A composer with numerous awards at home and abroad! Ranking of Akira Miyoshi’s popular pieces

Prelude for Piano ‘Chênes’ (Oaks)Miyoshi Akira8rank/position

AKIRA MIYOSHI: Prelude "Chênes" for Piano

Akira Miyoshi, who is also deeply committed to music education, created an ambitious work in Prelude “Chêne” for Piano, which links 24 short pieces like a chain into a single cycle.

Its distinctive musical language—colorful harmonies that recall Messiaen’s influence, complex rhythms, and ostinato patterns reminiscent of a basso continuo—is distilled throughout the work.

While the piece demands a high degree of sensitivity and creative ingenuity from the performer, it offers a way to engage with the essence of contemporary music and to cultivate one’s own musicality through performance.

It can be recommended to intermediate to advanced players with an interest in contemporary music.

Piano SonataMiyoshi Akira9rank/position

Akira Miyoshi: Piano Sonata (Sonate pour piano)　三善晃：ピアノソナタ

Akira Miyoshi is a composer who represents contemporary Japanese music.

He entered the French Literature Department of the University of Tokyo, then studied at the Paris Conservatoire, where his talent as a composer blossomed.

Among his solo piano works, the Piano Sonata, composed in 1958, is a significant piece.

A large-scale work in three movements, it is grounded in the traditional forms of Western music while interweaving elements of Japanese traditional music and nature, unfolding Miyoshi’s distinctive musical language and harmonic idiom.

The work brims with the composer’s spirit of inquiry and creativity.

Why not surrender yourself to the piano’s profound resonance? It promises an experience that brings you into contact with the very essence of music.

Piano Miniatures “Sea Diary,” No. 23: “Playful Turban Shell”Miyoshi Akira10rank/position

[Recommended for Piano Recitals] Wanpaku Sazae ♫ Akira Miyoshi / A Naughty Wreath Shell

Akira Miyoshi composed the piano miniatures Sea Diary when he was 48.

No.

23 in the collection, titled The Playful Turban Shell, is an irresistibly cute piece.

Set to a bright, pop-inflected rhythm, it paints in sound the image of a lively turban shell at play.

Accents reminiscent of a whack-a-mole game add a humorous touch.

Though the piece shows a hint of fatigue partway through, it surges to a high-energy finish that keeps the excitement alive.

Why not let your imagination run free and enjoy performing this charming work—one that tickles the childlike sensibilities so characteristic of Miyoshi’s artistry?

Piano Miniatures “Sea Diary,” No. 24: “Broken-Off Sound of the Surf”Miyoshi Akira11rank/position

C Grade Modern and Contemporary: Akira Miyoshi – The Broken Roar of the Tides (2023 PTNA Competition Required Piece), pf. Nao Mieno

Teoreta Shiosai (The Broken-Off Sound of Waves), included in Akira Miyoshi’s collection Sea Diary, is a delicate and beautifully colored piano miniature by one of modern Japan’s foremost composers.

Although written as teaching material for children, Miyoshi’s exceptional craftsmanship makes it enjoyable for listeners and performers of any age.

Particularly noteworthy are the sections where the tonality shifts rapidly; performers are called upon to change timbre from section to section with an almost improvisatory sense of expression.

This work fully showcases Miyoshi’s refined sensibility—rooted in French music—and its fusion with a characteristically Japanese delicacy.

It is highly recommended not only for children learning the piano, but also for adults looking for a compelling recital piece.

Piano Miniatures “Sea Diary” No. 25: “Visit from the Young Halfbeaks”Miyoshi Akira12rank/position

[Recommended Piano Recital] A Visit from the Sayori Kids ♫ Akira Miyoshi / Snipe Fishes’ Visit

Akira Miyoshi is a composer who represents modern Japan.

With an unusual background that includes entering the University of Tokyo’s Faculty of Letters to study French literature and studying at the Paris Conservatory while enrolled, he fully demonstrated his exceptional musical talent and literary skill, leaving behind many masterpieces, notably in choral music.

His piano miniatures Sea Diary are classified as contemporary works, and the series of pieces themed on the sea and waterside opens up a sound world brimming with originality.

No.

25, The Visit of the Little Halfbeaks, is a charming piece that packs in musical elements such as legato in thirds and richly nuanced expression.

Piano Miniatures “Sea Diary” No. 28: “Arabesque of the Waves”Miyoshi Akira13rank/position

PTNA 2014 Competition National Finals / D Category Gold Prize: Reima Yonekura — Akira Miyoshi / Arabesque of the Waves

Akira Miyoshi is a composer who represents modern Japan.

With an unconventional background that includes studying French literature at the University of Tokyo and then going on to the Paris Conservatory, he left behind numerous choral works in which both his musical talent and literary sensibility are fully displayed.

At the same time, his piano works also include a number of outstanding masterpieces.

Wave Arabesque, from his piano miniatures for children The Sea’s Diary, is striking for its arabesque-like figures that evoke waves.

In this beautiful music—where Miyoshi’s distinctly Japanese sensibility merges with the aesthetics he cultivated during his studies in France—both performers and listeners may feel as though they are standing by the seaside.

It is a piece that intermediate to advanced pianists are strongly encouraged to try.

Piano Collection “Anne of Green Gables” No. 1: “Can You Hear It? (Opening Theme)”Miyoshi Akira14rank/position

Akira Miyoshi: I Wonder If You Can Hear (from “Piano Pieces: Anne of Green Gables”)

Akira Miyoshi is one of the composers who represent contemporary Japan.

With an unusual background—studying in the French Literature Department at the University of Tokyo while also attending the Paris Conservatory—he is known for numerous choral works that showcase both his musical talent and literary sensibility to the fullest.

His piano collection Anne of Green Gables is a set of pieces arranged for piano from incidental music he composed for an animated adaptation.

The opening theme, “Do You Hear?” captivates with its elegant, moving melody and its free, expansive harmonies.

Carried by the piano’s delicate yet rich sonorities, Anne’s story springs vividly to life.

It’s a compelling work as a solo piano piece, and one I highly recommend to anyone who wants to immerse themselves in Anne’s world.