Nature
I found an album called “Marginalia” by the artist Masakatsu Takagi. It was recommended to me by my very kind youtube algorithm, and after listening to it for a few hours, the way it complements time spent working felt really nice. The way it made me feel reminded me of Nujabes work, but in a different way.
I read a bit about the artist background (A conversation with Takagi Masakatsu) and his motivation for his album, and it seems to be a ongoing solo-piano series. Takagi went on a trip to the Solomon Islands back in 2017 and lived on a small, isolated island for a while. While there, he noticed how soundscapes from nature are just a reflection of the life that inhabits it, and how sensitive it reacts to sounds around it. Sounds from birds meant that this space was safe and full of life. Any external sounds, such as loud music or airplanes, would disturb the soundscape, and the birds would get quiet. He thought he could play his piano while listening to nature by opening his windows, and wondered if the sounds he would play would echo back in how the soundscape changed with him.
Please read this
“At the beginning of the “Marginalia” project, I only recorded piano sounds even though I opened the windows, but I came to put another mic to capture the sound of nature together. These recordings are a real documentation of my life. No editing, no overdubbing, and no effects. When I played the piano before, I only took care of myself, but in “Marginalia”, I listen carefully to the sound from outside. You will notice very quickly, if you play the instruments selfishly, they stop singing and go away. If a big airplane comes across and makes a big low bass sound, they will stop singing for a while. That means their process for giving birth gets stopped. That invites less life to come in the future. I heard that since 1990, we already lost 80-90% of insects from our world. This means we also lost birds who eat insects, lost numerous lives on this planet. I want to live in the beauty. While I reached this kind of approach, my wife and I longed for our baby and made many efforts to have one. During the project of Marginalia, two kids came to our lives. I hope I will be able to keep our living environment fuller of life, with every being in harmony.”
There’s something so calming in the approach he uses. It’s both humbling and inspiring to slow down and pay attention to your surroundings, and I think you can learn a lot about yourself and the world around you.
This series has turned into somewhat of a personal diary for him, and I hope that I will be able to find a similar way to express myself in ways I find meaningful.