Japanese and Western Confluences in Large-Scale Pitch Organization of Tru Takemitsu's

November Steps and Autumn

Author(s): Edward Smaldone
Source: Perspectives of New Music, Vol. 27, No. 2 (Summer, 1989), pp. 216-231
Published by: Perspectives of New Music
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/833413
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JAPANESE
AND WES1ERN
IN
CONFLUENCES
PITCHORGANIZATION
LARGE-SCATLE
OFTORUTAKEMITSU'S
NOVEMBERSTEPSAND A UTUMN

tLyt
EDWARD
SMALDONE
T

HE ATMOSPHERE

IN Japan during the years immediately

following

World War II was characterized by a clamor for all things Western,

including music, which threatened the extinction of many traditional art
forms. Even before the onset of the war, efforts of wholesale cultural adoption were demonstrated by the formation, in 1930, of a composers organization, Shinko Sakkyoku Renmei (New Composers Federation), which
became the Japanesechapter of the League of Composers/ISCM the same
year. Remarkably,by the beginning of the 1950s, Japan had produced an
entire generation of world-class composers who were taking their place
among the new generation from the West. There were performances of
major works by Boulez, Stockhausen, Schonberg, and Berg, and even a
kind of Japanese version of the Darmstadt summer courses was held in
Japanbetween 1957 and 1963. The composers who emerged exhibited the

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Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

217

same range of styles as those who emerged in Europe and the United
States, including those who favored aleatoric, stochastic, and serial procedures, and everything in between. While most of these composers were
self-taught (there were no avant-gardecomposers permitted on Japanese
conservatory faculties), a few studied abroad (Yuji Takahashi in Europe
with Xenakis and Toshi Ichiyanagiin the U.S. with John Cage).
Kuniharu Akiyama, a music critic, declares the central group of Toru
Takemitsu, Joji Yuasa, Hiroyoshi Suzuki, KeijiroSato, Kazuo Fukushima,
and pianist TakahiroSonada to be "the spiritual progeny of Varese, Cage,
and Messiaen" (Kunihara 1974, 365). In a matter of two decades these
composers put Japan on the map of the international new music scene.
Despite the developing reputation of these composers, Japanesecontemporarymusic was perceived in the West, at best, as imitative of Westernmusic.
The Japanese nature of Takemitsu's music, for example, is most often
alluded to in comments which referto a perceived "preoccupation ... with
timbre and texture-and with silence" (Kanagawa 1980). This kind of
superficial descriptive language indicates a failure to recognize that a connection with the pitch structure of Japanesetraditionalforms could exist.1
At virtually the same time that Japan's efforts in "Western-style" contemporary composition achieved this internationalprofile, the study of its
traditional music became an almost clandestine affair. The years immediately following the war saw Japanese traditional music severely neglected,
despite a significant number of "living national treasures" who continued
to study their art, to the complete indifference of the general public. The
second-class image of traditional music furthermore extended to Japanese
conservatories where students of traditional music were required to learn
piano. Only very recently have students in Japan been permitted to major
exclusively in Japanese traditional music at the Tokyo University of Fine
Arts (Tokyo Geijitsu Daigaku).
Born in 1930, To-ru Takemitsu is one of the most prominent Japanese
composers to bear the burden of the unique cultural confusion which characterizes this milieu. Like most Japanese composers of his generation, he
was largelyself-taught. At first Takemitsuexhibited a distinct lack of enthusiasm for his own traditional music ("For some reason it never really
appealed to me, never moved me"), and was attracted to the Western
(especiallyAmerican) music he heard as a young teenager "over the Armed
Forces Radio ... hearing the music of Roy Harris, Aaron Copland, Walter
Piston, and Roger Sessions" (Takemitsu 1989). After intensive study of
Western music (to the exclusion of Japanesemusic), Takemitsustudied the
biwa and incorporatedthis and other traditionalJapaneseinstruments into
scores composed for Western instruments.
Until this writing the relationship between contemporary composition
and traditional structural models has been unexplored. The present study

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218

Perspectives
of New Music

will focus on two pieces by Takemitsu,NovemberStepsand Autumn (each for

biwa, shakuhachi, and orchestra), in an effort to demonstrate a particular
aspect of the pitch structure which shares featureswith the Western atonal
tradition and Japanesetraditional music. In both the Japanesetraditional
music and in these compositions by Takemitsu (1) musical space is articulated through a process of nuclear tones and (2) large-scalepitch organization is defined by the path between the nucleartones. NovemberStepsis one
of Takemitsu's best-known pieces and both of these compositions are of
particular interest as they incorporate the shakuhachi (Japanese vertical
bamboo flute) and the biwa (Japaneselute).2
The analytical procedure utilized here takes its cue from a quotation
from Takemitsu: "I think that we have Western music discover sine tone.
Twelve-tone music to electronic and they discover sine wave tone. We have
many tones. Like white noise. Make music is just sign [sic]to noise. Most
important thing is to cut away-my notes not so important. I always use
many tone clusters" (Lieberman 1965, 142).3 Takemitsuis here expressing
a fundamental aspect of Japanese musical art. To the Japanese, the individual pitches of a musical sound are less important than the quality of the
sound along a timbral spectrum between the extremes of a pure sine tone
and white noise. The concept of sine-to-noise implies a freewheeling
approach to pitch which would be an unfair representationof Takemitsu's
music. The many tone clusters of NovemberSteps,for example, reveala careful compositional technique with regardto register, tone color, transposition, and specific pitch content. However, Takemitsu implies that these
parts of his scores are less fundamental to the centralfocus and thrust of his
musical ideas. If we "cut away" the tone clusters we are in fact left with a
very colorful, elegant, and slowly evolving pitch motion which involves a
small number of highly audible pitches, highlighted through careful attention to tone color, register, orchestrationaldoubling, and dynamics. What
remains is a small number of nuclear tones around which the tone clusters
circulate. These nuclear tones thus articulatelong-range form and provide
the basic structuralcomponent of the pitch material.
One of the central features of pitch organization in Japanesetraditional
music is a symmetrical modal hexachord within which nuclear tones are
articulated (Burnett 1989). As Burnett explains, the Japanese in-sempo
mode developed into a symmetrical structure in which two central nuclear
tones a fifth apart (one primary and one secondary) are heard as the primary pitches of a given transposition. Various modulation schemes transpose these relationships to new nuclear pitches and project the basic pitch
structure across large-scalespans of the composition. This internal structure provides the complex heterophonic textures of a classical chambermusic piece such as Zangetsu with a powerful pitch-oriented direction

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Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

219

which is conceived in modal terms quite different from the harmonic structure we are accustomed to in the West. It is the intervallic design of the
mode as it surrounds and articulatesthe nuclear tones which provides this
music with a sense of direction in its pitch domain.
In a similarway the pitch structures of NovemberStepsprovide a suitable
demonstration of pitch-oriented direction which is conceived in chromatic
terms. What we actually hear through the dense and richly detailed orchestral web of the opening tutti are a precious few pitches which guide our ear
along a large arch, providing a deeper level of structure to which the many
small details of this passage relate. Example 1 shows the first few measures
of the score, and Example 2 indicates those pitches which are most prominent. Example3 shows a reduction of the complete opening orchestraltutti
to the entrance of the shakuhachi.
The pitches included in this reduction (placed in the register in which
they appear in the score) are those which Takemitsu has highlighted
through orchestral doubling, registral placement, and so on. One technique of which Takemitsuappearsto be particularlyfond is the highlighting
of a pitch through doubling with the harp (the harp itself most often having
two strings tuned to a unison). This is itself reminiscent of classicalJapanese chamber music in which the shakuhachi essentially doubles the
shamisen (with the occasional addition of ornamental figures) highlighting
the same pitches in a manner which similarly combines plucked and sustained attacks.
The pitch spans which are articulated by this reduction are not specifically related to any form of the Japanesemodal system but portray a subtle
reference to that practice. The in-sempomode is used in Zangetsu, for example, to articulatespecific nucleartones which are in turn directly related
to the manner in which the instrument is tuned. As such, the pitch parameters of the instrument itself are a factor in the pitch structure which is ultimately derived. The secondary collection (a transposition of the original
collection) is furthermore based on one of the pitches of the original.
In a like manner, Takemitsuprojects nucleartones acrosslarge time spans
which reflect the fully chromatic nature of the Western orchestraand, as in
the Japanese model, there is a common tone which links the large-scale
projections of the basic pitch-class relationships. The pc sets indicated on
the reduction of Example 3 show the prominent function of the trichords 0
1 3 and 0 1 4. These pc sets operate in the manner of a motivic cell which
unifies the pitch organization in both the short range and at deeper levels.
0 14 occurs twice within the first five measures, but the more important
pitch here is FBwhich is both a focal point in this passageand in the latter
passage which outlines the trichord 0 1 3. F] will return as an important
component of the large-scalestructure.

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of NewMusic
Perspectives

220

dNvlmtd to and commtsond b r the N

York PhiNSamoni
in celeration o.fits 125th Annivf,rsry

NOVEMBER STEPS
Shakuhachl
Bila
Z boes
3 Clarinets
(in Bb)
2 Trumpets
(in C)
a 'lromtones
(lenor)
Percussion 1
(2 Players)
Harp I

Plaiced
rigtht
sidee
12 Violins

?
7
8
9
10

11

5 Violas
2-5
1-2
Violoncellos
3-4
3 Contrabass
Percussion 2
(2 Players)
tlarp 2

4
PIEkce(i
lel
sI(de 12 Violins

5
?
7
8
9
10
11
12

5 Violas
2-5
4 Violoncellos
-3 Contrabass
Copyright 0 1967 by C.F. Peters Corporation
373 Park Avenue South, New York, N.Y. 10016
International Copyright Secured. All Rights Reerved.
Use?dby pcrmmrion.

Edition Petwrs 66299bypso

EXAMPLE

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221

Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

EXAMPLE2: NovemberSteps, REDUCTIONMM. 1-3

Fig. 3

trpt.

1via

shakuhachi

EXAMPLE3: NovemberSteps, REDUCTIONMM. 1-24

In the following passage, the trumpet's g#2 begins a motion which incorporates a recurringfive-note motive, each transposition of which contains
the Ft (Example 3). The motion away from the initial Gt and the motion
back to it is furthermore guided by F], and in the case of the return to Go,
by the trichord 0 1 3. The projection of 0 1 3 is interrupted by the completion of the five-note motive involving g#2. Immediately following (measures 21-24) the pitches D and E are strongly emphasized as the goal of the
passage setting up the entrance of the Japanese instruments (Example 4).
The shakuhachienters on D and E, making a strong sonic connection with
the orchestral passage. These two pitches furthermore complete a second
statement of the trichord 0 1 3 projected from FI (Example5).
Burnett's Examples 3 and 4 show how the pitch structures of Zangetsu
are organized across large spans by nuclearpitches surrounded by a specific
configuration of pitches derived from the in-sempomode. My Examples 3
and 5 demonstrate how Takemitsu organizes pitch structures across large
spans through the similaruse of a nucleartone and the projection of related
pc sets. It is in viewing a relationshipof this sort that one can see a coordination of Western and Japanese elements which penetrates below the
surface.

NovemberStepsis perhaps Takemitsu's best-known composition. Commissioned in 1967 for the 125th Anniversary of the New York Philharmonic, it was his first attempt at a large-scale piece which combined
Japaneseand Western instruments. Soon afterward, with the composition
of Autumn (1973), Takemitsu again turned to the combination of biwa,
shakuhachi, and orchestra. Autumn is, unfortunately, unrecorded and the
score is availableonly as a rental item. Given these facts, a few words on its

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222

Perspectives of New Music

A..-4

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EXAMPLE 5

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Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

223

most striking featureswould seem to be in order. In Autumn, there is considerably more integration of the Japaneseinstruments and the orchestra,
and the orchestral statements are longer and generally build to more convincing climaxes (perhapsa result of the largerforces). As in NovemberSteps,
these orchestral passages alternate with solo passages for the traditional
instruments, though even these are generally accompanied by a pareddown orchestrain Autumn. In both pieces there are elaboratecadenza passages for both shakuhachi and biwa which seem to serve as the dramatic
goal of the entire composition, followed by a closing orchestralstatement.
In general, Autumn gives the impression of greaterdrama and emotional
impact. Though the two compositions are almost identicalin length (about
twenty minutes) Autumn builds in a more continuous arcand with broader
gestures. Whereas the cadenzas in NovemberStepsare notated in a graphic
notation of Takemitsu's own invention, all of the material in Autumn is
fully notated, implying an even greater degree of pitch control. This is
exercised in an especially beautiful moment at the end of the final cadenza
in which the shakuhachi's final note is picked up by the orchestra. It is a
moment at which the Western orchestra appearsto "hear" the traditional
instruments in a very concrete manner. As if this were the ultimate goal of
the composition, a final orchestral statement then brings the piece to a
quiet close.
Takemitsu'sapproach to orchestration in Autumn is distinguished from
that in NovemberStepsby a more pervasiveuse of octave and unison doubling between differentchoirs of instruments. The use of orchestraldoubling
as a means of highlighting a particular pitch or group of pitches is thus
expanded. If we take the same approach of tracking those pitches made
most prominent by the orchestraltexture, the opening of Autumn can be
reduced to the pitch structures of Example 6.

Letter A
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EXAMPLE

6:

REDUCTION

OF Autumn,

TO LETTER I

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224

Perspectives
of NewMusic

The opening Bb-Bt-Bb presented (in two different registers and in the
wind choir, string choir, and harp) establishes Bb as the primary point of
departurefor this opening passage.The chromaticdyad is significantin that
it is a common component of the other trichordswhich will be projected in
the course of the piece. The unison D of measure 5 (doubled in all string
parts as well as in the horn, flute, and harp) completes a statement of the
trichord 0 1 4. This D then gives rise to a foreground statement of the trichord 0 1 3 in the upper register. The Bt in the first violins and basses in
measure 8 establishes that pitch as a longer-range completion of the same
0 1 4 trichord (10,11,2). The variety of trichords is further expanded in the
first-violin tune which proceeds from B and can be divided into two trichords, 01 5 and 0 14. The orchestral tutti continues as the strings are
divided into a swirling mass of carefullyorganized canons and pc-set "progressions" beginning at letter A in the score (Example7). The foregroundis
organized by a complex procedure of transposition, ordering, and transformation, which governs the nineteen individual string parts. Within this
context, the octave C in the basses and high Bt of the viola and piccolo
stand out as the most prominent pitches. The climax of the passage dissolves into silence, except for a lone Eb (doubled at the unison) in the harp.
This Eb is then picked up by the shakuhachientrance. These three pitches
(B-C-Eb) form a statement of 0 1 4 which is a transposition of the opening
statement of the same trichord, with Bt as a common tone (Example8).
The pitches outlined by the opening shakuhachifigure consist of four pcs
which project another variantof the trichords0 14 and 0 1 5, shown by the
two trichords beamed to ebl in Example 6. An especially dramaticoutline
of the trichord 0 1 5 is projected across an even largerspan if one considers
the function of the Eb octave which powerfully dominates the texture at
Letter I (Example9). This Eb completes a statement of 0 1 5 which began
with the opening Bb of the piece and proceeded to the Bt of measure 8.
The long-range goal of Eb in some way also reflects the more delicately
stated goal of Ebwhich ended the opening tutti passage.This second arrival
on Eb thus incorporates two temporal levels of structure and coordinates
the statements of 0 14 and 0 1 5. In this way there is a reflection of purpose
across two large independent spans (see Example 6). Eb (spelled D#) also
serves as the final goal of the composition, played by the harp and celeste
over the sustained Bt of the basses. Bt is the central pitch around which virtually all of the various trichordalstatements (both 0 14 and 0 1 5) revolve.
In this way all of the pc sets emanate from this central tone in a way which
reflects traditionalJapanesemodal organization.
The long-range projection of pc sets is clearly an organizing factor in
these two pieces by Takemitsu. In addition, they serve to point up a significant distinction between NovemberStepsand Autumn. Autumn is by far the
more powerful and more successfulcomposition. Part of the reason for this

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Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

225

has to do with the claritywith which the nucleartones are projected on the
musical surface. Despite the larger orchestral forces, Autumn delineates
these nuclear tones through octave doubling and orchestral reinforcement
which makes the long-range connection more audible. As a result, the
large-scaleform of the composition is more convincingly articulatedby the
pitch structures.
The foregoing analysisillustratesa conceptual link between Japanesetraditional music and these compositions which operates on the deepest level
of structure. What is perhaps most surprisingis that in comparison to the
usual Western perception of Japanesecontemporarycomposition, the analysis demonstrates an indigenous aspect of pitch structure which survives
the intense Westernization of Japanese twentieth-century culture. The
Japanesespirit of Takemitsu'smusic can thus be shown in concrete pitchdefined terms. The pitch structureswhich pervade the music are more than
the mere reflection of a fully absorbed understandingof Western atonal tradition; they are a positive demonstration of the tenacity of the Japanese
spirit.

The author wishes to express his gratitude to John Rahn and Joseph N.
Straus for their careful reading and helpful suggestions on this manuscript.

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226

Perspectives
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Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

227

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228

Perspectives
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Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

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229

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Takemitsu'sNovemberStepsandAutumn

231

NOTES

1. In defense of this perception, pitch-defined analysesof Japanesetraditional music have only very recently appearedin the professionalliterature. See Burnett 1989 and Smaldone 1984.
2. The shakuhachi is used in Zen solo playing, and in chamber music
along with the shamisen and koto. The biwa is traditionallyused as a
solo instrument to accompany narrative tales such as the "Heike
Monogatari" of A.D. 1189 and in the gagaku orchestra. There is no
traditional music of Japan which uses both instruments
simultaneously.
3. Lieberman1965, 142. This quotation is Lieberman'stranscriptionof
a conversation with Takemitsu, conducted in English. It seems clear
from the context that Takemitsu meant "sine" and not "sign," as
transcribed by Lieberman. Lieberman himself agrees with the
viability of the author's interpretation.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Akiyama, Kunihara. 1974. "Japan." In Dictionaryof Contemporary

Music,
edited by John Vinton, 364-67. E.P. Dutton & Co., Inc: New York.
Burnett, Henry. 1989. "Minezaki K6to's Zangetsu:An Analysis of a Traditional ChamberMusic Composition." Perspectives
of New Music 27, no. 2
(Summer).
Kanagawa,Masakata.1980. "Toru Takemitsu." In The New GroveDictionary of Music and Musicians, edited by Stanley Sadie, 18:534-35.
Lieberman, Frederic. 1965. "Contemporary Japanese Composition: Its
Relationship to Concepts of Traditional Oriental Music." Masters
Thesis, University of Hawaii.
Smaldone, Edward. 1984. "Godanginuta:A StructuralAnalysis."Hogaku1,
no. 2: 55-91.
Takemitsu, Toru. 1989. "Contemporary Music in Japan." Perspectives
of
New Music 27, no. 2 (Summer).

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