INTERNAL DATA CENTER v2.1 (MySQL)
Home
Upload
CRUDs
Writers
Titles
Title Instruments
Title Categories
Title Sub-Categories
Title Media
Series
Products
Organizations
Performances
Back to WordPress
Home
Titles
B98D8E80-6A5E-41E4-A6D2-B52AA9AC8DF4
Update
Update Title: B98D8E80-6A5E-41E4-A6D2-B52AA9AC8DF4
ID
Titlecode
Title Name
Marketing Copy
Netsuke are Japanese miniature carvings that were originally made to secure objects suspended from a man’s sash. This piece was inspired by six exquisite carvings from the Bushell Collection at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
Instrumentation
Violin, Piano
Commission
Commissioned by the McKim Fund in the Library of Congress
Dedication
Dedicated in friendship and gratitude to Matt Albert and Lisa Kaplan of eighth blackbird.
Program Notes
Netsuke are Japanese miniature carvings that were originally made to secure objects suspended from a man’s sash. Often very intricate in design, they represent a broad range of subject matters from depictions of animals and people, to scenes from folk-tales and literature as well as everyday life, to fanciful supernatural creatures. This piece was inspired by six exquisite carvings from the Bushell Collection at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. In the first movement, a tengu, a hawk-like goblin takes on the appearance of a monk to lure a religious hypocrite to his doom. The second carving is a wonderfully kinetic depiction of a midnight scuffle between a samurai and a poor servant whom he has mistaken for a thief. A tanuki is a raccoon-like creature thought to have the power to change its appearance. In this small sculpture one is seen dressed in a monk’s robe quietly playing the samisen. In my piece, I found myself thinking of the samisen duels that one frequently hears in Japanese theatrical music. While quite fearsome looking, with the head of an elephant and a lion’s mane, the baku is a shy creature that performs the useful service of protecting sleepers from nightmares. In the carving that inspired the fifth movement, a rich man has apparently set off on a journey, but instead of being carried by his usual bearers, seven demons have hijacked his sedan chair and gleefully cart him down to Hell. The final netsuke shows a serene mountain landscape intricately rendered in a water-drop-shaped piece of ivory. Gnarled wind-blown trees and the verandas of handsome pavilions can be discerned through the mist. Commissioned by the McKim Fund in the Library of Congress, Netsuke is dedicated in friendship and gratitude to Matt Albert and Lisa Kaplan of eighth blackbird.
Title Brand
Year Composed
Copyright Number
Copyright Year
Duration
Ensemble Size
Date Created
Date Updated
Inhouse Note
Bsc Code
Text Author
Premier Performance Memo
Recording Credits
Review
Awards
Title Category
Title Movements
I. Tengu, the shapeshifter that feeds on the falsely holy II. Tadamori and the Oil-Thief III.Tanuki playing the samisen IV. Baku, the monster that devours nightmares V. Demons carrying a rich man to Hell VI. Jewel of Wisdom with mountain pavilions
Title Grade
Set Series ID
Title Instrument Category Text
Title Sub Category Text
Title Sub Category
Title Instrument Header
Title Grade Text
Clean Url
Save