Akutagawa, Yasushi 1925 - 1989
Author: Sudoh, Eiko
Last updated：April 21, 2018
Author: Sudoh, Eiko
Born in Tokyo in 1925 as the third son of the literary giant Ryūnosuke Akutagawa. Among the belongings of his father, who committed suicide when Akutagawa was two years old, he particularly cherished records of Stravinsky's The Firebird and Petrushka, eventually aspiring to become a composer. In 1943, he entered the Tokyo Music School (now Tokyo University of the Arts). He studied composition under Kunihiko Hashimoto during the wartime period and under Akira Ifukube after the war.
In 1949, he completed his postgraduate studies at the Tokyo Music School. The following year, his Music for Symphony Orchestra won the Grand Prize in the NHK 25th Anniversary Orchestral Competition, bringing him immediate recognition. In 1953, his Triptyque for String Orchestra premiered at Carnegie Hall and received the Warsaw Music Prize. In the same year, he formed "Sannin no Kai" (The Group of Three) with Ikuma Dan, Toshiro Mayuzumi. They actively organized concerts, primarily featuring orchestral works, and led the post-war Japanese composition scene. In 1954, he visited Shostakovich and others in the Soviet Union, a country he admired.
Furthermore, based on his belief that "music belongs to everyone," he founded the amateur orchestra "Shin Kyō Kō Gakudan" (New Symphony Orchestra) in 1956. He supported its activities as a conductor for 30 years. From 1977 onwards, he served as a host for music programs such as NHK's Ongaku no Hiroba and N-Kyō Hour, dedicating himself to the popularization of music. In 1981, he became the chairman of the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC) and was actively involved in copyright protection movements. In 1982, he formed "Anti-Nuclear Japanese Musicians" and organized anti-nuclear concerts, contributing significantly to the development of the Japanese music scene through numerous social activities.
His early style, as seen in the piano piece La Danse (1948), is characterized by the urban and sophisticated expression inherited from his teacher Hashimoto, and the wild rhythmic ostinato inherited from Ifukube. From the late 1950s to the 1960s, he released works with avant-garde sounds, such as Ellora Symphony (1958) and the opera Orpheus in Hiroshima (1967). Subsequently, in works like Concerto Ostinato for cello and orchestra (1969) and Rhapsody (1971), while utilizing avant-garde techniques, he rediscovered his inherent suppleness, lightness, and vibrant ostinato. The piano collection for children, 24 Preludes (1979), fully expresses the charm of Akutagawa's works. His other works span a wide range, including film scores, children's songs, musicals, ballets, and choral pieces.
He received the Torii Music Prize and the Medal with Purple Ribbon. He passed away in 1989 at the age of 63. The following year, the "Akutagawa Award for Music Composition" was established in his honor.
Author : Sudoh, Eiko
Last Updated: April 21, 2018
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Author : Sudoh, Eiko
Works(15)
Piano Solo (4)
for children (7)
Chamber Music (2)
Various works (3)