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Air by Toru Takemitsu, with electronics by Yoshi Weinberg

from REBIRTH EP by Yoshi Weinberg

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Tōru Takemitsu (1930-1996) was a Japanese composer of orchestral, chamber, and film music. Largely self-taught, Takemitsu continues to be one of the most outstanding voices of contemporary music. Takemitsu consistently expressed his admiration for Debussy, calling him his “greatest mentor,” while also subconsciously expressing influences of his Japanese heritage earlier in his career. However, these traditional influences, which is seen in his flute writing which consistently references Japanese Noh theater and traditional shakuhachi technique, was always in conflict with his impressionistic and “french-style” writing. It wasn’t until Takemitsu met John Cage that he understood the importance of his Japanese culture. He wrote: “I must express my deep and sincere gratitude to John Cage. The reason for this is that in my own life, in my own development, for a long period I struggled to avoid being "Japanese", to avoid "Japanese" qualities. It was largely through my contact with John Cage that I came to recognize the value of my own tradition.”

Air (1996), written for solo flute, was the last piece Takemitsu wrote, and was speculated to be intended as a work for flute, harp, and orchestra. This work is very much absorbed in a french impressionist harmonic structure with a rondo form, while also being reminiscent of his earlier styles of writings with timbral trills, and quarter-tone glisses. Premiered on January 26th 1996, Air was likely one of the last of Takemitsu’s pieces he heard performed. He later died on February 20th, 1996 from pneumonia.

This performance is the first of its kind, using electronics that I composed as a ghost image of what the orchestral accompaniment might have sounded like. We will never know what the actual orchestration of the work could have been, or if it might have lived forever as a solo flute work. However, creating this backdrop allows a more intimate interpretation and a closer relationship of the performer to the score.

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from REBIRTH EP, released October 2, 2020

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Yoshi Weinberg New York, New York

Yoshi Weinberg (they/them) is a New York City based flutist, harpist, and composer. Lauded for their “sublime tone” and “creative interpretation and technical virtuosity” (I Care If You Listen), Yoshi is a dedicated performer of contemporary and experimental works, and has performed as a soloist across North American and Europe. ... more

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