The Sabukaru Guide to Japanese Ambient Music
The concept of wa [和], meaning harmony and serenity, is a major cornerstone of Japanese culture.
The importance of this mentality in Japanese society results in deep appreciation for nature, an aesthetic preference towards minimalism, and traditional values that focus on maintaining peace.
One cultural offspring that culminates all of these concepts is ambient, atmospheric, and new age music; an umbrella of genres that began to garner substantial creative interest in the early 1980s within Japan, remaining closely associated with the country and greatly influencing Japanese music as a whole over the past 40 years.
Hiroshi Yoshimura [1940-2003]
First becoming a staple of Japanese music as electronic instruments became more readily available, the genres took off as prominent Japanese musicians across pop, electronic, and orchestra made their foray into experimenting with the styles.
As is the case for many Japanese music scenes, the YouTube algorithm in recent years has brought light to these genres in the West, spurring greater international interest.
With this growing popularity and retrospective interest in these styles outside of Japan, the Sabukaru team would like to shed further light on the genre’s history, and present some of our favorite projects from the past several decades of the genre.
Hiroshi Yoshimura - Music For 9 Postcards [1982]
The late Hiroshi Yoshimura is arguably the most well known ambient experimentalist of all time, setting a standard for the genre’s sound, and becoming among the most beloved musical visionaries of 20th century Japanese music.
A number of his projects such as 1986’s Green and 1993’s Wet Land remain some of the most iconic works within the genre, but his 1982 release, Music for 9 Postcards truly set the stage for the genre.
Originally intended as a background piece for the Hara Contemporary Art Museum in Shinagawa, Tokyo, the tape’s minimalist approach to instrumentation, direct recordings from nature, and sonically emotional atmospheres captivated visitors, and the tape received a wide release soon after.
Hiroshi Yoshimura would lose his battle to cancer in 2003 at the age of 63. His discography would live on for decades later, even garnering a loyal fanbase in the West over the past five years following rereleases of selected works from the record labels Light in The Attic and Empire of Signs.
Haruomi Hosono - Watering a Flower [1984]
Haruomi Hosono, most notable for his sustainable role in electropop supergroup Yellow Magic Orchestra, is a giant in the Japanese music world.
Following the astronomical success of YMO’s 1981 release, BGM [Back Ground Music], Japanese retailer MUJI approached Hasono with the task of making their own background music to be played within their stores.
Muji was looking for a sound that was inviting, serene, and minimalistic, and Hasono delivered with a friendly yet highly experimental collection of tracks that utilize calming chimes and progressive piano chords.
This tape became a favorite among fans of the genre and was later released for consumers in the form of cassette in 1984.
Midori Takada - Through The Looking Glass [1983]
Credited as an early pioneer of the Japanese experimental ambient scene, Midori Takada is among the most successful female composers and percussionists in the history of Japanese music.
Originally performing in orchestras in Europe in the 1970s, Takada quickly shifted to become more experimental, beginning to explore music cultures overseas and developing and interest in a more minimalistic sound.
Her 1983 release, Through The Looking Glass, is beloved for its inspired percussive tracks and otherworldly instrumentation featuring everything from harmonium to glass bottles.
This album remains among the most well known Japanese ambient projects, and solidified Takada as a highly respected musical visionary.
Satoshi Ashikawa - Still Way [1982]
1982’s Still Way, the second installment of Ashikawa’s “Wave Notation” Series [the first of which being Hioshi Yoshimura’s Music For 9 Postcards], is Ashikawa’s only full length release, having tragically passed the next year at the age of 30.
Featuring prominent harp and piano, this tape follows many of the same themes featured in Yoshimura’s first installment, with a charming minimalism that soothes the mind. Building upon these ideas further, Ashikawa excels in this tape with his instrumental composition, balancing each part with a delicate orchestral synergy. This tape also features percussion from Midori Takada.
Despite his untimely death and resulting unfortunately small discography, Ashikawa is highly respected for his contributions to the ambient genre. His visionary Wave Notation series would receive its third installment in 1984, performed by Satsuki Shibano and composed by French impressionist composer Erik Satie [1866-1925].
Susumu Yokota - Sakura [2000]
Most notable for his work producing legendary techno and house tracks, Susumu Yokota, sometimes performing under the pseudonym Ebi, dabbled with ambient music during the latter half of the 1990s, releasing Sakura in 2000.
Though his electronic works always had a layered, atmospheric element, Sakura is a full fledged ambient project, yet Yokota subtly brings over structed beats similar to his other house and techno works. Yokota further makes the genre his own by blending the traditional orchestra and nature inspired sounds with glitch hop distortion and modern electronic production.
Susumu Yokota passed prematurely in 2015 at the age of 54, but remains an icon of contemporary Japanese music, highly respected for his passion for musical experimentation.
Takashi Kokubo - Oasis of The Wind II [1993]
Initially notable for his work in creating various chimes and background sounds for companies and venues such as Docomo and Roppongi Hills Arena, Takashi Kokubo is a proven craftsman in the realm of ambient music.
Kokubo later became acclaimed for his 10 part Ion ambient album series released on label between 1992 and 1993. The six installment of this series in particular, Oasis of The Wind II, stands out for its nature references and careful attention to the brain chemistry behind relaxation, including subtle pink noise and high frequency stereophonic tones.
Merzbow - Merzbient [2010]
Masami Akita, visionary behind legendary noise project Merzbow, injected his classic noise sound into the ambient genre in 2010.
Though this 10 hour album takes heavy inspiration from previous pioneers of the genre, Merzbient is decidedly a Merzbow project, with compressed and distorted instrumentation that borders on unsettling.
Though the tape is far too long and intense for most casual listening sessions, it stands out as a creative idea for a genre that similar to noise has always pushed for new horizons of experimentation.
Stomu Yamashta - Iroha: Sui [1982]
Growing up surrounded by orchestral music as his father directed the Kyoto Philharmonic Orchestra, Yamashta took great interest in percussive performance, later studying at Kyoto University, Julliard, and Berklee.
He would then go on to explore a range of styles from rock to film scores before entering the ambient genre with his Iroha series. Each tape explored a different core element; sky, water, and fire.
Sui, the tape exploring water, is particularly intriguing cinematic composition, taking strong influences from Yamashta’s orchestral roots.
Toshiya Sukegawa - Compositions For Magnetic Tape [1983]
Toshiya Sukegawa is well known in the realm of ambient music for his Biocic Music series from the 1990s, which similar to Stomu Yamashta’s Iroha series, each explores an element or abstract concept of nature. Before this series however, was a far more avante garde and arguably more exploratory project, Compositions For Magnetic Tape, released in 1983.
This tape is decidedly challenging, with atmospheres that take notes not from nature, but rather from the technology of the time. This unique take on the genre differs greatly from the relaxed and inviting approach that Sukegawa’s contemporaries took on the genre.
Rather than trickling water and birds chirping, Sukegawa captures distorted static and glitchy feedback. Though Sukegawa’s following work remains highly notable within the genre, Compositions For Magnetic Tape truly sets him apart in the scene, displaying his creativity and unique perspective.
Ambient music remains one of many of Japan’s most notable musical exports, continuing to find new fans through rereleases and digital media algorithms.
The fabric of Japanese society has birthed not only the creativity for Japanese musicians to excel within the genre, but the desire to pursue the very atmospheres the music manages to create.
About the author:
Kade Nations is the music brain of the Sabukaru team.
