Improvised Music from Japan / Discography

Ayuo
Hiromi Ohta

Red Moon

(Tzadik, TZ 7246) (U.S.) (CD)

  1. Tsuki to Mizu (Moon and Water) (7:11)
  2. Yume Utsutsu (Dreaming Away) (6:20)
  3. Takeda no Komori Uta (Takeda Lullaby) (5:09)
  4. Haru no Yume (Spring Dream) (5:32)
  5. One Step Further (10:36)
  6. Devotion (6:28)
  7. Kodo (A Serenade--An Illusion) (5:17)
  8. A Painting of You and I (E no Naka no Sugata) (11:22)
  9. Niwa no Chigusa (A Thousand Different Grasses in the Garden) (4:24)
  10. Yoru wo Koete (Beyond the Night) (4:28)

Words and music by Ayuo Takahashi, except track 4, by Hiromi Ohta; track 2, words translated by Hiromi Ohta; and tracks 3 and 9, traditionals arranged by Ayuo Takahashi

Hiromi Ohta: vocals (1-4, 8-10), ukulele (4), voice (5-7)
Ayuo: sitar-guitar (1-3, 9, 10), acoustic guitar (1-3), electric bass (1), electric "wah-wah" guitar (1, 2, 5), vocals (2, 5, 6), B4 organ (2, 9), bird whistle (2, 5), glissando guitar (3, 5, 10), guitar-bass (3, 10), drum machine programming and editing on Reaktor and Pro-Tools software (3), percussion (3), Celtic harp (4), bouzouki (5, 6), electric "wah-wah" bouzouki (5), cornemuse (5), Japanese whistle (fue) (5), vibraphone (5), marimba (5), Roland JP-8000 synth (5), soft synth (Reason) (5), drum and synth loops (5), bells and percussion (5), voice (7), electric guitar (7, 9, 10), loops of synths (7), sound effects (7), samples of percussion edited, programmed, and sequenced on Pro-Tools sofware (7), classical guitar (8, 10), slide guitar (9), tin whistle (9)
Ma-To: tabla (1, 5, 6, 10)
Keisuke Ohta: violin (1, 4)
Yuichi "Masa" Nonaka: drums (5, 9)

Tracks 6 and 8, and tabla parts recorded live at Keyaki Hall
Drums recorded at Daikanyama Classics
Vibraphone and marimba recorded at Sakuragaoka Elementary School
All other vocals and acoustic instruments recorded at Hiromi Ohta's home
Engineered by Motohiko Maeda

Some electric guitar and synthesizer parts recorded at Ayuo's home
All drum programming, sequencing, and sample editing done at Ayuo's home
Engineered by Ayuo Takahashi

Mixed by Motohiko Maeda at Moka Studio, Tokyo
Mastered by Scott Hull at Hit Factory Mastering, New York
Produced by Ayuo Takahashi
Cover art by Yocho (Omen) and Kiyoshi Awazu
Design by Heung-Heung Chin

Released in January 2004