Tōru Takemitsu

Tōru Takemitsu was a Japanese composer and writer on aesthetics and music theory. Recognized for merging eastern and western philosophical elements and integrating sound with silence, Takemitsu was largely self-taught. His works included several hundred compositions, over ninety film scores, and twenty books. He was a founding member of the Jikken Kōbō (Experimental Workshop), greatly influencing the 20th-century avant-garde. His 1957 'Requiem for String Orchestra' garnered international acclaim, affirming his status as a foremost Japanese composer.