From Ayuo's CD "AOI" (TZADIK 7260) released in November 2005.
Composed by Ayuo using a text by the medieval Japanese playwright Zeami. based on an episode in "Genji Monogatari" (Romance of Genji"), written by Lady Murasaki Shikibu, who finished writing it in 1004 AD. In this episode, Lady Rokujo becomes an angry living spirit that flies out of her body to haunt Lady Aoi, even though she herself is unaware of it.
Ayuo's Electronic Guitar bgeins the piece. Ring Modulators, Pitch Shifters, Distortions and other electronic effects are applied to an open - tuning guitar.
The acoustic instruments are the Sangen ( a 3-string plucked string instrument), a Biwa (a 4-string plucked string instrument with a ringing sound like the sitar) and a shakuhachi (bamboo flute). 2 female singers sing in a traditional Japanese style. The players are:
Ayuo : Electronic Guitar
Takada Kazuko: Sagen, Vocals
Nagasu Tomoca: Biwa, Shakuhachi, Vocals
Here are some of the reviews for the CD:
Aoi
Ayuo (Tzadik)
Another exciting release from the other side of the world. Aoi mixes psychedelic sounds with the Japanese tradition of Noh theatre music. It's a combination that works really well and results in something that's tuneful, organic and possesses a foreboding sense of dignity and depth. A truly accomplished album of ingenious music.
AYUO AOI
AOI is a very interesting new record from one of Japan's most enigmatic composers, Ayuo. He was born in Japan in the early-'60s but spent a formative decade in New York City (English is actually his first language, not Japanese) where he lived with his mother and an Iranian-American stepfather who exposed him to a great deal of Persian music as a child. He returned to live in Japan as a teenager and joined an early incarnation of Keiji Haino's Fushitsusha in 1979. Since then, he has released nearly a dozen albums and performed or collaborated with a staggeringly diverse group of individuals, including Kan Mikami, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Peter Hammill, Danny Thompson, the Fairport Convention, and Steeleye Span.
Though an eclectic artist, he seems to have a few predominate interests that don't seem to be too hard to reconcile, and this latest disc displays many of them. Ayuo is a wonderfully sensitive performer of pastoral psych-folk that touches on both Japanese and Anglo-Scots traditions--he's even covered Robin Williamson songs in the past. He is adept at recasting ancient Noh plays in modern settings without abandoning their strict forms, while simultaneously making them contemporarily relevant. He writes hugely epic world music synthesis that seem to have a lot in common with the direction the Boredoms have been heading in the last couple of years (i.e., an emphasis on the drone and a diverse array of multi-layered instruments like sitar-guitars and soft synths).
For more information on Ayuo, see:
www.ayuo.net
Concerts in Tokyo for 2010:
November 27, 2010 - 7:30 PM
Debussy Part 2 performed by Ayuo and Seashell
Ayuo (Bouzouki, Vocals, Movements), Yoko Ueno (Vocals, Keyboards), Aki Takahashi (Piano), Yoshie(Dance, Vocals), Junzo Tateiwa (Percussion) ,
with Seashell String Quartet
Fumiko Kai (Violin), Yuki Ohshika (Violin), Akiko Miyano (Viola), Takui Matsumoto (Cello)
December 19, 2010 - 7:30 PM
Keiji Haino/ Ayuo and Eurasian Journey
Keiji Haino (Vocals, Guitar)
with
Ayuo (Bouzouki, Vocals, Movements), Yoshie(Dance, Vocals), Junzo Tateiwa (Drums, Percussion) , Takuya Nishimura (Bass), Sayano Tojima (Violin)
Ayuo and Eurasian Journey will play songs from their CD "Songs of a Eurasian Journey" , "The Lamia" and others.
Ayuo and Keiji Haino will play arrangements of medieval music.
All at Koendouri Classics in Shibuya, Tokyo
（Tel：03-3464-2701）
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12:12
Ayuo - A Dream sequence in 14 colors Third Versionby NovaCarmina765 views
Where is the film clip taken from? Thanks very much for posting this.
mwdb 1 year ago