The music world pays tribute to Ryuichi Sakamoto
Figures from across the music industry have paid tribute to the late electronic musician, composer and actor Ryuichi Sakamoto, who passed away from cancer on March 28th.
Sakamoto enjoyed a career spanning over five decades, winning an Oscar, Grammy, Bafta and two Golden Globes. As well as pioneering electronic music, he composed soundtracks for films such as The Last Emperor, The Sheltering Sky and The Revenant. Sakamoto also starred in the 1982 war film Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, alongside the late David Bowie.
Sakamoto was first diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, which led to him taking a year off from working on music. He then went into remission after treatment, but he confirmed in 2020 that he had been diagnosed with rectal cancer. Then, in an essay published in June 2022, Sakamoto stated he had undergone surgery in late 2021 to remove cancer that had spread to both lungs and was battling stage 4 cancer.
“Since I have made it this far in life, I hope to be able to make music until my last moment, like Bach and Debussy whom I adore,” he wrote.
On Sunday, a post on the former Yellow Magic Orchestra member’s official social media accounts confirmed the news of his death. A statement on Sakamoto’s official website explains: “While undergoing treatment for cancer discovered in June 2020, Sakamoto continued to create works in his home studio whenever his health would allow. He lived with music until the very end.”
“We would like to express out deepest gratitude to his fans and all those who have supported his activities, as well as medical professionals in Japan and the United States who did everything in their power to cure him.”
It concluded: “In accordance with Sakamoto’s strong wishes, the funeral service was held among his close family members. Finally, we would like to share one of Sakamoto’s favourite quotes: ‘Ars longa, vita brevis’ [Art is Long, life is short’].”
Following the news of Ryuichi Sakamoto’s death, many tributes have been paid to him, ranging from Questlove to Massive Attack.
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