Six Japanese Gardens is a 1995 musical work for percussion and electronics by Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, inspired by her visits to the gardens of Kyoto during the summer of 1993 and her thoughts on rhythm at this time.
Instrumentation Written for percussionist and as itemized by musicologist , the composition is scored for crotales, suspended cymbal, gongs, log drum, metal plate, tambourine, tam-tam, timpani, triangle, woodblock, and Zen gong, with freer choice of percussion instrument in some sections. Electronics include the filtered voices of crickets and humans, and prerecorded finger cymbals and other percussion.
Movements Inspired by the Japanese gardens of Kyoto, the composition is in six movements:
References
See also List of compositions by Kaija Saariaho Traditional Japanese instruments 100 Soundscapes of Japan