Related: Toru Takemitsu, Boulez, Nono, Berio, Stockhausen, Xenakis, Ligeti A new release in the Seiji Ozawa SACD series. This highly acclaimed album of Toru Takemitsu's works has finally been released on SACD in 2025. Like new, played only once. The sound is in a different dimension from the old CD format, with a significant improvement in the separation of sounds, from the sinking sound of the biwa in November Steps to the roaring orchestra in the climax of Asterism. This album includes November Steps, a representative work featuring Kinshi Tsuruta on biwa and Katsuya Yokoyama on shakuhachi, which has been familiar since its premiere, as well as Asterism, a piano and orchestra piece by Yuji Takahashi, who was full of experimental spirit in his early days, Requiem for Strings, which Stravinsky praised, and Dorian Horizon, which uses the Dorian mode but doesn't sound like a church mode at all, and is a favorite of Ryuichi Sakamoto. It's packed with early masterpieces, making it a great recommendation for those new to Toru Takemitsu. This album features Ozawa's famous performances, including "November Steps," recorded just one month after its world premiere, and is essential when talking about Takemitsu. It's an album filled with tension and heat, as if Ozawa, rather than unreflectively emphasizing the sensual touch of Debussy's direct lineage, has returned to the moment of its creation and scooped up the austere, solitary beauty. This kind of vibrant and energetic performance of Takemitsu's works is rarely heard today. [Tracklist] Toru Takemitsu 1. November Steps 2. Asterism - for Piano and Orchestra 3. Requiem for Strings 4. Green 5. Dorian Horizon Kinshi Tsuruta (biwa), Katsuya Yokoyama (shakuhachi) 1 Yuji Takahashi (piano) 2 Seiji Ozawa (conductor) Toronto Symphony Orchestra Recording: December 8, 1967 (1), January 16, 1969 (2 & 5), January 17, 1969 (3 & 4), Massey Hall, Toronto