Matsudaira Yoritsune (松平 頼則, 1907-2001) was descended, on his father's side, from the Matsudaira clan, related to the Tokugawa clan who ruled Japan as Shogun during the Edo period, and on his mother's side from the Fujiwara clan, who were court regents from the 7th to the 12th centuries.
Matsudaira studied French literature at Keio University in Tokyo. He later studied composition privately with Komatsu Kosuke and piano with Emile Gil-Marchex. As a pianist, he made his debut in 1931. He developed into one of the most important Japanese composers of the 20th century.
Starting out with a Neoclassical style based on Nanbu folk songs, he
encountered Gagaku (ancient Japanese court music), and afterwards
reached his own unique style that combines Gagaku and Western
avant-garde music. Although he was already nearly 50 years old when he
shifted to an avant-garde style, his style continued to evolve, adopting
one after another such techniques as the twelve-tone technique,
serialism, and aleatoric music. He is internationally acclaimed for his
influence on Olivier Messiaen and Pierre Boulez, and holds the record
for the most ISCM selections by a Japanese artist.
In the 1930s, before WWII, Matsudaira was attracted to anti-romanticism and French
style Neoclassicism, as was to be expected from the French orientation
of his thinking. His idols were Ravel, Poulenc, Milhaud and Tansman, the
last a Polish composer living in Paris. He tried to combine their
styles with Japanese traditional music, although he was extremely
selective in his use of Japanese styles. One of his first choices was
folk-songs sung in the Nanbu district, the north-eastern part of Honshu. Most of these songs are peaceful and calm. Using melodic material from them, he created artificial
"paradise-like" music, lacking any element of earthiness, in a Neoclassical, bitonal style. The orchestral piece Pastoral written in this style won second prize in
the 1935 Tcherepnin Competition, which was held in Paris by the Russian
composer Alexander Tcherepnin, who had spent long periods in Shanghai
and in Tokyo, with a view to introducing Japanese works to the world.
Among the jury were big names like Roussel, Ibert, Honegger and Tansman.
Another orchestral piece making use of Nanbu folk songs is Theme and Variations on a Nanbu Folk Song for Piano and Orchestra
(1939), which won an award in the 1939
Weingartner Competition, which was held by the conductor Felix
Weingartner,
then in Japan, with the same purpose as Tcherepnin’s award. The
influence of the music of the French Impressionists can be clearly heard
here. The harmonic writing is based on the augmented fourth to create a
sense of harmonic ambiguity and colorful dissonance effects.
[Note: in Yogaku, Japanese Music of the Twentieth Century, p. 84, Luciana Galliano has mistranslated the title of this piece as "Theme and variations of folk songs from the south."
But "Nanbu" does not refer to "southern Japan," as it is the name for
the Nanbu domain which was located in what is now Iwate prefecture (plus parts of
Akita and Aomori prefectures) - which is in Tohoku, north-eastern Japan
and not in the south! "Nanbu minyo" are quite famous and can be found in
many CD collections of Japanese folk songs]
Tcherepnin also sponsored the publication of Matsudaira’s piano and
chamber pieces, along with works by other Japanese composers of his
generation, including Kiyose Yasuji and Ifukube Akira. These
were published by G. Schirmer and Universal Edition, and Matsudaira was
widely recognized as one of the leading Japanese composers of the new
generation. During this period, he studied with Tcherepnin in Tokyo and
was inspired by his idol Tansman, who visited Japan at this time.
During World War II, Matsudaira was largely silent. The trend of the
times required patriotic pieces,
but he had no intention of writing such music. He shut himself away
and devoted most of his time to delve into dodecaphony and
atonality. This period also marked the shift of his interest
from the Nanbu folk songs to Gagaku. Combining this with dodecaphony and
atonality, he found his own guiding style in what has been called "Serial Gagaku." However, as Luciana Galliano emphasizes, Gagaku was a way toward discovering Matsudaira's own personal, Japanese style of expression - he was not interested in Gagaku out of nationalism or patriotism. While other nationalist composers rejected European compositional techniques, Matsudaira never abandoned his allegiance to European music and techniques.
Matsudaira’s stylistic periods are roughly divided into two with the division somewhere in the middle of the 1950s. The first period saw the combination of folk song and Gagaku with French Neoclassicism, and the second period witnessed the integration of Gagaku and post-war avant-garde methods.
The piece that initiated a new and creative period for Matsudaira was Tema e variazioni sul tema di Etenraku per pianoforte e orchestra
(1951). "Etenraku" (越天楽) is a Gagaku melody and dance, which was
popular in the Heian period - and in our times still used at wedding
ceremonies. It is usually played with a hichiriki or ryuteki flute, and is
accompanied by other traditional instruments such as the sho (bamboo mouth organ) and koto.
However, Matsudaira didn't use the well-known Hyojo mode of Etenraku,
but opted for the older and lesser known Banshikicho mode. The piece was
first performed at the ISCM Festival in Salzburg in 1952 and subsequently also by Herbert von Karajan with as piano soloist Yvonne Loriod. The first of the set of six variations recalls the world of Gagaku, as Luciana Galliano writes: "The violins play the harsh ethereal chords of the sho, the flute and oboe play ryuteki and hichiriki melodies; the keyboards (piano, celesta and cembalo) and the remaining string instruments (lowers strings and harp) play biwa and koto ostinato phrases that reaffirm the modal structure of the music." The third variation employs the
twelve-tone technique, and the fifth variation uses jazz and
Boogie-woogie rhythms. In later compositions, Matsudaira would further refine these techniques.
Matsudaira's works were particularly successful in Europe. At the 1954 festival of the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM), his Metamorphoses d'apres Saibara
for soprano and chamber orchestra was awarded the first prize.
Dissonant sound accumulation techniques, modes from Gagaku music and
serial procedures soon entered into a symbiotic connection in his fine
ensemble and orchestral works. His mastery of dodecaphonic technique can be seen in Figures sonores (1956), which was performed by Pierre Boulez in Paris.
During this period, Matsudaira developed a compositional technique in which the
twelve-tone technique is extended to all pieces, and the tones of Gagaku are reanalyzed using the twelve-tone technique. Important works from the late 1950s are U-Mai (right dance) (1957), Sa-Mai (left dance) (1958) and Danza rituale e finale, Enbou and Chogeishi (1959), in which Matsudaira adopts a strict serial technique that he applies not only to the pitches but also to dynamics and to a certain extant to the rhythmic structure. Apparently written separately, together the four works can be played as a
Bugaku or Dance Suite. In that case the performers have to start with the short Enbou
of the Ritual Dances, next play the more substantial Sa-Mai (Left
Dance) in five sections, then the U-Mai (Right Dance) in three sections, and end with the Chogeishi of Ritual Dances. The instrumentation varies somewhat between the works but is essentially
based around woodwinds and percussion.
We will discuss these pieces separately here:
U-mai: first performed under conductor Ernest Bour in Darmstadt on 11th September 1958. U-Mai is based on the dance music Nasori and is scored for nine wind instruments, various kinds of percussion, harp, piano and string quartet. Nasori is said to be derived from ancient Chinese court music, depicting a couple of male and female dragons playing. This piece consists of three parts: Jo (Introduction), Ha (Development) and Kyu (Finale).
Sa-Mai: after winning a prize at the ISCM festival, the work was first performed in Rome on 15th June, 1959, by Michael Gielen and the Naples Radio Chamber Orchestra. Sa-Mai is based on the dance music Genjo-Raku and is scored for ten wind instruments including saxophone, a variety of percussion, celesta, harp, piano and fourteen strings (which mainly imitate the sho chords). Genjo-Raku is said to have originated in ancient China, depicting barbarians from the west.
Ritual Dances (Enbou and Chogeishi): written in Tokyo in 1959 to a commission from NHK and first given on
28th November of the same year by Iwaki Hiroyuki and the NHK Symphony. Enbou is a piece used in Gagaku to purify the stage; it is accompanied by two
yokobue flutes and percussion, and it is thoroughly improvisational in
mood - to express this, Matsudaira employs aleatoric methods, following Stockhausen and Boulez. The original Chogeishi is a noble piece composed by Minamaoto Hiromasa, a nobleman of the tenth century. The audience leave the hall while it is being played. It is scored for an irregular two-wind-based orchestra, including soprano and alto saxophones. The music is richer in timbre and more flexible in rhythm and tempo than Sa-Mai and U-Mai.
(Description of Sa-mai, U-mai and Ritual Dances based on the excellent Naxos CD liner notes by Katayama Morihide).
Long before the music of John Cage became known in Japan, Matsudaira
worked with variable, open formats and free-aleatory possibilities, as we saw in his Ritual Dances. Somakusha per flauto solo
(1961) was another experiment with aleatoric technique. The piece, of which the title refers to Gagaku music, is
regarded as a
classic work for solo flute, and is still being performed by
various virtuosos. The music is so flexible that it can be completely
changed depending on the individuality of the flutist.
In Bugaku per orchestra da camera (1962) Matsudaira rigorously adopted the post-Webern serial technique of applying serial permutations to all parameters. It won first prize at the competition run by the Italian section of ISCM. This work is based on the well-known Gagaku piece "Ranryo O" in which the handsome Prince of Lanling, when challenged to do battle, covers his graceful face under a fierce dragon mask, and wins a great victory. The work is very similar to "Sa-mai", except for the style of playing : in "Bugaku", players may play their own part freely selecting one from among a group of melodies.
Matsudaira, who always followed overseas trends in real time even after
his 50th birthday, was highly acclaimed in Europe, where he was praised
by Pierre Boulez, Goffredo Petrassi, and Witold Lutoslawski.
It is difficult to give a concise overview of Matsudaira's works from
the 1960s on - there is just too much and every work is again different.
Moreover, it is difficult to find recordings of Matsudaira's music from these years. In fact, Matsudaira continued composing until shortly before his death in 2001, although not all his music was published. In contrast to Takemitsu Toru, who became more mellow and tonal in his later works, Matsudaira kept to his avant-garde techniques, with as only change that his music became structurally freer. Just to mention some highlights:
Orchestral music:
- Three piano concertos, from 1964, 1979-80 and 2001.
- Concerto da camera per clavicembalo, arpa e strumenti (1964)
- Mouvements circulatoires (1971)
- Portrait C per orchestra da camera (1977)
Chamber and instrumental music:
- Sonatas and sonatines for violin, cello, flute. A piano trio.
- Two string quartets.
- Portrait B per due pianoforti e due percussionisti (1969)
- Concert, for gagaku ensemble (1975)
- Piano music as Le beau Japon pour piano (1970) and Tema e variazioni sul tema di Etenraku per pianoforte (1983). The first work, known for its broadcast premiere performed by Inoue Futaba, depicts various forms from Japanese folk songs to Gagaku in a solo piano setting, and has been called one of the
greatest works in the history of Japanese piano music.
Opera:
- Genji Monogatari (The Tale of Genji, 1990–93), for the soprano Nara Yumi.
- Uji jujo (The Ten Chapters of Uji, the final part of the Genji, 1998)
Vocal:
- 3 arias from the opera "Genji-Monogatari", for soprano, sho, flute and koto (1990)
- Kyrie, for soloists, mixed choir and orchestra (1991)
From 1953 Matsudaira first was secretary, and from 1956 to 1960 president of the Japanese section of the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM).
He fostered the development of many younger composers, including his own son,
Matsudaira Yoriaki.
It is not easy to find music by Matsudaira Yoritsune. The best option is the Naxos CD played by the Century Orchestra Osaka directed by Takasaki Ken and with pianist Nodaira Ichiro, which contains the Theme and Variations for Piano and Orchestra as well as Sa-Mai, U-mai and Danza Rituale e Finale.
See on Japanese music: Yogaku, Japanese Music in the Twentieth Century by Luciana Galliano.
Japanese Music: Akutagawa Yasushi - Hayasaka Fumio - Ifukube Akira - Matsudaira Yoritsune - Mayazumi Toshiro - Miyoshi Akira - Moroi Saburo - Takemitsu Toru - Yamada Kosaku - Yashiro Akio
Classical Music