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“The Fourth JASRAC Music Culture Award”

JASRAC Music Culture Award was established in November 2014 to shed light on individuals, organizations and works in various fields that contribute to the development of music culture, through important activities that may otherwise not be heralded or lead to impressive statistics in sales and works usage, to provide encouragement for future endeavor.

The fourth award was presented to the following individuals by Michio Asaishi, President of JASRAC, in the award ceremony held in Tokyo on November 17, 2017. The awardees were presented with plaques and additional prizes.

Robin Thompson

Reason behind his receiving the award

Over 30 years of studying and promoting activities of Ryukyu classical music, he wrote a music collection “Ryugaku Hyakkou”. He expressed the three line scores and vocal part of 100 works of Ryukyu classical music in elaborate five line scores, and also explained the structure of Ryukyu classical music, which has been orally traded since the 18th century, to performers, fans and researchers by analyzing the forms of the works and translating the lyrics to English and to roman characters.

Profile of the awardee
Robin Thompson was born in London in 1950. After graduating from London Royal Music Academy and London University, he came to Japan to study Japanese traditional music. He finished a master’s degree at Graduate School of Music, Musicology Program at Tokyo University of Arts in 1981. He started to study and perform Ryukyu classical music in 1982. After winning the Grand Prize in the Art Encouragement Prize Contest in Sanshin and Kokyu area hosted by Okinawa Times, he formed “London Sanshin Group” based in School of Oriental and African Studies of London University (SOAS), and worked to promote the dissemination of Ryukyu classical music overseas. He currently lives in Shuri, Naha City, and serves as an instructor at Ryukyu Classical Music Preservation Nomura Style Association and Ryukyu Classical Music Tansui Style Preservation Association. He also composes a number of songs for Japanese musical instruments including Gagaku and new works of Ryukyu classical music.

“Enjoying Musical Works of Ikuma Dan” Representative Masanori Nakano

Reason behind his receiving the award

Over the years, Masanori Nakano led the activity of singing Ikuma Dan’s works with local people at places associated with his magnificent works. He discovered and published Ikuma’s unrecognized choral suites and made its premiere. He utilized the power of music to deeply and richly link the hometown where the works were created to the thoughts of people and writers living there.

Profile of the awardee
When Masanori Nakano was working in Bridgestone Corporation in Kurume City, Fukuoka Prefecture, he had deepen relationships with Ikuma Dan through the company’s social activities, and took a leading role in the foundation of “Enjoying Musical Works of Ikuma Dan” in 2000. The society has been organizing performances of Ikuma’s works associated with the Kyushu region. Over the past five years since 2002 after Ikuma’s death, it organized a concert singing each movement every year of a mixed choral suite “Chikugogawa” which consists five movements at the Chikugo River area. In 2007, it achieved the China premiere with more than 200 members at Suzhou City where Ikuma died, and every year since then, the performance of Ikuma’s works are held in places where Ikuma had a deep relationship. Meanwhile in 2003, the society found and published Ikuma’s autographic scores of his unreleased choral suite “Karatsu”, made the first performance of all songs in 2015, 34 years after this composition, and premiered in Tokyo in October 2017 by a Tokyo chorus group.

“The Archive for the Left Hand” Project Organizer Takeo Chinai

Reason behind his receiving the award

He shed lights on valuable works of “Piano Works for the Left Hand”, discovered and introduced these buried works, and commissioned to compose and arrange works. He encouraged handicapped performers through cognitive enhancement and promotion of one handed performances. His activities expanded a new attraction and possibility of music by introducing and teaching one handed performances for children to adults.

Profile of the awardee
This project was established in 2010 by Takeo Chinai who has made a comeback as a “left handed pianist” after he developed movement disorder in his right hand due to topical dystonia. In order to break down the situation where repertoires that can be played with only a left hand is lacking, he collected about 300 musical scores relying on music history which were buried by dissipation since the 18th century. As well as publishing musical scores, organizing performances, and recording to CDs, he is commissioned to compose and arrange works that can be played with only a left hand. Since 2013, he has been organizing a workshop “One-Handed Piano Festival” which includes open lessons, recitals and lectures.