On a visit to Japan in 2019, Nicoletta Favari and Christopher Salvito a.k.a. Passepartout Duo found themselves connecting with Kankyō Ongaku (‘environmental music’) – a genre of ambient that emerged in the 1980s in response to the country’s rapid urbanisation. Their love for it led to search out figureheads and Japanese ambient legends Inoyama Land (Makoto Inoue & Yasushi Yamashita), the musicians behind classic 1983 album Danzindan-Pojidon, which was produced by YMO’s Haruomi Hosono.
The result of their search is Passepartout Duo’s new collaborative album with Inoyama Land, Radio Yugawara, released this week (26 July) via Tonal Union. It was recorded in a kindergarten in Inoue’s hometown of Yugawara, which his family owns. The quartet recorded using instruments usually played by children – glockenspiels, recorders, xylophones, handbells etc., blending them with electronics and synthesisers.
To celebrate, Passepartout Duo and Inoyama Land have teamed up on a special Sunday Mix. It’s a call-and-response, push-and-pull conversation between the two pairs, which previews the album and highlights their diverse influences – ambient, reggae and Japanese synth music all feature – and in particular their shared love for organic sounds and textures. One for a walk in the wild. Tune in and read our Q&A with Passepartout Duo below.
Who: Passepartout Duo & Inoyama Land
What: Experimental, Electronic, Ambient
Where are you today? We are in our temporary studio in Omaha, Nebraska.
Tell us about your ideal Sunday, and what’s your ideal soundtrack to it? Our ideal Sunday is a sunny and warm day in the park with friends! Our ideal soundtrack crosses genres and geographical borders to take us on a breathless journey; a perfect soundtrack makes you want to go into the studio and create.
How do you like to unwind away from music? Walking and hiking hard.
Describe your Sunday mix: We put together this mix as a conversation between us and Inoyama Land. As we travelled this past year we have taken notes about tracks that really transport us into special microworlds, music that inspires us and that makes our hearts jump a little. The range is diverse, but not quite as much as the songs sent along by Yasushi, who has always been inspired by music from the 60s, especially the so-called ‘easy listening’ music, but also instrumental rock bands and reggae from the 70s. Complimentary to this, there are also the picks by Makoto, who has always been enormously influenced by Japanese composer Akira Ifukube, and the work related to the Godzilla project.
Sunday Mix: Passepartout Duo & Inoyama Land
Sunday Mix: Passepartout Duo & Inoyama Land
On a visit to Japan in 2019, Nicoletta Favari and Christopher Salvito a.k.a. Passepartout Duo found themselves connecting with Kankyō Ongaku (‘environmental music’) – a genre of ambient that emerged in the 1980s in response to the country’s rapid urbanisation. Their love for it led to search out figureheads and Japanese ambient legends Inoyama Land (Makoto Inoue & Yasushi Yamashita), the musicians behind classic 1983 album Danzindan-Pojidon, which was produced by YMO’s Haruomi Hosono.
The result of their search is Passepartout Duo’s new collaborative album with Inoyama Land, Radio Yugawara, released this week (26 July) via Tonal Union. It was recorded in a kindergarten in Inoue’s hometown of Yugawara, which his family owns. The quartet recorded using instruments usually played by children – glockenspiels, recorders, xylophones, handbells etc., blending them with electronics and synthesisers.
To celebrate, Passepartout Duo and Inoyama Land have teamed up on a special Sunday Mix. It’s a call-and-response, push-and-pull conversation between the two pairs, which previews the album and highlights their diverse influences – ambient, reggae and Japanese synth music all feature – and in particular their shared love for organic sounds and textures. One for a walk in the wild. Tune in and read our Q&A with Passepartout Duo below.
Who: Passepartout Duo & Inoyama Land
What: Experimental, Electronic, Ambient
Where are you today? We are in our temporary studio in Omaha, Nebraska.
Tell us about your ideal Sunday, and what’s your ideal soundtrack to it? Our ideal Sunday is a sunny and warm day in the park with friends! Our ideal soundtrack crosses genres and geographical borders to take us on a breathless journey; a perfect soundtrack makes you want to go into the studio and create.
How do you like to unwind away from music? Walking and hiking hard.
Describe your Sunday mix: We put together this mix as a conversation between us and Inoyama Land. As we travelled this past year we have taken notes about tracks that really transport us into special microworlds, music that inspires us and that makes our hearts jump a little. The range is diverse, but not quite as much as the songs sent along by Yasushi, who has always been inspired by music from the 60s, especially the so-called ‘easy listening’ music, but also instrumental rock bands and reggae from the 70s. Complimentary to this, there are also the picks by Makoto, who has always been enormously influenced by Japanese composer Akira Ifukube, and the work related to the Godzilla project.
See Tracklist
