J.B.Arban composed. Unaccompanied.

17 years passed already since the turn of the century. If the year 1052 was the beginning of mappo (the latter days of this world), the coming millennium is soon to be reached. While the classic super-natural spooks had been all confined into the ancient books and pictures, rather living people now look like spooks. This composition is pure program music aiming to picture “Hyakki Yakou” (“A Hundred Spooks Marching”-a Japanese tradition) with the ensemble of Japanese and western instruments. In ancient Miyako, a procession of a noble man was assaulted by numerous evil spirits. But because the people chanted Esoteric Shingon Mantra determinedly, those spooks vanished with agonizing cries under the ultimate power of Mantra. This composition was premiered on May 10th, 2018, in the 22nd Indépendant-the Japan Federation of Composers, by Hiromu Motonaga (Shakuhachi), Atsushi Tokutake (Clarinet), Miho Yamashita (Viola), Akemi Yamada (13-string Soh), Miho Jougasaki (17-string Soh), and Asako Hisatake (Violoncello).

The Potsdam Declaration is a surrender recommendation to Japan by the Allies led by the United States, announced on July 26, 1945, after Germany and Italy surrendered and the defeat of Japan became clearly unavoidable. There is no such humiliating document for us, Japanese, as defeated citizens, but the composer would like to revisit it, considering that it is a critical point of the modern history since Matthew Calbraith Perry's visit in Uraga, Japan, to require Japan to open a port for their whale hunting. The background of this Declaration includes, among others, the progress of the development of the atomic bomb in the United States (the President of the United States President Truman received a report of success of the experiment at Potsdam during the meeting period), the Far East policy of the Soviet Union, and plans and speculations of the Allies countries post-war power situation. While the “Declaration” describes democratic ideals, it reveals the power relationships and conflicts among all the super powers at the time. In composing, the composer focused on delivering the text to the audience as clearly as possible. With baritone’s text recitation, trumpet and piano play a role of shamisen against katari in Gidayu (although it is only an image). The text was translated from the original Declaration by the composer specifically for this composition. The text partly omits the original for clarity and musical requirements. The part following the text of the Potsdam Declaration is also the one that the composer transcribed from historical facts.

The Potsdam Declaration is a surrender recommendation to Japan by the Allies led by the United States, announced on July 26, 1945, after Germany and Italy surrendered and the defeat of Japan became clearly unavoidable. There is no such humiliating document for us, Japanese, as defeated citizens, but the composer would like to revisit it, considering that it is a critical point of the modern history since Matthew Calbraith Perry's visit in Uraga, Japan, to require Japan to open a port for their whale hunting. The background of this Declaration includes, among others, the progress of the development of the atomic bomb in the United States (the President of the United States President Truman received a report of success of the experiment at Potsdam during the meeting period), the Far East policy of the Soviet Union, and plans and speculations of the Allies countries post-war power situation. While the “Declaration” describes democratic ideals, it reveals the power relationships and conflicts among all the super powers at the time. In composing, the composer focused on delivering the text to the audience as clearly as possible. With baritone’s text recitation, trumpet and piano play a role of shamisen against katari in Gidayu (although it is only an image). The text was translated from the original Declaration by the composer specifically for this composition. The text partly omits the original for clarity and musical requirements. The part following the text of the Potsdam Declaration is also the one that the composer transcribed from historical facts.

The Potsdam Declaration is a surrender recommendation to Japan by the Allies led by the United States, announced on July 26, 1945, after Germany and Italy surrendered and the defeat of Japan became clearly unavoidable. There is no such humiliating document for us, Japanese, as defeated citizens, but the composer would like to revisit it, considering that it is a critical point of the modern history since Matthew Calbraith Perry's visit in Uraga, Japan, to require Japan to open a port for their whale hunting. The background of this Declaration includes, among others, the progress of the development of the atomic bomb in the United States (the President of the United States President Truman received a report of success of the experiment at Potsdam during the meeting period), the Far East policy of the Soviet Union, and plans and speculations of the Allies countries post-war power situation. While the “Declaration” describes democratic ideals, it reveals the power relationships and conflicts among all the super powers at the time. In composing, the composer focused on delivering the text to the audience as clearly as possible. With baritone’s text recitation, trumpet and piano play a role of shamisen against katari in Gidayu (although it is only an image). The text was translated from the original Declaration by the composer specifically for this composition. The text partly omits the original for clarity and musical requirements. The part following the text of the Potsdam Declaration is also the one that the composer transcribed from historical facts.

The Potsdam Declaration is a surrender recommendation to Japan by the Allies led by the United States, announced on July 26, 1945, after Germany and Italy surrendered and the defeat of Japan became clearly unavoidable. There is no such humiliating document for us, Japanese, as defeated citizens, but the composer would like to revisit it, considering that it is a critical point of the modern history since Matthew Calbraith Perry's visit in Uraga, Japan, to require Japan to open a port for their whale hunting. The background of this Declaration includes, among others, the progress of the development of the atomic bomb in the United States (the President of the United States President Truman received a report of success of the experiment at Potsdam during the meeting period), the Far East policy of the Soviet Union, and plans and speculations of the Allies countries post-war power situation. While the “Declaration” describes democratic ideals, it reveals the power relationships and conflicts among all the super powers at the time. In composing, the composer focused on delivering the text to the audience as clearly as possible. With baritone’s text recitation, trumpet and piano play a role of shamisen against katari in Gidayu (although it is only an image). The text was translated from the original Declaration by the composer specifically for this composition. The text partly omits the original for clarity and musical requirements. The part following the text of the Potsdam Declaration is also the one that the composer transcribed from historical facts.

The Potsdam Declaration is a surrender recommendation to Japan by the Allies led by the United States, announced on July 26, 1945, after Germany and Italy surrendered and the defeat of Japan became clearly unavoidable. There is no such humiliating document for us, Japanese, as defeated citizens, but the composer would like to revisit it, considering that it is a critical point of the modern history since Matthew Calbraith Perry's visit in Uraga, Japan, to require Japan to open a port for their whale hunting. The background of this Declaration includes, among others, the progress of the development of the atomic bomb in the United States (the President of the United States President Truman received a report of success of the experiment at Potsdam during the meeting period), the Far East policy of the Soviet Union, and plans and speculations of the Allies countries post-war power situation. While the “Declaration” describes democratic ideals, it reveals the power relationships and conflicts among all the super powers at the time. In composing, the composer focused on delivering the text to the audience as clearly as possible. With baritone’s text recitation, trumpet and piano play a role of shamisen against katari in Gidayu (although it is only an image). The text was translated from the original Declaration by the composer specifically for this composition. The text partly omits the original for clarity and musical requirements. The part following the text of the Potsdam Declaration is also the one that the composer transcribed from historical facts.

The Potsdam Declaration is a surrender recommendation to Japan by the Allies led by the United States, announced on July 26, 1945, after Germany and Italy surrendered and the defeat of Japan became clearly unavoidable. There is no such humiliating document for us, Japanese, as defeated citizens, but the composer would like to revisit it, considering that it is a critical point of the modern history since Matthew Calbraith Perry's visit in Uraga, Japan, to require Japan to open a port for their whale hunting. The background of this Declaration includes, among others, the progress of the development of the atomic bomb in the United States (the President of the United States President Truman received a report of success of the experiment at Potsdam during the meeting period), the Far East policy of the Soviet Union, and plans and speculations of the Allies countries post-war power situation. While the “Declaration” describes democratic ideals, it reveals the power relationships and conflicts among all the super powers at the time. In composing, the composer focused on delivering the text to the audience as clearly as possible. With baritone’s text recitation, trumpet and piano play a role of shamisen against katari in Gidayu (although it is only an image). The text was translated from the original Declaration by the composer specifically for this composition. The text partly omits the original for clarity and musical requirements. The part following the text of the Potsdam Declaration is also the one that the composer transcribed from historical facts.

The composer intended to take advantage of the rich expressive ability and agility of wind wood instruments to the maximum in this composition, which consists of loosely 3 parts. Begins with a rhythmic and somewhat humorous theme (A) and a melodic theme (B) and repeats them in different instrumentation. After the third repetition of (A), the middle part starts with a new theme by Horn on the fast passage exchange of Oboe and Clarinet (D). Then tempo is slowed down to Adagiette. Oboe and Clarinet takes solos and the (D) part comes back. After a fast unison phrases, the themes are developed contrapuntally and the music rush into the Coda.