In 1993, I was asked to compose a Noh/Gospel fusion score for Yuriko Doi’s Theater of Yugen production of Drifting Fires in San Francisco. To honor her 80th birthday, I restyled my original demos with electronics and touches of Gagaku, a personal type of psychedelic fusion that reflects my own musical background.
The collection is a celebration of Yuriko’s creative inspiration and her faith in me as a composer. Many thanks to the play’s brilliant author Janine Beichman for her vibrant poetry and for graciously granting me permission here. We both agree that elements in her text assume new resonance in light of current world disasters and challenges.
Original vocals and hand percussion recordings were transferred to digital from a 1992 tape cassette that served as a rehearsal track. The electronic enhancements here are played live and mixed with the following, with permissions pending:
o John Cage, “TWO4” for Violin and Shō, Wellesz Theatre Recording, 1991o Katsuya Yokoyama, “The Art of Shakuhachi” Corcori, Radio France
