Search - Ryuichi Sakamoto :: Music for Yohji Yamamoto

Melodic, meditative, and moving.

R. A. Bull | Wolverhampton, UK | 12/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A few days ago I received a copy of the Gutbounce version of Music for Yohji Yamamoto Collection 1995 (it's actually my second copy, having lost my first one). I felt the need to replace it, not just because of it's fairly rare collector's value, but because it's one of my favourite Sakamoto pieces.



For those who haven't yet heard it it's basically a 35-minute piano single containing one song, the enigmatically titled Bridge. I can't tell you how much I love this piece, the structure of it is so satisfying and interesting. The piece starts off with a very ambient 8-minute or so John Cage-esque prepared piano piece which slowly drifts into a cascading flurry of notes emphasising a gorgeous harmonic progression (which I always envision as falling lotus blossom for some reason). As this is repeated a few times, building the mood of the piece, the fast flurry of notes are contrasted with a harmonically static melody which lingers poetically after each phrase.



This section is not unlike the melody to Aoneko No Torso from Smoochy and later appearing in 1996, which was about the same time period this piece was composed and performed. After this section follows an even more sparse but beautiful harmonic progression which Sakamoto whimsically laidens with sparse melodic improvisation evolving the atmosphere of the piece into a deep meloncholy.



The section that follows is a recapitulation of the 'lotus blossom' section, which grows more and more intense with each repetition, drifting into the very highest, and very lowest registers of the piano for the crescendo. Following that another sparse, contrasting progression brings the piece to a peaceful, yet sorrowful conclusion.



For those of you who are fairly new to Sakamoto's work, or who haven't yet heard the piece (which is easily done since his reportoire is so vast!), I sincerely recommend you seek this little gem of a CD out and listen, and listen to your hearts content (which, I assure you, you will). ;)"

Bridge

Florbela Gouveia | Sintra, Portugal | 01/27/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One of the major works by Ryuichi Sakamoto, passionate and intense, beautifully interpreted by himself. Its title in japanese is "Hashi" - Bridge in english and that's what it is about. One can feel the seasons passing under that bridge."