Tomita

Tomita Sound Cloud Special Edition CD

I picked up a copy recently of the Tomita Sound Cloud Special Edition. There are ten tracks, nine of which I think are available elsewhere ( I haven't had time to check). It is track number ten that is of interest as it is from the Hansel and Gretel pantomime/opera. Nick Kent's previous thread regarding the Laserdisc mentions a six minute track, this could well be the one on this CD as it is a lovely piece of music and very much Tomita. I'm not aware of any of the Hansel and Gretel music being available other than on the Laserdisc and Video (both of which seem to be very hard to find). Nick's other thread in '03 about this release asks whether it was a promo or given away at events. Unfortunately the front and back CD inserts are one sided with no photos or further information. The track listing on the back is in Japanese and that's that. BMG released it in 1994 with a RCA Gold Seal symbol. Catalogue no. DRF3910. Anyone throw any more light on this CD?

 

Interesting. Sounds like a radio promo. Tomita was slated to do a Sound Cloud in Kyoto that year so it would make sense they'd make something to give the media to help promote it ahead of time and get radio airplay. The Hansel & Gretel video release would have been his most recent RCA Japan release

 

That makes sense, the simple packaging is at odds with the usual booklets and photos found in most other Tomita CDs, but are there that many radio stations in Japan to justify a one-off CD? I am now wondering why this CD is included on the official Tomita website discography? He (if Tomita himself is actually responsible for choosing the albums shown!) is very selective about what is 'listed'. There are several LPs of NHK music he must have had close involvement with even if he dissapproves of the more recent CD reissues of earlier work. Also, if the rest of the Hansel and Gretel music was anywhere near as good as the six minute track on this CD why was it not issued as a CD? Bit of a missed opportunity!

 

Well that is a good question as to what gets listed on his website discography. It seems to make sense that he's including his Official albums, but there are still some missing. Then you think maybe it's just ones he likes but still I don't see any point what he included all those compilations. Maybe there is some business motivation. He stops at 2001, skipping the "Shigeo Nagashima" soundtrack, which seems "official" enough.

As for Hansel & Gretel. I presume the passage is the long prelude or ballet sequence without singing that I remember (I'm not sure what it's technically categorized as). The videodisc is mostly live singing and has the flaws of trying to professionally record singers live on stage doing a real performance with an audience present. But the video emphasizes they are on a real stage so people viewing can understand why it's imperfect. I think the problems with repackaging something for a different than intended medium show up on the Pioneer disc of "Tale of Genji". I know Tomita didn't want them to release that CD as he had plans for a studio version. I don't quite understand the history, but the Pioneer disc was a live recording that Tomita didn't think was up to the standards of a classical CD release, but they had the option to release it and did. I assumed, especially since Pioneer was a major player in the laserdisc business that the project was meant as an audio-visual release. But as far as I know it was never released that way... unless it was on satelite TV or something like that. Anyway I can see why Hansel & Gretel would be flawed if the existing recording was audio only. I guess one could have the performers overdub their singing in a studio, but still, it's not quite a complete experience without watching the staging. I mean you could present it a couple ways. Like make some kind of highlights album with overdubbed singing, but still I remember that the opera tells a story and it's pretty long, so it's hard to present in any way other than full length with video.