performed by Bill Solomon

In 1645, Miyamoto Musashi, arguably the greatest Japanese duelist of his time, wrote his treatise on strategy applicable to one-on-one swordsmanship, one-against-many conflict, and large-scale battle.  The text contained the basics of Musashi’s own “Two Heavens” school of the sword.  Divided into five scrolls (or “rings”) named after the five elements, his text is the inspiration for this set of short pieces for solo timpanist.

The First Scroll (Earth) serves as an introduction within both the Musashi text and this set of pieces.  Influenced by Takemitsu’s percussion writing for the score to Kurosawa’s Ran, this scroll serves to prepare the listener for a solo timpanist’s performance.  Musashi uses the Second Scroll (Water) to comment on the basics of swordsmanship, and so this piece is based on simple iaido forms, with a particular focus on independence of limbs.

The Third and Fourth Scrolls (Fire and Wind) are heavily influenced by two significantly different ensembles from traditional Japanese music: the taiko and gagaku, respectively.  The aggressive qualities of taiko performance combined with the final duel of Hiroshi Inagaki’s Samurai Trilogy to inspire and shape “Fire,” representative of Musashi’s scroll on conflict.  Contrastingly, the gagaku’s ethereal melodies guided the creation of the fourth piece in this set, where the timpani sing a hushed, airy tune.

Finally, the Fifth Scroll (Void) is Musashi’s take on the Zen concept of No Mind.  The timpanist performs an ostinato pattern on the four drums but the focus lies in the tuning of the drums.  Ideally performed without tuning gauges, this piece forces the player into a state of No Mind.

Five Scrolls of Musashi: Fifth Scroll - Void

Richard Johnson is a multimedia artist and composer whose interest in music was piqued during a childhood heavily impacted by film.  Equal parts Kurosawa and Spielberg combined to create his ongoing interest in culture and history, the music of Takemitsu and Williams, and an obsession with mystery, adventure, and storytelling. This blend of interests is most clearly present in his set of pieces for soloists, electronics, and video entitled Quaerere Sententias.

Richard’s music has been performed throughout the United States and internationally, and has been presented at events such as SEAMUS, Electronic Music Midwest, Electro-Acoustic Barn Dance, SCI conferences, Thailand International Composers’ Festival, and the Festival Internacional Punto de Ecuentro in Spain.

In 2012, Richard received his DMA from the University of Missouri-Kansas City where he studied with Chen Yi, James Mobberley, Paul Rudy, and Zhou Long.  He also holds degrees from the Hartt School at University of Hartford (MM) and West Chester University of Pennsylvania (BM). 

Richard currently resides in southern California, where he is (finally) pursuing that interest in film score composition that drew him to music as a youth.


Five Scrolls of Musashi: Fifth Scroll - Void

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