Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who won an Oscar for The Last Emperor and a Bafta for Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, has died aged 71.
He died on Tuesday (March 28) after first being diagnosed with cancer nearly three years ago.
A statement from his management, Commmons, said: “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 our deepest gratitude to his fans and all those who have supported his activities, as well as the medical professionals in Japan and the U.S. who did everything in their power to cure him.”
Sakamoto was renowned as an electronic music pioneer as a member of the Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO), which he set up in 1978 with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi (who died in January).
He began scoring for film with 1983’s Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, starring David Bowie, which played in Competition at Cannes and won Sakamoto best score at the Baftas the following year. He also starred in the film as POW camp commander Captain Yonoi.
In 1987, his film score for Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor won an Oscar, Golden Globe and Grammy, credited alongside David Byrne and Cong Su. Sakamoto also played Imperial Japanese Army officer Masahiko Amakasu in the film.
Born in Tokyo in 1952, Sakamoto studied composition from the age of 10 and his wide-ranging inspiration spanned from The Beatles to Bach and Dubussy.
As a prolific composer for film and television, his credits include The Sheltering Sky in 1990, Little Buddha in 1993, and The Revenant in 2015, for which he received his third and final Bafta nomination.
More recently, he had been announced as the composer of upcoming feature Monster, from Japanese auteur Hirokazu Kore-eda. It is unknown if Sakamoto completed the score for the film but, if so and if the film is selected to play at Cannes this year, it would mark 40 years since the premiere of Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence.
In accordance with Sakamoto’s wishes, a funeral service was held with close family members.
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