Silk Road III

Kitaro played Korg, Roland, Prophet and
Moog synthesizers. Acoustic guitar, Sitar,
Santur, Table. Percussion, Mellotron, Harp,
Violin, Quena. Chanting Bells, Wind Chimes.

Yasuo Kojima played Violin

Illustrated by Shusei Nagaoka

Art direction by Takaomi Shibayama and Klaus Witt

All compositions published by Sound Design Music, Inc. ,
(P) 1981 Canyon Records, Inc., Japan
© 1981 Canyon Records, Inc, Japan
Printed in West Germany /Imprimé en Allemagne - Made in West German

Booklet-Text

SILK ROAD III

KITARO'S TUN-HUANG

"Why don't you take a little vacation," 1 suggested, hoping Kitaro would go to see Tun-huang for himself. No sooner were the words out of my mouth, it seemed, than he was off. That was in March of this year.
At the time I had noticed that Kitaro looked tired. After creating the music soundtrack for 12 "Silk Road" episodes entirely by himself, it was only natural that he should be exhausted, body and soul. And now that he was also working on material for the "Tunhuang" series, l felt that he could do with a bit of rest.
When Kitaro returned again around the end of March, l asked him "What did you like best about your trip?"
„I liked the lo-o-ong train ride," he replied. "What else?" I chuckled.
"I liked the to o-ong train car ride, too." "And?"
"I liked playing with the children at the dunes of Minghashan."
By these short and simple answers, I could perceive that Kitaro had somehow managed to recharge his creative and emotional batteries in this brief respite from a year of constant labour.
This short exchange of words occurred at the "Silk Road" Anniversary Party and beyond this I was unable to learn of his experiences at the time. By and by, however, his impressions of Tun-huang came back to me in the form of a music more wonderful than 1 could have imagined. After hearing these new pieces once or twice, 1 felt that 1 could actually envision the figure of Kitaro at play in distant Tun-huang.
To reach the ancient city one must first cover the 700 kilometers from Lanchow to Chiuchuan in an 18hour train ride. The train begins its run over long expanses of tawny earth. In time it will cross the turbid waters of Hwang Ho River, known as "Yellow River" because its colouring matches that of the soil. Soon after the currents of the Hwang Ho have been left behind, the train will hurtle on into the world of "nothingness" that is the Gobi. Far across the barren Gobi, the peaks of the Kiren Mountains sparkle brightly. I can well imagine how Kitaro must have gazed out at mirages looming and fading on the desert horizon, his forehead pressed against the window of the train.
In the time of day between twilight and final nightfall, the Gobi exhibits a series of subtle changes. First, the yellowish earth seems to blanch to shades of white; in time it will take on a cast of blue. When the line dividing desert and sky finally fades out of sight, the traveller finds himself surrounded by a deep and silent darkness. The clear night sky is filled with twinkling stars... Why do they seem so close? Our Kitaro must have drifted off to sleep with the tranquil feeling that his heart finally reached its homeland.
On the long car trip from Chiuchüan to Tunhuang, Kitaro must have encountered the mysterious winds of Furyukitsu. The topography of this region is such that a mighty wind continually blows here-even when not a whiff of air is circulating in nearby areas! In the midst of sanddrifts built up by the winds stand countless rows of earth formations. Gigantic and eerie, some resemble human faces, while others seem like earthy desert monsters. For a full 20 kilometers the bizarre landscape continues. In the midst of those uncanny figures carved out by erosive forces, I wonder what kind of illusions must have danced before Kitaro's eyes...
Mingshashan is renowned for its sand dunes and here Kitaro played about all day with the Chinese children, sketching pictures in the sand with long sticks of wood. The sand was as soft and fine as wheat flour.
And finally, the destination - Tun-huang. Here the "Thousand Buddha Caves" form a dazzling natural art gallery. Kitaro wandered through these 60 separate caverns, viewing earthern sculptures and breathtaking fresco paintings which embodied the toughts and passions of a people who lived over a thousand years ago. What conversations he must have had with these artists of the past before heading home to our Japan of the present!
ABOUT THE ALBUM...
The listener will find that this album is a bit different in content from the previous "Silk Road" albums. This difference springs from the fact that this time Kitaro has actually experienced the wonders of Tunhuang first hand.
In this album the listener will sense a profound gentleness... an innocence and honesty. Kitaro somehow contrives to strike a perfect harmony between human warmth and cosmetic scope.
Here, in Kitaro's "Tun-huang", the vastness of historical heritage, the mystery of a "world of void", and the beauty of the fine arts are brought together in unity. With never a moment's hesitation, and yet never denying the forces of nature, Kitaro travels back to the genesis, zooms ahead into the future, communes with the glories of nature, and floates freely through the time and space of the Silk Road.
And when I listen carefully, I'm certain I can hear in "Tun-huang" the murmured praises of an ancient world for the man who has remembered it to eternity.

ISAO TAMAI
Chief Producer
NHK "Silk Road" Project