Millions of people know his film music. The Oscar winner was considered the forefather of techno, but also played jazz, pop and avant-garde. He has now died at the age of 71.
Ryuichi Sakamoto (stock image)
The Japanese film composer, musician, actor and producer Ryuichi Sakamoto, known for his compositions for the films “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant” is dead. He died on Tuesday, how his office announced on Sunday. The music genius was 71 years old. Sakamoto suffered from cancer. It was said that he had already been buried with his closest relatives.
Sakamoto has transcended numerous musical and cultural boundaries throughout his groundbreaking career. He won several awards, including the Oscar and Grammy for the film music to Bernardo Bertolucci's film epic “The Last Emperor” with Talking Heads frontman David Byrne in 1988. In the war film “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence” (1983), for which he also composed the film music, he also played a leading role alongside David Bowie. The song “Forbidden Colors” from the film became an international hit. In 2018, Sakamoto was a member of the main jury at the Berlinale.
The composer and musician visiting the 2017 Venice Film Festival
As the bandleader of the Yellow Magic Orchestra, once ranked among the “Kings of Techno” with German band Kraftwerk, he helped in the 1970s and early 1980s to create the basis for synth pop, electro and techno. His fusion of pop, classical and global rhythms as well as his experimental works also earned him a high reputation and inspired many artists.
Collaboration with many artists
Sakamoto, who was born near Tokyo on January 17, 1952 to a publishing director and a hat designer, has collaborated with many important artists over the course of his long career, including Brian Eno, Iggy Pop or David Sylvian as well as representatives of Ambient and Glitch, a subgenre of electronic and experimental music. He also composed music for films, television series and video games.
Sakamoto lived in New York City for decades. In his native Japan he was a big star, was active in the anti-nuclear movement and founded a relief fund in 2011 to replace school pianos destroyed in the tsunami disaster. In 2014 he survived lung cancer. In early 2021, the musician then announced that he was being treated for colon cancer. His management published one of Sakamoto's favorite quotes with the news of his death on Sunday: “Art is long, life is short.”
kle/uh (dpa, afp, rtre)