Ryuichi Sakamoto has played what could possibly be his last concert following his cancer diagnosis.
Last year, the lauded composer and founder of the Yellow Magic Orchestra, was diagnosed with cancer for the second time in a decade. Sakamoto was originally diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, which is now in remission, but shared details of a rectal cancer in 2021.
At the time, the composer stated his ambition to still make music âfor a little while longerâ while âliving alongside cancer,” and this month he hosted a new livestreamed concert, titled âRyuichi Sakamoto: Playing the Piano 2022â and made up of four separate performances spliced together.
Reflecting on the concert in a statement on his official website, the composer said: âMy strength has really fallen, so a normal concert of about an hour to ninety minutes would be very difficult.”
He concludes: “As a result, I’ve recorded it song by song and edited it together so it can be presented as a regular concert – which I believe can be pleasureable in the normal way. Enjoy.â
Watch footage from the concert below, alongside a message from Sakamoto, in which he said: âI donât have the energy to do live concerts⊠This might be the last time that you will see me perform in this manner.â
Last month, Sakamoto announced â12â, his first non-soundtrack studio album in nearly six years.
The album is set to arrive on January 17 via Milan Records, and follows up 2017âs âasyncâ. It was recorded throughout 2021 and 2022, with each of its dozen tracks titled after the dates they were written.
Sakamoto has stayed busy since âasyncâ arrived in 2017, recording soundtracks for a range of film and television projects. Those have included the 2019 Black Mirror episode âSmithereensâ and last yearâs Netflix film Beckett. Last month, Sakamoto released a soundtrack for the Netflix anime series Exception.
This month also saw the release of a Sakamoto tribute album titled âTo The Moon And Backâ. The compilation, released via Milan Records, includes reworks of Sakamotoâs songs by Thundercat (whose âremodelâ of âThousand Knivesâ was released recently), DevontĂ© Hynes (Blood Orange), Fennesz, the Cinematic Orchestra and more.
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