condition (record/cover): NM / NM
The sister of leading Japanese contemporary composer Yuji Takahashi, Aki Takahashi is a pianist who has earned international acclaim for her performances of John Cage and Toru Takemitsu. This is the first of three albums released in three installments, featuring tracks from a three-disc box set released in 1973. This album features performances of works by Toru Takemitsu, Joji Yuasa, Toshi Ichiyanagi, Yuji Takahashi, and Yoriaki Matsudaira. All pieces except Takemitsu's "Uninterrupted Rest" and "Piano Distance" were composed for Aki Takahashi. All the pieces are wonderful and not to be missed, but we would like to draw your attention to Joji Yuasa's "On the Keyboard," which is an antithesis to the negative opinion of Japanese people towards prepared piano playing, and Toshi Ichiyanagi's "Piano Media," which was inspired by computer-generated music.