Yoshizawa Masakazu

吉沢政和

9/10/1950 - 10/24/2007

Masakazu Yoshizawa was born in Japan but educated in the Western musical tradition, receiving his degree from the Tokyo University of Fine Arts.

An internationally and nationally known, multi-faceted musician, Yoshizawa is perhaps best known publically for his performances with various Japanese flutes (shakuhachi, shinobue, hichiriki, etc.). Besides playing traditional Japanese wind instruments, Yoshizawa was a woodwind specialist, performing on the clarinet, saxaphone, and other Western woodwinds.

Masa was a musician known for his wide range of interests and talents, playing Western woodwinds, the shakuhachi and other Japanese flutes, the tsutsumi through taiko drums, and a variety of keyboards and synthesizers.

Masa performed worldwide with musicians, orchestras, symphonies, and his own group, Kokin Gumi. His most recent work included: performing shakuhachi solos on the soundtrack of and playing the shamisen in the film, Memoirs of a Geisha; playing with YoYo Ma, Itzak Perlman, and
under the direction of John Williams at the 2006 Tanglewood music festival; being the featured performer at the Kennedy Center last fall; and taking Kokin Gumi to the new concert hall in his home prefecture of Furakawa in Japan in May.

A composer for orchestra as well as many Japanese musical forms, Yoshizawa has played on many movie soundtracks including, Jurassic Park, Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III.

Yoshizawa has also worked and recorded with Osamu Kitajima, Carlos Nakai, the Crusaders, Berlin, Toshiko Akiyoshi, John Williams, and Henry Mancini, among others.

In addition to his professional performances as a musician, Masakazu Yoshizawa worked as a consultant to composers, arrangers and contractors on all Japanese instruments; gave shakuhachi lessons; and gave lectures on and demonstrations of Japanese musical instruments to schools, clubs, and other organizations.

Masakazu Yoshizawa died after a year long battle with stomach cancer. When he died he was one piece short of finishing the pieces planned for a CD being produced in his honor by Osamu Kitajima. That CD, entitled Shaku Gen (where gen means, genisis, root or beginning) will be released in 2009.

教え子

Mary Lu Brandwein

1947 -

Bruce Jones

1950 -

アルバム

	Kyori - Innervisions Modern shakuhachi music with guitar, biwa and koto.
	Sorin - Kokin Gumi Kokin Gumi is a group composed of shakuhachi, koto, shamisen, taiko drums.
	Wakyo Shakuhachi, koto, voice, taiko drums, shinobue, hichriki and kotsuzumi.

録音した曲

曲	長さ	アルバム	楽器
Amitabha	03'36	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八
Conceptualism		Kyori - Innervisions	尺八
Divine Silhouettes		Kyori - Innervisions	尺八
Immortality		Kyori - Innervisions	尺八
Konjiki Shogon	04'12	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八
Mainstreams to Oneness		Kyori - Innervisions	尺八
Oshu Anyo	06'20	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八
Sawarabi	05'01	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八
Shumi Heisen	05'06	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八
Sorin	06'27	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八
Tori Emaki	11'19	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八
Yayoi - Masakazu	03'58	Sorin - Kokin Gumi	尺八

作曲・編曲

尺八の作品
タイトル	漢字	年	別題
Conceptualism			Johakyu
Divine Silhouettes			Yogo
Mainstreams to Oneness			Kawai
Shumi Heisen
Sawarabi		1988
Amitabha		1993
Konjiki Shogon		1993
Oshu Anyo		1993
Sorin		1994
Tori Emaki		1994
Yayoi - Masakazu		1994