#2379: Japan: 1000 Years of Music

New Sounds | May 24, 2010
Dip into a new collection of 1000 years of Music from Japan on this edition of New Sounds. Listen to Shomyo, or Buddhist sutra chant, one of the oldest forms of vocal music in the world. These low pitched melodious drones are accompanied by metallic percussion, and are performed not as entertainment, but for traditional Buddhist ceremonies. Plus, Australia’s Synergy Percussion perform a recent work by the late Toru Takemitsu, and there’s a whole lot of other music of Japan from the span of centuries in between.

PROGRAM #2379, New Sounds (And Old) From Japan (First aired on Feb. 22, 2005)

ARTIST(S)

RECORDING

CUT(S)

SOURCE

The Ongaku Masters

An Anthology of Japanese Classical Music

Shomyo: Shichi-No-Bongo [3:30]
Gagagu: Hyojo-No-Choshi [3:30]
Michio Miyagi: Haru No Umi [7:30]

Celestial Harmonies #19912 (5 CDs)
www.harmonies.com

David Bowie

"Heroes”

Moss Garden [4:30]

Virgin #21908
Available at Amazon.com*

Ravi Shankar In Japan

East Greets East

Padhasapa [5:00]

Deutsche Grammophon #2531-381. Out of print, but available at himalayanhouse.com

The Ongaku Masters

An Anthology of Japanese Classical Music

James A. Franklin: Peace Bell [8:30]
Toru Takemitsu: Raintree [11:30]

See above.

WNYC is funded by sponsors and member donations

Top Stories

America at 250: A View from Britain, with “The Rest Is History”

The historian-podcasters Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland explain why losing the thirteen colonies “annoyed” the British, but “it could have been a lot worse.”
The New Yorker Radio Hour |

NYC Rent Guidelines Board approves 2-year rent freeze, fulfilling Mamdani campaign pledge

About 1 million rent-stabilized apartments will be shielded from rent increases for the next two years after the historic vote.
Gothamist |

Are Carriage Horses a Thing of the Past?

Liam Quigley talks about the latest efforts to ban carriage horses in Central Park.
The Brian Lehrer Show |

Feds indict former Mayor Adams adviser Frank Carone in migrant housing bribery scheme

One of former Mayor Eric Adams' oldest and closest allies was arrested Wednesday on federal corruption charges, joining a growing roster of Adams aides facing prosecution.
Gothamist |
YOU ARE ONLINE