Milan Records releases the posthumous album Opus by the late legendary composer Ryuichi Sakamoto. The album represents a collection of works performed as a final concert in autumn 2022 before Sakamoto’s death in early 2023. The album also includes the track 'For Jóhann', one of the newly composed pieces on the album. It is a tribute to Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannson, one of Sakamoto’s close friends and colleagues, who passed away in 2018...

In late 2022, the Japanese composer, producer, and artist Ryuichi Sakamoto sat down at the piano for a final performance. Too ill to complete an entire set at once, Opus is garnered from multiple sessions shot and recorded in Tokyo’s legendary NHK 509 Studio. The concert was filmed and recorded without an audience, directed by Sakamoto’s son Neo Sora and turned into a film Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus.

Opus was carefully curated by Sakamoto, with selections including his iconic film scores, Yellow Magic Orchestra classics, alongside pieces reflective of his eclectic career. 'Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence', perhaps one of his most famous melodies, and beloved works 'Andata', 'Aqua' and 'Trioon' are represented as well as entirely new or never-before-recorded compositions. 'For Jóhann, dedicated to the late composer and Sakamoto’s friend Jóhann Jóhannsson, 'BB', a tribute to filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci, and '20180219 (w/prepared piano)', a previously unreleased solo prepared-piano track.

Discussing the project shortly after it was recorded, Sakamoto said: "The project was conceived as a way to record my performances - while I was still able to perform - in a way that is worth preserving for the future. In some sense, while thinking of this as my last opportunity to perform, I also felt that I was able to break new ground. Simply playing a few songs a day with a lot of concentration was all I could muster at this point in my life. Perhaps due to the exertion, I felt utterly hollow afterwards, and my condition worsened for about a month. Even so, I feel relieved that I was able to record before my death - a performance that I was satisfied with."

While this is an important and rather sad album for fans of Sakamoto's work, it's a little rough around the edges and personally I'd rather remember the great man's work by listening to the original album recordings.

While it's sad to realise that the composer was fully aware that this would be the last time he performed these pieces, it's only really worth picking up for the previously unreleased tracks.

Track listing:
*New arrangement or never-before-recorded

01. Lack of Love*
02. BB*
03. Andata
04. Solitude
05. for Jóhann*
06. Aubade 2020
07. Ichimei - small happiness
08. Mizu no Naka no Bagatelle
09. Bibo no Aozora
10. Aqua
11. Tong Poo*
12. The Wuthering Heights
13. 20220302 - sarabande
14. The Sheltering Sky
15. 20180219 (w/prepared piano)*
16. The Last Emperor
17. Trioon*
18. Happy End
19. Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
20. Opus - ending

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Darren Rea