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Ancient Instruments, New Sounds: Contemporary Compositions for Gagaku Instruments

My tiro piece “Onibi“ for ryuteki, hichiriki, and sho will be performed at UC Santa Barbara. I’m planning to visit the campus. Please check it out!

Gagaku is the ceremonial music of the imperial court and the major Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines of Japan, recognized by UNESCO as the oldest continuously performed orchestral music in the world. Gagaku has long been known for its ancient inter-Asian translocal nature and its rich vernacular traditions. It is less known that since the 1960s, composers all around the world, beginning in the US, have been writing new music for Gagaku instruments, either based on traditional techniques or as ways to explore new possibilities and develop a new musical language. Lish Lindsey (ryūteki), Thomas Piercy (hichiriki), and Fabio Rambelli (shō) perform works by Alan Hovhaness, John Cage, and more recent original pieces, as well as selections from the classical repertory. Join us for this beautiful and unexpected concert. Organized by Fabio Rambelli, International Shinto Foundation Professor of Shinto Studies, UCSB.