| Overture in D major | |
|---|---|
| byKōsaku Yamada | |
 Yamada in 1910 | |
| Key | D major |
| Period | Romanticism |
| Genre | Overture |
| Composed | 1912 (1912) |
| Published | 1997 |
| Publisher | Shunjusha Publishing Company [ja] |
| Duration | 3 minutes |
| Movements | 1 |
| Premiere | |
| Date | May 23, 1915 (1915-05-23) |
| Location | Imperial Theatre, Tokyo |
| Conductor | The composer |
| Performers | Tokyo Philharmonic Society [ja] |
TheOverture in D major is anoverture written by Japanese composerKōsaku Yamada in 1912. Written during his stay in Germany at thePrussian Academy of Arts, the work is closely modelled after the German romantic tradition in both language and form. The overture is notable for being the first orchestral piece written by a Japanese composer.
With the beginning of theMeiji era, Japan quickly transformed from a feudal society to a modern nation state.[1] As part of these changes, the country was widely Westernized, including its music.[2] The Japanese government invited and hiredmusicians, composers and educators as part of the modernization program, such asLuther Whiting Mason,Franz Eckert,Rudolf Dittrich andJohn William Fenton, among others.[3]
In 1875, Japanese educatorIsawa Shūji travelled to the United States to study Western music. After his return in 1879 he established the Music Investigation Agency, a national research centre focused on Western music. Its main objective was to modernize Japanese music as well as its composition, performance, and educational techniques.[4] In 1887 it became the Tokyo School of Music (nowTokyo University of the Arts), the first formal musical institution of the country.[3] A division then formed between Japanese musicians and composers: those who remained within theJapanese tradition; and those who not only studied Western music, but began to imitate such styles. With the beginning of the 20th century, and specially during theTaishō era, elements of traditional Japanese music and Western classical music were gradually synthesized.[5]
Reflecting this Westernization process, Yamada had grown exposed to the newly introduced Western military marches, as well as the protestant hymns of his mother's church.[6] He began his music education in 1904 at the Tokyo School of Music, under German composersAugust Junker [de] andHeinrich Werkmeister [ja]. In 1910, and thanks to the patronage of Japanese industrialistKoyata Iwasaki,[6] Yamada moved to Germany where he enrolled in thePrussian Academy of Arts and studied composition underMax Bruch and Karl Leopold Wolf. There he was the first Japanese composer to write orchestral music in genres such as theoverture,symphony andsymphonic poem.[7]
The piece was finished in Berlin on 22 March 1912 as an academy exercise, being the first piece of orchestral music written by a Japanese composer.[8][9] It closely follows the style of early Germanic romanticism, as represented by composers such asFelix Mendelssohn andRobert Schumann.[8] After graduating and due to the lack of performance opportunities in Germany, Yamada returned to Japan in 1913, hoping to return soon and establish in Europe. The outbreak of the war changed his plans, and from then on he dedicated himself to support Japanese classical music.[7]
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The piece was premiered at theImperial Theatre on 23 May 1915, performed by theTokyo Philharmonic Society [ja] conducted by the composer in the orchestra's first public rehearsal.[10] The original score has since been lost, possibly destroyed by thebombardments of Tokyo duringWorld War II, which destroyed most of the composer's manuscripts. Only a third-party copy of the piece was conserved, which was published in 1997 by theShunjusha Publishing Company [ja] as part of the first volume of an anthology of works by Yamada. This edition was filled with mistakes and discrepancies in articulation between the parts. An authoritative edition by Craftone Editions was published in 2016, which aimed to resolve these issues.[8]
Structured in form of asonatina, it bears the tempo markallegro assai. It begins with a rhythmic main theme in D major. The second theme, in the dominant key of A major, is more melodic and gallant in character, presented with soft staccato notes and spiced withchromaticism. There is nodevelopment section, but instead a short transition, which leads to therecapitulation of the themes in the home key of D major. The overture then ends with a solemn coda.[9] Japanese music critic Morihide Katayama described the piece as "a kind of challenge by the composer to Japanese traditional music" and "a bold step for Japanese musical westernization".[9]
The work is very modestly scored for the standards of the time.[8]
| Conductor | Orchestra | Recording date | Formats | Labels | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Takuo Yuasa | Ulster Orchestra | 2001, released 2004 | CD / Digital | Naxos Records | [11] |
Sources
