (Atsushi Harada, commentary. Than)
 Following this work, "Initial Works" will be released to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the band's formation! First, the unreleased original complete version, a remaster of the sound quality dramatically improved, presented in 2014 Japan Indie's hottest work !!

The single album self-released by the quartet Shūdan Sokai in 1977 is one of the most vital documents of mid-seventies Japanese free jazz, documenting Tokyo’s free scene at the precise moment when it began to shift to a handful of tiny venues on the western fringes of the city. In Free Jazz in Japan, Teruto Soejima identifies the extant venue Aketa no Mise in Nishi-Ogikubo as the pioneer of this decamping from the centre: a cramped basement beneath a rice shop, seating just 20 people. Musician-run, operated on a shoestring, these spaces offered a vital site for community, creativity, and a small measure of financial independence — “even though it was in a basement, in spirit it was a loft.” Among the most active of the new venues was Alone in Hachiōji, nearly an hour from Shinjuku, in a district shaped by universities, lower rents, and a thriving counterculture. Originally opened in 1973 as a jazu kissa, Alone was unusually spacious and equipped with a stage, grand piano, and drum kit. Around 1974, Junji Mori and Yasuhiro Sakakibara began working there, booking free jazz players on weekends and establishing the venue as a crucial hub. Mori recalls early appearances by figures including Kazutoki Umezu, Toshinori Kondo, and others who would define the scene. In early 1976, Umezu and pianist Yoriyuki Harada — recently returned from New York’s loft jazz environment, where they had played with musicians such as David Murray and William Parker — formed Shūdan Sokai with Mori and drummer Takashi Kikuchi. The name, meaning “mass evacuation,” pointed to their self-chosen exile in Hachiōji. With Alone as their home base, the quartet developed a music characterized by an infectious sense of enjoyment and a willingness to integrate free jazz with elements of song structure. Harada switched between piano and bass; the group experimented with rap-like vocal pieces, jabbering nursery rhymes over bass rhythms. They returned to Alone on December 24 to record Sono zen’ya (Eve), releasing it on their own Des Chonboo Records, partially funded by advertisements from local businesses printed on the rear cover. The closing “Ballad for Seshiru,” dedicated to Harada’s newborn son, unfolds over a delicate piano melody that moves into emphatic chords as intertwining alto lines rise and spiral. Alone closed in September 1977, and Shūdan Sokai soon dissolved, later morphing into the expanded Seikatsu Kōjyō Iinkai Orchestra. What remains is a recording rooted in a specific place and moment: a fiercely independent scene sustained by small rooms, close listening, and collective commitment.

「ヴァシュティ・バニヤンを例に出したくなる英国自主フォークのような質感の琴とハープのアンサンブルに伝統的な歌唱法による自作自演の歌、エレガントな笙のドローンが重なる、信じられない和洋の折衷。「西洋化」「近代化」「ポップス化」「洗練」という言葉は決して雑に扱うべきではないが、この雨田光平の「新春譜」は伝統・土着と西洋音楽それぞれへの距離の取り方において、考えうる最高レベルの古今東西融和の成功例であり、我が国にも「パッタナー」（※タイ語で変革、発展の意）が在ったことを示す証拠となる1曲だ。あと数年後には「日本のポップス史」を扱う本の第一章にはこの曲の記述が載ることになるだろう。つうか載ってるべきでしょう！」（俚謡山脈）

「新春早々、実は食えないニセのおせち料理を食わされった！って悪夢が満載です！！ …でもオイシイでしたね！」（中原昌也）

「とても昭和30年に作曲された作品とは思えない。新春のヒリッと張り詰めた清らかな凛とした空気の中を、柔らかにほぐされ、ゆっくりと呼吸しながら、その瑞々しさを少しずつ身体に浸透させながら、身を清めてじっくりと浄化されるかのような、そんな音の処方箋的メディテーショナルな響きと心地よさに完全に魅了されてしまった。めくるめくミュージックコンクレート的な場面展開ストーリーテリング、エレクトロニクス・ダウンテンポ・アブストラクト・ダビーなSUGAI KENによる伝統への愛情伝わる和イマジナリー・コズミックなリワークとの対比も非常に興味深く面白い。」（COMPUMA）

EM Record's release of little known koto auteur Kōhei Amada continues the label's tireless mapping of multi-hued human expression, sitting outside genre convention and confusing record store clerks everywhere. "Shinshunfu" is sectioned into two parts: a more recognizable duet between koto and Irish harp, and a complete 180 into an elongated vocal piece repellent with droning shō and taiko drum bass hits. This concoction brings up familiar scents: Lou Harrison's small ensemble harp pieces, or a Japanese recasting of the Medieval troubadour songs performed by transcultural-minded early music groups like Studio der frühen Musik or Hespèrion XXI. Yet these comparisons are merely abstract, "Shinshunfu" exists at a crossroads, a form both distinctly Japanese and distinctly "other", a complex blend of folk strains that is deep with emotional resonance and hard to place even for aficionados of Japanese traditional music.

Sugai Ken's rework renders the source material almost unrecognizable, pushing even further in the non-deterministic, GRM-like meta-concrète direction of his recent work, jump-cutting in high definition between synthetic birdsong, haunted vocoded voice and arresting, back-of-the-head foley. Of "Shinshunfu", only the drone of the shō and the occasional taiko hit appear in plain view. The exploration sits comfortably in the idiosyncratic sound world that Ken has been prolifically constructing for himself in the last few years (what he has come to call "Japanese electronic-folklore"), just as brilliant as one would expect. (Spencer Doran/Visible Cloaks)

--------------------------------------------------------

「考えうる最高レベルの古今東西融和」（俚謡山脈）を人知れず成し遂げていた幻の傑作であり、現代のアーティストや作家達を惹き付けてやまない秘曲、京極流箏曲「新春譜」。作者、雨田光平の貴重な自演と電子音楽の名工、SUGAI KENによるリワークをカップリングしてお届けする必殺の1枚。

＜京極流＞は明治に創設された箏曲の流派であり、その二代宗家である雨田光平は福井県生まれの彫刻家／画家／作曲家で、日本に本格のハープ奏法（注記）を持ち帰ったハープ奏者でもある。京極流は箏曲界のスーパースター、宮城道雄らの「新日本音楽」に先立ち（※雨田と宮城は親交が深かった）、黛敏朗、諸井誠、武満徹らが台頭するよりも前、歌唱と演奏の両方で古今東西の均整の取れた合体に成功していた驚くべき例で、誤解を恐れず字義のまま言えば日本式＜シンガー・ソングライター＞の始原といえる。

この「新春譜」は画家・青木繁の描いた古の神々のイメージを創作源に、雨田が昭和30年頃に作曲し、京極流箏曲が福井県無形文化財に指定された後、昭和45年に出版した自主制作LP収録のヴァージョンで、琴、笙、ハープを含めた6名で合奏・歌唱したものだ。

対するSUGAI KENのリワークは現代音楽／RVNG／HIPHOPをメビウスの環のようにつないだ作品で、リワークというよりはもはやオリジナル新曲と言っていい。

京極流箏曲と「新春譜」を考察した切れ味鋭い解説も必読！

During the 1990s Shizuka self-released a series of four cassettes, barely heard by anyone outside of their inner circle. Culling together live recordings and home demos, these served as companions to the scant amount of proper Shizuka releases at the time (including the recently reissued Heavenly Persona). Concentric Circles is proud to present the third and most anomalous cassette from Shizuka, simply titled III, on vinyl for the first time in an edition of 500 copies. Formed by guitarist and singer Shizuka Miura, alongside husband Maki Miura, who’d previously played with both Les Rallizes Dénudés and Fushitsusha, the group known as Shizuka started in the early 90s with Jun Kosugi (also of Fushitsusha) on drums, and a revolving cast of bass players, including J.J. Junko, whose sole recorded appearance with the band is here on III. Devoid of any of their trademark noise and bombast, III feel distinct from their studio and live albums of the era, largely due to its fragility; haunted and spare, the songs revolve around Shizuka Miura’s gentle, unforced sighs, and Maki’s flickering, flinty guitar. The first side of the album features four songs – “For You,” “Lunatic Pearl,” “The Night When The Door Opens” and “To The Sky” – which will be well-known to Shizuka fans from previous recordings, but the drastically understated renditions here are particularly moving for their quietude and intimacy. The second half of III consists of a side-long duo session, just Shizuka and Maki Miura together at home, circling around the simplest two-chord motif for twenty minutes, Shizuka singing the most heavenly melody, strung through the sky of this lengthy improvisation. It’s an astonishingly beautiful performance, one that stills time through its becalmed repetition, pointing towards the endless forever. In this respect, it feels like an ultimate extension of Opal’s early recordings, Big Star’s 3rd or even Galaxie 500’s quietest moments. III lifts the darkness away, allowing for a softer, more gentle Shizuka to shine through, bringing with it a side to the band that most never knew existed. A lovely discovery if there ever was one.

Few artists have left behind a legacy as enigmatic and captivating as Shizuka Miura. Amidst the Tokyo underground, she was a spectral figure, creating ghostly, childlike dolls and writing haunting, other-worldly songs. She formed Shizuka in 1992 with Maki Miura, known for his staggering guitar work in legendary groups Fushitsusha and Les Rallizes Dénudés. Their music bloomed with a fragile, yet explosive mystical power; an atmospheric alchemy of psychedelic rock, folk and noise with Shizuka’s ethereal vocals invoking loneliness, yearning and dark providence. Since her passing in 2010, the group has steadily gathered a cult following. Black Editions presents their sole studio album, 1994’s Heavenly Persona, a monumental, transcendent work originally issued by P.S.F. Japan on CD in 1994; Now newly remastered and in its first ever vinyl edition on double LP with a laser etched fourth side. Presented in a deluxe tip-on tri-fold jacket with ink pigment foil stamping, gloss film laminate finish and printed inner sleeves and mounted booklet. It includes her extensive, heart wrenching final interview, translated for the first time to English alongside high-resolution archival images.