049: Le Koto de Hiromu Handa, by Hiromu Handa

Hiromu Handa (Japan)
Le Koto de Hiromu Handa (1977)
10 tracks, 39 minutes
YouTube playlist · iTunes

A while back I was asked by Songlines Magazine to contribute an entry for an article called ‘The Greatest Albums You’ve Never Heard,’ basically a collection of near-criminally unknown or underrated albums in world music. Although I eventually wrote about a different one, this album was one of the three that immediately jumped to mind.

I’d not heard of it before I saw it on the Anthems for the Nation of Luobaniya (an excellent but now sadly defunct music blog with old recordings from everywhere – in fact, you may still be able to download this album from there, I think), and in fact, I’ve not heard the artist discussed anywhere since, either. So, as you might expect, this is quite a mysterious one. I know little about them or this album in particular, but I know how it sounds and how it makes me feel. It is so evocative. When I listen, I’m transported to a world of contemplation, a tranquil lake surrounded by blossoming cherry trees in a rural Japan that has probably never existed in the romanticised way my brain has created.

Much like Toumani Diabaté and Mohammad Reza Mortazavi, who we’ve covered in the past, Hiromu Handa is much more than a master of his instrument. He plays the koto, a 13-stringed Japanese bridge-zither plucked with plectrums attached to the fingers, but his technique is unlike any other. He developed new ways of playing the instrument and even penned treatises to that effect. The way that Handa plays, with rapid melodies, chords, arpeggios, sweeping glissandi and even tapping rhythms on the strings – sometimes all at the same time – is avant garde in the world of Japanese classical tradition, yet it loses none of the music’s poignancy, subtlety, or even spaciousness. It never feels crowded or overdone. His pitch bends and minute vibratos are absolutely perfect. The result here is a completely solo album that pushes all boundaries while keeping the spirit of the traditional style at the very core of the performance.

As far as I can tell there is only one other album by Hiromu Handa, oddly enough with the exact same name as this one. I would love to get my hands on it and there is currently a copy going on Discogs, although it’s a little too expensive for me. If you like what you’ve been reading on this blog and would like to donate an album…well, here’s the link.