| Akira Ifukube |
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| CATEGORIES ABOUT AKIRA IFUKUBE | |
| 1914 births | |
| 2006 deaths | |
| 20th century classical composers | |
| japanese composers | |
| japanese film score composers | |
| people from hokkaidō prefecture | |
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Akira Ifukube was born on May 31 , 1914 in Kushiro on the Japanese island of Hokkaidō , the third son of a Shinto Priest . Much of his childhood was spent in areas with a mixed Japanese and Ainu Population , and his father, unusually for the time, Socialised with Ainu. Ifukube was strongly influenced by the Musical Traditions of both peoples, and studied the Violin and the Shamisen . His first encounter with classical music occurred when attending secondary school in Hokkaidō's capital, Sapporo . Legend has it that Ifukube decided to become a composer at the age of 14 after hearing a radio performance of Igor Stravinsky 's ballet, the '' Rite Of Spring ''. He also cited the music of Manuel De Falla as a major influence. Ifukube went on to study his ''Piano Suite'' obtained an honourable mention at the I.C.S.M. festival in Venice . In the late 1930s his music, especially ''Japanese Rhapsody'', was performed in Europe on a number of occasions. On completing University, he worked as a Forestry officer and Lumber processor, and towards the end of the Second World War was appointed by the Japanese Imperial Army to study the Elasticity and Vibratory Strength of wood. He suffered Radiation exposure after carrying out X-rays without protection, a consequence of the wartime Lead shortage. Thus, he had to abandon forestry work and became a professional composer and teacher. Ifukube spent some time in hospital due to the radiation exposure, and was startled one day to hear one of his own marches being played over the radio when General Douglas MacArthur arrived to formalize the Japanese surrender. From 1946 to 1953 , he taught at the Nihon University College Of Art , during which period he composed his first Film Score for '' The End Of The Silver Mountains '', released in 1947 . Over the next fifty years, he would compose more than 250 film scores, the high point of which was his 1954 music for Ishiro Honda 's Toho movie, Godzilla . Ifukube also created Godzilla's trademark roar - produced by rubbing a resin-covered Leather Glove along the loosened strings of a Double Bass - and its footsteps, created by striking an Amplifier box. Despite his financial success as a film composer, Ifukube's first love had always been his general classical work as a composer. In 1974 , he returned to teaching at the Tokyo College Of Music , becoming president of the college the following year, and in 1987 retired to become president of the College's Ethnomusicology department. He trained the younger generation comporser such as Toshiro Mayuzumi , Yasushi Akutagawa and Kaoru Wada . He also published ''Orchestration'', a 1,000-page book on theory. The Japanese government awarded him the Order Of Culture and the Order Of The Sacred Treasures . He died in Tokyo at the Meguro-Ku Hospital of Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome on February 8 , 2006 at the age of 91. SELECTED LIST OF WORKS Orchestral
Chamber/Instrumental
Vocal
Film score
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