Three Film Scores

In his film "Jose Torres", shot in the streets of New York, Hiroshi Teshigahara describes the life of the boxer Jose Torres with the means of documentary film. Takemitsu's music, with its jazzy echoes, reflects the tension that builds up between Western vitality and Eastern contemplation, which also determines the atmosphere of the film. "Kuroi Ame" ("Black Rain") is a moving indictment of the madness of the American atomic bombing of Hiroshima and depicts the fate of a group of people who are slowly dying from the consequences of nuclear radiation. It is based on a story by Japanese writer Masuij Ibuse.
"Waltz" is the title song for the film "Tanin no Kao" based on the novella of the same name by Kobo Aba; the original German lyrics were written by the Japanese Germanist and film producer Tatsuji Iwabuchi and were sung by Bibari Maeda during a bar scene in the film.