Sakamoto - Art Is Long, Life Is Short

Ryuichi Sakamoto, probably the most famous and successful Japanese musician ever, died in March 2023 aged 71. His reputation as a genius composer and musical innovator seems assured, although we are only just beginning to comprehend his oeuvre. What’s more, Sakamoto coexisted in the worlds of cinema, glitzy celebrity, cutting-edge technology and avant-garde art.

A year after his passing, broadcaster Nick Luscombe reflects on Sakamoto’s legacy, and asks what was so distinct and important about his prescient vision. In listening closely to the music, Luscombe learns that Sakamoto is not simply a uniquely independent artist, but also a figure that symbolises - and reacts against - postwar Japanese society.

With contributions from:
Haydn Bendall, record producer and engineer
Michael Bourdaghs, author and professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations at the University of Chicago
Alejandro Iñárritu, Academy Award-winning filmmaker
Noriko Manabe, professor of Music Theory at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music
Hideki Matsutake, programmer for Yellow Magic Orchestra and composer (translated by Ken Nishikawa)
Aileen Mioko Smith, environmental activist
David Toop, musician and author

The voice of Sakamoto is heard via BBC Archive interviews and from Nick Luscombe's archive.

Presented by Nick Luscombe
Produced by Mae-Li Evans
Exec Produced by Jack Howson
A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Radio 3