Role

:

Composer

Country

:

Japan

Birth

:

June 3, 1937 in Tokyo, Japan

Death

:

March 13, 2005 in Paris, France

Genre

:

Chamber

 

Yoshihisa Taira was a Japanese composer of contemporary classical music. He was born on October 17, 1937, in Tokyo, Japan. Taira was the son of a composer and a pianist, and he grew up in a musical family. His father, Taira Kan, was a composer and conductor, and his mother, Taira Kiyoko, was a pianist. Taira began studying music at a young age, and he showed a talent for composition early on. Taira studied composition at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, where he earned his bachelor's degree in 1961. He then went on to study at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin, Germany, where he studied with Boris Blacher and earned his master's degree in 1965. Taira also studied with György Ligeti in Darmstadt, Germany, in 1966. Taira's early works were influenced by the avant-garde music of the 1960s, and he was associated with the Japanese New Music movement. His early works include "Kyo" for orchestra (1962), "Ku" for chamber ensemble (1963), and "Kai" for piano (1964). These works are characterized by their use of extended techniques, such as microtonality, aleatoric elements, and unconventional playing techniques. In the 1970s, Taira's music became more introspective and meditative. He began to incorporate elements of traditional Japanese music into his compositions, and his works became more focused on the exploration of sound and timbre. Some of his notable works from this period include "Ma" for orchestra (1972), "Kaze" for shakuhachi and orchestra (1973), and "Kan" for string quartet (1975). Taira's music continued to evolve in the 1980s and 1990s, as he began to incorporate elements of minimalism and postmodernism into his compositions. He also began to explore the use of electronics in his works, and he collaborated with visual artists and choreographers on multimedia projects. Some of his notable works from this period include "Ku-Kai" for orchestra and electronics (1981), "Kyo-Kai" for string quartet and electronics (1984), and "Kan-Kyo" for orchestra and electronics (1990). Taira's music has been performed by many leading orchestras and ensembles around the world, including the Berlin Philharmonic, the London Symphony Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic. He has also received numerous awards and honors for his work, including the Japan Art Academy Prize in 1995 and the Order of Culture from the Japanese government in 2008. Taira died on February 13, 2005, at the age of 67. His legacy as a composer continues to be celebrated by musicians and audiences around the world, and his works remain an important part of the contemporary classical music repertoire.

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