Akira Miyoshi facts for kids

Akira Miyoshi (born January 10, 1933 – died October 4, 2013) was a famous Japanese composer. He created many different kinds of music, from grand orchestral pieces to music for films and even for traditional Japanese instruments.

About Akira Miyoshi

Akira Miyoshi was born in Suginami, a part of Tokyo, Japan. From a very young age, he showed amazing talent for playing the piano. He was what people call a child prodigy, meaning he was incredibly skilled for his age. He learned music from great teachers like Kozaburo Hirai and Tomojiro Ikenouchi.

Even though he loved music, he first studied French literature at the University of Tokyo. Later, he went to Paris, France, to study music composition at the famous Paris Conservatory from 1955 to 1957. While there, he was greatly inspired by another composer named Henri Dutilleux.

After returning to Japan in 1957, he finished his studies at the University of Tokyo in 1960. By 1965, he became a professor at the Toho Gakuen School of Music, teaching new generations of musicians.

Miyoshi received many important awards for his music. In 1996, the French Government honored him with the Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. He also won the 31st Suntory Music Award in 1999 and received the prestigious Otaka prize six times for his amazing compositions.

His Music

Akira Miyoshi wrote a huge variety of music throughout his life. He explored many different styles and instruments.

Music for Orchestra

Miyoshi composed many large pieces for full orchestras. These often featured many instruments playing together to create powerful sounds. Some of his orchestral works include Trois mouvements symphoniques (1960), Concerto for piano and orchestra (1962), and Requiem for choir and orchestra (1970).

Music for Wind Instruments

He also wrote music specifically for wind orchestras, which are groups of instruments like flutes, clarinets, trumpets, and trombones. He even composed a fanfare for the Sapporo Olympics in 1972!

Chamber Music

Chamber music is written for smaller groups of instruments, often just a few musicians playing together. Miyoshi wrote pieces for string quartets (four string instruments), and unique combinations like flute, cello, and piano. He also created music for percussion ensembles, which are groups of instruments you hit, shake, or scrape.

Music for Piano

As a talented pianist himself, Miyoshi wrote many pieces for the piano. These include his Piano Sonata (1958) and a collection of 28 pieces called A Diary of the Sea (1981). He also wrote music for two pianos and for four-hand piano, where two people play on one piano.

Music for Guitar

Miyoshi composed several pieces for the guitar, sometimes for two guitars playing together. One interesting piece is Constellation Noire (1989), which is for guitar and a string quartet.

Music for Percussion

Percussion instruments were a big part of Miyoshi's work. He wrote several pieces for the marimba, a large wooden instrument played with mallets. His Conversation suite for marimba (1962) has five parts, each with a fun, descriptive title like "Tender Talk."

Music for Traditional Japanese Instruments

Akira Miyoshi also explored the sounds of traditional Japanese instruments. He wrote music for the shakuhachi (a bamboo flute) and the koto (a stringed instrument).

Songs and Choral Music

He composed many songs for singers and a lot of music for choirs. His choral works include pieces for women's choirs, men's choirs, and mixed choirs. He even wrote music for children's choirs, like Five Pictures for Children (1968) and Kitsune-no-uta (Song of Fox) (1976).

Stage Works

Miyoshi also created music for the stage, including operas. An opera is a play where the story is told mostly through singing. One of his operas was called Ondine (1959).

Anime Music

You might be surprised to know that Akira Miyoshi also composed music for popular Japanese animation, known as anime! He wrote music for the well-known series Anne of Green Gables.