Somei Satoh

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Somei Satoh (Satō Sōmei, 佐藤聰明; b. Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, January 19, 1947) is a Japanese composer.

In the post-Takemitsu era, Somei Satoh has steadily been gaining notoriety as one of Japan’s most internationally celebrated and significant^{[citation needed]} composers of contemporary traditional music (gendai hogaku). A largely self-taught musician, he came to the technical elements of music not from the usual perspective of western proportions and balance of harmony, counterpoint and orchestration, but rather from a deep understanding of the philosophies of Shinto and Zen Buddhist beliefs. This background reveals a music that delights in the world of infinite spaces and suspended time. His works are fragile in their clarity and simplicity, but are not simplistic or facile. His work represents a kind of sculptural minimalism infused with the lyrical sense of Romanticism.

He studied at Nihon University of Art in the early 1970s[1] and is essentially an autodidact in composition.

He lives in Tokyo.