New Music from Japan (side A)

New Music from Japan, which seems to date from 1967, collects pieces from Akira Miyoshi, Toru Takemitsu, and Toshiro Mayuzumi, with all three pieces performed by the NHK Symphony in Japan.  The pieces, which date from 1962 and 1964, fit together nicely — they all combine a classical tradition of tonality with a more modern emphasis on texture, and they're all slightly understated and introverted.  A loose comparison would be the French spectralists, though Murail and Grisey started composing slightly later.  All three composers also introduce a distinctly Japanese character to their work.  Miyoshi's piece uses percussion sounds that harken back to Japanese traditions, while Takemitsu's piece references earlier Japanese music through its tonality.  Mayuzumi's piece, which fills side B and feels the most ambitious of the three, uses both approaches to create a sense of Japanese identity.  The recording is clean and tasteful if slightly lacking in high-end.  The cover design includes an abstract image, which seems to indicate the record's modernity, in a more traditional design layout that could be used for a more traditional orchestral album.  The exaggerated serifs on the main font provide a dignity that designers, even in a conservative musical idiom, would rarely employ today.