Keiko Fujiie facts for kids

Keiko Fujiie (pronounced Kay-koh Foo-jee-eh) was born in Kyoto, Japan, in 1963. She is a talented composer, which means she writes music. Her music is played often, not just in Japan but all around the world! Keiko Fujiie is especially famous for the music she writes for the guitar. Many of these pieces were written for her husband, Kazuhito Yamashita, who is a very well-known Japanese guitarist. She also helps lead a special group called the Kazuhito Yamashita Family Quintet. Keiko Fujiie has won a big award called the Otaka Prize two times!

Keiko Fujiie's Musical Journey

Keiko Fujiie studied music at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. After finishing her first degree, she continued her studies there. She even spent several months in New York City in 1992 and 1993. This was thanks to help from the Asian Cultural Council. She went back to New York in 1998 to show her new work, "In Their Shoes." This was a special project that combined music and dance.

Composing for Special Events

From 1998 to 1999, Keiko Fujiie was the main composer for the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa. She was asked to write music for many important events. For example, she wrote "Academic Festival Overture" for Kyoto University's 100th anniversary. She also composed "Kyoto: Reverberation" in 1997 for the Kyoto Protocol Treaty. In 2001, she wrote "Piano Concerto No.1 'Memories of January'." This piece was for the 70th anniversary of the Japan Music Competition.

Music for Competitions and Concerts

In 2004, Keiko Fujiie was asked to write a required piece for a big organ competition. This was the Fifth Musashino-Tokyo International Organ Competition. She also composed "At the Tomb of Fra Angelico" for organ and orchestra. This piece was played by the winner of that same competition in 2006. Her "Guitar Concerto No.3 'Autumn Reverie'" was first performed in Seoul, South Korea, in 2011.

The Kazuhito Yamashita Family Quintet

Since 2001, a big part of Keiko Fujiie's work has been organizing the Kazuhito Yamashita Family Quintet. This is a group of five guitarists, and she writes music for them. Their main piece is called Kasane. This music helps bring back old musical traditions from Europe and Japan. These traditions were once very popular and important.

Bringing Old Music to Life

The quintet's music reminds people of sounds from long ago. You can even hear echoes of it in The Tale of Genji. This is a famous Japanese novel from the 11th century. In Kasane, four guitars play together. They create many layers of sound with changing colors. This represents the old stringed instruments of ancient Japan.

New Music for the Quintet

Keiko Fujiie has written new pieces especially for the quintet. These include "A Cantastoria of One Thousand and One Nights" for five guitars. Another piece is "Suicho-Tsushimanoraku" for three guitars, voices, and stones. There's also a very special piece with a long name: "Morokoshi ni tsukawasu tsukai no fune Naniwa yori izuru toki haha ga ko ni okureru uta." This piece uses voices, five guitars, and Japanese Bugaku dance. It tells the story of a mother's poem. She wrote it for her son who left on a Japanese mission to China in 733 AD.

Performances and Other Works

Keiko Fujiie and the Kazuhito Yamashita Family Quintet have made three CDs. They have also been invited to many music festivals. These include the Rome International Guitar Festival in 2004 and the Cordoba Guitar Festival in 2007 and 2011. She also writes music for orchestras and choirs. She has created chamber music (for small groups) and even an opera. Keiko Fujiie is also interested in Gagaku, which is ancient Japanese court music. She studies it and writes new music for these old instruments.

Awards and Recognition

Keiko Fujiie has received several important awards for her music. In 1996, she won the Kenzo Nakajima Award for her opera called "Nina de Cera." She is one of the few Japanese composers to win the Otaka Prize twice. This award is given by the NHK Symphony Orchestra for the best composition of the previous year. She won it in 1995 for "Beber" (for orchestra) and in 2000 for "Guitar Concerto No. 2 'Koisucho'."

Selected Musical Works

Keiko Fujiie is most famous for her guitar compositions. Many of these were written for the Japanese guitarist Kazuhito Yamashita. Here are some of her selected works:

Her music has also been recorded and released on CDs, including:

• La Casa (works for solo guitar) Audio CD (December 1, 1997)
• Little Girls' Beautiful Lives