Sunday Feature
... a garden never spurns those who enter it ...
For the Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu, gardens provided both a source of inspiration and a metaphor for his music ... "I can imagine a garden superimposed over the image of an orchestra. A garden is composed of various different elements and sophisticated details that converge to form a harmonious whole. Each element does not exert its individuality, but achieves a state of anonymity - and that is the kind of music that I would like to create."

This portrait of the great Japanese composer combines the words of friends, family and admirers - including his daughter Maki, the conductors Oliver Knussen and Marin Alsop, the composers Dai Fujikura and Joji Yuasa, the pop musician David Sylvian, the film director Masahiro Shinoda and the Tokyo gardener Ryutaro Takahara - with sounds from Takemitsu's favourite Kyoto gardens and examples from his concert music, film scores and a specially recorded performance of his arrangement of Yesterday by the guitarist Daisuke Suzuki.

"What emerged from Alan Hall's hypnotically calm radio portrait of the composer was a short life lived along dizzingly intellectual principles but also studded with fun."
Elisabeth Mahoney, The Guardian 23 iv

"Takemitsu's music was interwoven with the voices of his daughter and friends and sounds from nature, creating a beautiful composition - a radio garden."
Ciar Byrne, The Independent 26 iv 07

Nominated for Sony Award 2007 in the music special category.