Kanazawa, Osamu : Ususama - Toilet Music for piano
Work Overview
Instrumentation:Piano Solo
Genre:Various works
Total Playing Time:13 min 00 sec
Copyright:Under Copyright Protection
Commentary (1)
Author : Kanazawa, Osamu
Last Updated: May 14, 2019
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Author : Kanazawa, Osamu
This work is, so to speak, a "sonic Buddha statue" inspired by Ususama Myoo, the guardian deity of toilets. While it was originally composed with Mr. Oi's intrinsic pianism—his timbral range—in mind, I also intended it to be a piece that challenges his new expressive possibilities. Having been immersed in the excavation and performance of 19th-century composers recently, this work, my first new piece in five years, feels like a harbinger of new directions for both Mr. Oi and myself.
Incidentally, musical works dealing with toilets, which are indispensable to human life, are extremely rare. Perhaps they are not addressed because they are the antithesis of the conventional image of "beauty." However, when approached head-on, this becomes a considerably profound theme. The toilet is not merely a place for excretion. If defiled, evil spirits enter; if polished, divine light shines. Just as spitting is said to cause eye ailments and falling to endanger life, it is an extremely profound spiritual domain that influences human destiny. Everyone rejects interaction with others and confronts themselves and divine providence.
And it is Ususama Myoo who presides over this place. This deity is said to purify defilement and be deeply connected to financial fortune. The new piece takes this deity's name as its main title, praising its virtues while also capturing its form in sound. Its venerable image was always by my side during composition. People have "Ki-lines" (energy lines), and it is conceivable that some such line connecting this Myoo and Mr. Oi is working through me. In any case, Mr. Oi will serve as an apostle of "Ususama." May his divine power be manifested.