Classical music by Japanese composers. Recommended classical music.
When we hear the term “classical music,” many of us immediately think of works by well-known foreign composers.
These pieces are often used in various everyday contexts with different arrangements, and there are many works that people have naturally heard at least once and can name right away.
However, if you’re asked to name classical works by Japanese composers, fewer people may be able to answer quickly.
Here, we focus on classical music composed by Japanese composers and highlight representative works.
This is recommended even for those who regularly enjoy classical music but haven’t listened much to works by Japanese composers.
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Classical music by Japanese composers. Recommended classical music (1–10)
Symphony TapkaraIfukube Akira
Akira Ifukube was the composer who wrote the theme for Godzilla, the special-effects monster film released by Toho in 1954, and he is truly one of Japan’s most representative composers—known even by people who aren’t familiar with classical music.
Motivated by empathy and nostalgia for the Ainu with whom he interacted in his youth, the piece was composed in three movements.
It opens with a weighty sonority, and since “Tapkara” means “to stand and dance” in the Ainu language, the work as a whole features a dynamic, dance-like vitality with rich textures and folk-inspired melodies.
It is also one of the most popular pieces among Akira Ifukube’s fans.
Music for Symphony OrchestraAkutagawa Yasushi
This orchestral work is considered the breakthrough piece of composer Yasushi Akutagawa, who was active across an exceptionally wide range of fields—not only symphonies and vocal music, but also film scores and children’s songs.
Composed in 1950 as a submission for NHK’s 25th Anniversary project, it won an award alongside Ikuma Dan’s Symphony No.
1.
The work features the hallmarks of Akutagawa’s style: a bold, vigorously played sound that conveys a valiant and lively atmosphere.
Structured in two movements, it is a beautiful piece marked by a bright, grand sense of space and a powerful development that stirs the heart.
Flute Concerto, First MovementOdaka Naotada
Nobutaka Odaka, who left a significant mark on the history of Japanese classical music, composed the Flute Concerto.
Premiered in March 1951, the work’s first movement captivates with Japanese-style scales woven into a bright, propulsive melody.
The flute’s brilliance and its three-dimensional dialogue with the orchestra are beautifully balanced.
Because it demands nimble attacks and delicate nuance, it is a piece that allows performers to fully showcase their expressive abilities.
Frequently featured in competitions and concerts, it continues to shine with undiminished luster as a landmark Japanese work for the flute.
Classical music by Japanese composers. Recommended classical music (11–20)
Kobiki-uta (Woodcutters’ Song) for OrchestraKoyama Kiyoshige
Koyama Kiyoshige is a composer known for his gentle style that evokes Japan’s beautiful natural landscapes.
He wrote numerous school songs for elementary, junior high, and high schools.
His 1957 work “Kobiki-uta for Orchestra” is an orchestral piece based on folk-song motifs.
Drawn from the musical drama Yabure Waraji, it features memorable melodies that unfold in the form of variations.
Though it employs woodwinds and brass of Western origin, the sound somehow conveys a distinctly Japanese sensibility.
Why not listen to its magnificent and beautiful orchestral performance?
Flute Concerto, Second MovementOdaka Naotada
A concerto for woodwinds created amid the flourishing development of Japanese classical music.
In the second movement of this work by Takamasa Otaka, an exquisite fusion of Eastern tranquility and Western structural beauty unfolds.
The tonal gradation that shifts from the flute’s deep, dark low register to its bright middle and upper ranges quietly permeates the listener’s heart.
After its first broadcast performance by the Japan Symphony Orchestra in September 1947, it has continued to be cherished as a representative work in the Japanese repertoire.
It is also intriguing that the piece was written at the request of the master flutist Masashi Mori.
Flute Concerto, 3rd MovementOdaka Naotada
The third movement of the Flute Concerto composed by Naotada Otaka, a leading figure in Japan’s classical music scene.
Premiered posthumously in March 1951, it is still frequently performed today as a quintessential work by a Japanese composer.
Beginning with a perpetuum mobile–style theme, it hurtles forward with an exhilarating development that weaves in changing meters.
The structural beauty of bringing back the first movement’s melody near the end is also superb.
It demands not only finger agility but also delicate breath control and nuanced tone colors, offering the performer many chances to shine.
A masterpiece where Japanese sensibility and Western architectural rigor are seamlessly fused.
Elegy for the Crested IbisYoshimatsu Takashi
This orchestral piece was composed between 1977 and 1980 by Takashi Yoshimatsu, a composer active across a wide range of genres including not only symphonies but also film scores and pop music.
It is said to have been inspired by the death of Nori, the last crested ibis on Honshu, which was captured in 1971.
Throughout the work, a mournful atmosphere conveys the sense that the ibis population is dwindling and nearing its end.
It feels like a requiem for the ibis, while also sounding like the bird’s own sorrow and cries.