RYUICHI SAKAMOTO | SEEING SOUND, HEARING TIME

HAPPENINGText: Alma Reyes

There is Ennio Morricone, John Williams, and there is Ryuichi Sakamoto. A true legend and priceless jewel in the music industry who transcended beyond the technical cadence of chords and notation, composer, pianist, record producer, and actor Sakamoto transported music into a metaphysical dimension that streams with water, wind, sun, earth and the natural environment around us. Best known for his film scores for Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983), The Last Emperor (1987), Little Buddha (1993), The Revenant (2015) and more countless compositions that have garnered awards and nominations in the Grammy, Golden Globe and Oscar, among others, Sakamoto was an experimental artist who delved deeply into a diverse range of styles, including electronic music, and actualized three-dimensional sound installations that echoed cultural and social awareness.


Ryuichi Sakamoto portrait. Photo: Neo Sora © 2017 Kab Inc.

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo is presenting “Ryuichi Sakamoto | seeing sound, hearing time” until March 30th, a significant exhibition that collates the master’s creative artworks in large-scale installations encompassing music, images and movement. Collaborative artists include Shiro Takatani, Daito Manabe, Carsten Nicolai, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Zakkubalan, Toshio Iwai, and Fujiko Nakaya. As reflected by the exhibition title, the experience of absorbing Sakamoto’s music through light, water, and video photography hopes to engage visitors in maximizing all five senses to inspire calmness and meaning in the flow of time.




Ryuichi Sakamoto + Shiro Takatani, TIME TIME, 2024. Installation view of the exhibition “Ryuichi Sakamoto | seeing sound, hearing time” at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, 2024. Photo: Kazuo Fukunaga © 2024 KAB Inc.

In the first room, Ryuichi Sakamoto + Shiro Takatani, TIME TIME (2024), visitors face a huge three-paneled video installation based on the theater piece TIME, which premiered at Amsterdam’s Holland Festival in 2021. Contemplating on the question, “What is time?,” the presentation staged a dreamscape inspired by Natsume Soseki’ s “Ten Nights of Dreams (Dream #1)”, the Noh play “Kantan,” and Zhuang Zhou’ s “The Butterfly Dream.” Various time intersections were interpreted with water as prominent element, prevalent in many of Sakamoto’s works. Mayumi Miyata is seen playing a Japanese reed instrument, filmed by visual artist Shiro Takatani, as well as Min Tanaka‘s video appearance in TIME — all wrapped in Sakamoto’s free-flowing music.


Ryuichi Sakamoto + Shiro Takatani, water state 1, 2013. Installation view of the exhibition “Ryuichi Sakamoto | seeing sound, hearing time” at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, 2024. Photo: Noriko Yamamoto


Moving along to another installation with water, Ryuichi Sakamoto + Shiro Takatani, water state 1 (2013) opens to a central black basin filled with clear water. Raindrops from a ceiling apparatus fall onto the water as controlled by condensed weather data. They produce sounds, which change according to the lighting. The breadth of the ripples also alter in its appearance. They may resemble the sea reflection from the sky or minute drops in a puddle. Visitors stop and stare into the mirrored water of memories and thoughts resonating with nature as symbolized by the rocks set around the structure.

Also in collaboration with Takatani, Ryuichi Sakamoto with Shiro Takatani, IS YOUR TIME (2017/2024) reveals a piano that appears to float above a pool of water. Overhead, a screen displays quiet snowfall. Sakamoto was said to have discovered the piano at a school in Miyagi Prefecture after it had collapsed due to the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. He termed the piece as a “piano tuned by nature,” and had given it new life through the simple sounds of the rumbling earth, sky and ocean.

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