Ryouran - Woodwind & Percussion Octet

This work is based on the noh play "Sakuragawa".
The story is as follows.

"In Hyuga (Miyazaki, a southern area of Japan), a mother and son lived in poverty. The son, Sakurago (Cherry Blossom Child), distressed at his mother's hardships, sold himself to a human trafficker. When the mother learned that by letter from the trafficker, she dashed out from her house and set on a journey in despair to find him.

Three years passed. Sakurago was apprenticed to a monk of the Isobe-dera temple in the remote province of Hitachi (Ibaraki on Japan's eastern Pacific Coast).

In the best season of cherry blossom, the monk and Sakurago went out to Sakuragawa River, a nearby famous cherry blossom spot to enjoy the view. Just then, Sakurago's mother arrived at the riverside after her long journey. The mother went frantic and scooped cherry petals floating on the river with a net, showing her madness.

Asked why she was doing this by the monk, she said she could not waste the blossoms, related to the name of her separated son. Enticed by the falling flowers, the mother reached a frenzied extreme, spurred on by thoughts of her son. From her accent, Sakurago recognized this lady came from the Kyushu region, and the parent and child finally met again. The mother regained her senses and they came back home."

This work depicts the following scenes: a poor life, the mother desperately searching for Sakurago after receiving the letter, a beautiful cherry bloom in Sakuragawa, the frenzy of the mother, and reunion of parent and the child returning to their hometown.

(Tomohito Matsushita)