Ryuichi Sakamoto

Super Stars Culture

Biography, Net Worth, Gossips, Salary, News & Much More

ActorComposerRecord Producer

Japanese Electronic Music Maestro, Ryuichi Sakamoto Passed Away

Ryuichi Sakamoto

Ryuichi Sakamoto, a prominent Japanese composer, and producer who experimented with electronic music died at the age of 71.

He received accolades, including an Oscar, a Grammy, and a Bafta, for his solo work and his work with the Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO).

In 2021, Sakamoto was diagnosed with cancer for the second time. According to his workplace, he passed away on Tuesday.

1983’s Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence had him alongside David Bowie.

1987’s The Last Emperor earned him an Academy Award, a Grammy, and a Golden Globe. The film was an epic about the life of Puyi, the last emperor of China.

Sakamoto began studying composing at age 10; the Beatles and Debussy served as his inspiration.

In 1978, he co-founded YMO with keyboardists Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi; their synthesizer breakthroughs impacted techno-pop and hip-hop.

In 2010, he stated,

“Asian music significantly affected Debussy, and Debussy heavily influenced me, so the music flows around the world and completes a circle.”

Dr. Brian Cox, scientist and former keyboard player with the band Dare and D: Ream, lauded Sakamoto in a tweet:

“He was a significant part of my ’80s musical experience – first for me through his work with David Sylvian and Japan, but of course, he leaves behind a beautiful body of work.”

Sakamoto described his efforts to break the traditions of Western musical composition in a 2018 interview.

“When I write scores, my thought is constrained by the forms of Western composition I studied as a teenager, but I’ve always wanted to break it, break the wall, or break the restrictions I’m locked behind. Sometimes employing electronics or mixing with electronic music can assist to tear down this wall.”

He also enjoys experimenting with different musical styles.

“As soon as I get up, I begin to consider what music I will listen to,” he remarked.

Music is music to me, regardless of genre or category.

In Japan, he was particularly well-known for his environmental activism, notably after the Fukushima nuclear meltdown of 2011.

His father was a literary editor for Japanese authors, including Nobel winner Kenzaburo Oe, and he was born in 1952.

As a student at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, he received classical training but eventually specialized in ethnomusicology. He was captivated by music from around the globe, notably that of Okinawa, Japan.

Among his later collaborators were Brian Eno, Alva Noto, and cellist Jaques Morelenbaum. Sakamoto’s daughter Miu Sakamoto is a J-pop artist.

Also Read: Juan Williams Of Fox News Quits The Five! 43 Years Married Life