FUMIO HAYASAKA: Rashomon (Full Orchestral Score)

This title is anticipated to ship fall 2026 Akira Kurosawa’s highly influential film Rashomon (1950) is set in Heian-era Japan and depicts the mutually contradictory accounts of four witnesses to the murder of a samurai and the brutal rape of his wife. Composer Fumio Hayasaka provided each character story with a unique musical personality to support the individual perspectives of the tragic crimes for which the characters give testimony. Like Seven Samuari, Hayasaka's score for Rashomon incorporates a bold fusion of Western classical tradition and Japanese musical sensibilities. Hayasaka utilized a full Western-style orchestra and traditional Japanese instruments to create an atmospheric, modernist soundscape. Hayasaka famously adapted Maurice Ravel’s Boléro to underscore the long, dialogue-free sequence of the woodcutter walking into the forest. Kurosawa said that during the dubbing of the score: ”The mood created was positively eerie. I felt an icy chill run down my spine, and unwittingly I turned to Hayasaka. He was looking at me. His face was pale, and I saw that he was shuddering with the same eerie emotion I felt. From that point on, sound and image proceeded with incredible speed to surpass even the calculations I had made in my head. The effect was strange and overwhelming.” This edition was engraved from the orchestrations by the composer. Includes an extensive essay by Dr. Michael Harris whose comprehensive research into the life and work of Fumio Hayasaka is invaluable. THIS PUBLICATION IS AVAILABLE WORLDWIDE INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR PAYING IMPORT FEES IN THEIR REGION Contents Essay (by Dr. Michael Harris) Table of Contents Instrumentation RNO1 Opening Credits オープニング RNO2 The Woodcutter's Story, Part 1 木こりの物語　第一部 RNO2A The Woodcutter's Story, Part 2 木こりの物語　第2部 RNO3 The Priest's Story 司祭の物語 RNO4 The Policeman's Story 警官の物語 RNO5 The Bandit's Story, Part 1 山賊の物語　第一部 RNO6 The Bandit's Story, Part 2 山賊の物語　第2部 RNO7 The Bandit's Story, Part 3 山賊の物語　第3部 RNO8 The Bandit's Story, Part 4 山賊の物語　第4部 RNO9 The Bandit's Story, Part 5 山賊の物語　第5部 RNO10 The Bandit's Story, Part 6 山賊の物語　第6部 RNO11 The Woman's Story その女の物語 RNO12 The Man's Story, Part 1 男の物語　第1部 RNO13 The Man's Story, Part 2 男の物語、第2部 RNO14 Epilogue エピローグ