Favorite Scores From Akira Ifukube’s Filmography
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Those who know me are aware that my favorite composer is Akira Ifukube. Inspired by a rather similar thread by Thor (covering the entirety of film music history), I decided to list my favorite film scores from Ifukube’s entire film career.
Another reason for doing this is to shed more light on this incredibly gifted composer. Essentially part of my continuing campaign to raise awareness that there is more to Ifukube than Godzilla or Tokusatsu and the days of neglecting everything else need to come to an end.
With some exceptions, the film titles listed are translations of the original Japanese titles, done out of necessity or by preference.
1947: “Invitation to Happiness” (Shintoho)
1948: “Danshichi’s Black Horse” (Shintoho)
1949: “Rainbow Man” (Daiei Tokyo)1950: “Les Misérables: Part One – Gods and Demons” (Toyoko)
1951: “Stolen Love: I Love You” (Shintoho)
1952: “Swift Current” (Toho)
1953: “Hiroshima” (Film Production Committee/Hokusei Film)
1954: “Dobu” (Kindai Eiga Kyokai)
1955: “Sakuma Dam Part Two: Transformation of the Great Tenryu” (Iwanami Films)
1956: “The Crime of Shiro Kamisaka” (Nikkatsu)
1957: “Roaring Sounds and the Earth” (Toei Tokyo)
1958: “Giant Monster Varan” Theatrical Version (Toho)
1959: “Whistling in the Kotan” (Toho)1960: “Castle of Flames” (Toei Kyoto)
1961: “Musashi Miyamoto” (Toei Kyoto)
1962: “The Great Wall” (Daiei Kyoto)
1963: “The Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon” (Toei Doga)
1964: “Tales of the Suruga Outlaw: The Broken Drum” (Daiei Kyoto)
1965: “Zatoichi and the Chess Expert” (Daiei Kyoto)
1966: “Daimajin’s Counterattack” (Daiei Kyoto)
1967: “Zatoichi Challenged” (Daiei Kyoto)
1968: “The Kawachi Drifters” (Toho)
1969: “The Devil’s Temple” (Daiei Kyoto)1970: “Will to Conquer” (Toho)
1971: No scores composed during this year.
1972: No scores composed during this year. “Godzilla vs. Gigan” sports Ifukube’s music, but it’s all stock music. However, I do love it.
1973: “The Human Revolution” (Toho / Scenario Eiga)
1974: “The Last Samurai” (Shochiku)
1975: “The Humpbacked Pony” (Seiji Fujishiro)
1976: Ifukube composed a single film this year, “The Great Elm Tree: The Rings of a Great Century”, which continues to elude myself and others. No favorite for this year.
1977: No scores composed during this year. A documentary by the title “The Wings, the Sea and Tomorrow” features Ifukube’s music, but it’s allegedly all stock.
1978: “Lady Ogin” (Takarazuka Eiga) is the only film Ifukube composed during this year and is more or less his last until 1991. The score is great, so I’ll list it as a favorite.1979 – 1989: No scores were composed during this period. The closest of which were a collection of new recordings Ifukube put together for a collection of outtakes from various Toho productions. The music from which was released as the album OSTINATO.
1990 – 1995: Ifukube only composed six scores during this period before he permanently retired from film work in 1995. So, I’ll be grouping them all, with my favorite being “Kushiro Marshland” (1993, NHK).
That’s my list for now! I’ve seen/heard more than what’s listed and it can change as I come across more films he scored though I’ve seen almost everything made available to the public.
I need to note that the 1950 film “Les Misérables: Part One – Gods and Demons” along with it’s follow up are lost. The surviving omnibus version had Ifukube’s score replaced. Thankfully, some of the music from Ifukube’s manuscript survives and that surviving material was given a new recording. What did survive is some of the most powerful and emotional music I’ve heard from Ifukube, hence the lost film’s inclusion in this list.
On a similar note, Ifukube’s music for another lost production, the National Forest Trilogy (1955), came close to being included here so I’m giving it an honorable mention.
Now, feel free to name some of your favorites from the composed. You are by no means need create an extensive list as I did, just throw in your favorites based on what you’ve heard.
I can honestly say that I’m not familiar with any of the scores you’ve listed above, only having a superficial exposure to his Godzilla scores from his film work.
I know – shameful!
However, one of my favourite pieces of music of any type is his “Ritmica Ostinata”, roughly twenty minutes of driving orchestral music which features the piano more as a percussion instrument than a melodic one. I suspect it may be really demanding on the pianist, as it hardly pauses for breath throughout. If I never do hear any of your listed scores, Ifukube will still remain a composer for when I have an enormous fondness for this piece alone.
There’s a great version of it on the Naxos label, played by Ekaterina Saranceva under Dmitri Yablonski and the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra, who made such a great job of Boris Tischchenko’s absolutely bonkers 7th Symphony.
I also know Ifukube primarily because of the Godzilla movies and the march is of course a classic. It is surely because I never was into Japanese films in general and never explored any concert music. Is that music as European orientated as the film scores?
Thanks a lot for that, Blaize! That should be a great gateway in for exploration. Like TG, I’m really only familiar with some of that growling brass and percussion music for GODZILLA (which is fascinating – it was even referenced by Zimmer, I think, in EUPHORIA recently), but not much else. I think I asked this question on FSM once, and you may have responded, but I’ve forgotten the reply: Did he ever write anything more down-tempo and lyrical? Some of the titles on your list suggest to me that he might have.
First of all, it’s completely understandable if everyone is more familiar with his Godzilla scores than anything else. Most of the films Ifukube scored never made it out of Japan to begin with. Thankfully, Japanese labels have released quite a lot of music from those obscure films and I myself own a number of them.
For those who wish to take a deeper dive into his film music, I always recommend purchasing Akira Ifukube Melodious Compile (VPCD-81225), released by VAP in 1997. Primarily consisting of tracks from their previous Ifukube albums, it offers a nice variety from both his film music and stage music along with his work for Expo ’70. It’s overall a good introductory sampler.
In response to Tall Guy, “Ritmica Ostinata” is a favorite of mine! Yes, it’s an exceptionally demanding work. You also bring a point when it comes to Ifukube’s treatment for the piano. For both concert works and film scores, he would often use it more as a percussion instrument or feature it predominantly in some other fashion. He also used the piano to provide the sound effect for the bomb detonating in “Hiroshima”. Anyway, I always go crazy over his use of the piano! Honestly, composers need to learn from him in regards to using the instrument to it’s fullest. By the way, look into his “Symphony Concertante for Piano and Orchestra”. The whole work is great, but the third movement is something on a whole different level!
In response to Malte, it depends on his concert work. Much sound European in nature while others are distinctively Japanese. In other cases, a fusion of both. In reality, his exposure to the Ainu had one of the greatest impacts on his music.
Thor, he absolutely did! Many of the film scores I’ve listed easily fit the description. “The Ground” is a great example and two cues from that score have been released in the past. The score is monothematic though so there may not be a need to release the complete score if it’s still extant. Another great example is “Woman Running on the Shore” (Shochiku, 1964) is another that comes to mind. Seven of the thirteen or so cues are on one of VAP’s Ifukube compilations and it’s simply breathtaking. By the way, the male lead in the film ends up playing the main theme on a piano in one scene. Hopefully this will get a complete release on of these days.
Excellent, I’ll go hunting for some of those! Hopefully, there’s something available on streaming platforms, like that compilation.
In response to Malte, it depends on his concert work. Much sound European in nature while others are distinctively Japanese. In other cases, a fusion of both. In reality, his exposure to the Ainu had one of the greatest impacts on his music.
Thanks, so a bit like Takemitsu who literally moves between styles and influences a bit as well (as far as my rather limited knowledge of his works goes).
Like many others, I know Ifukube primarily through the Toho monster movies, primarily Godzilla by Inoshiro Honda (which I like a lot, though I never cared that much for the Godzilla franchise per se).
So it’s cool to have a first overview about Ifukube and maybe seek out some more of his stuff.Blaize, I stumbled across this album while looking around. What is it? I’m one of those who would be content with having a compilation of Ifukube’s kaiju stuff rather than individual GODZILLA albums, and from what I understand, this could be it?
Seems to be such a best of. There is also a Symphonic Concert which has suites, at least I have something digital…
Thor, that’s the album I mentioned in my list. It consists new recordings of selected cues that were recorded for a collection of outtakes Toho put together for home video release. It’s the closest to a film score Ifukube worked on during the 1980s.
I actually have video from the recording sessions. There are some rather funny moments too. One instance was Ifukube almost lighting a cigarette at the filter end (I’ve done it too), and the other trying to get his lighter to work trying to light another cigarette, only to give up after a few attempts (another thing I can relate to). The session video also features an outtake not on the album.
By the way, the CD issues feature more music than the LP.
It’s fine!
By the way, there is someone on YouTube who posts a lot of Ifukube’s film work. This includes main title collections from specific studios such as Toho, Daiei, Toei and more. There’s also a video on Ifukube’s work for Shintoho. I’ll try to get some of those linked here later today. I will say that it’s crazy that I’ve seen nearly everything featured in those videos.
He retired from film work. He was somewhat forced back as he was dissatisfied with the treatment of his material for “Godzilla VS Biollante” (1989). When “Godzilla VS King Ghidorah” (1991) came around, his daughter suggested he score it. That way, he’d have greater control of his music. After scoring three additional Godzilla films and two documentaries, he went back into retirement in 1995. That’s the gist of it.
Indeed! Interestingly, the rarest of his released scores, “Chaotic Voices of Folk Customs” (1991), came from that brief comeback. It was initially released with “Kushiro Marshland” in 1994 but was quickly withdrawn apparently due to some legal issue. It was then reissued in late 1995, this time paired with music from Shigeyuki Imai’s “Han: Entertainment Mandala” (1995) and it’s this album I own (photo below is my copy). By the way, the latter is an absolute delight!
Here’s a bit of a treat for everyone. Presented here is music from my favorite Ifukube score of 1948, “Danshichi’s Black Horse” (1948)! As the optical scoring masters are lost, I lifted everything from the film’s final composite audio track itself. As such, dialogue and sound effects are heard throughout though it’s often pretty easy to zone it out. Enjoy!
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