Winner's Speech | Tadashi Yamazaki | Composition | Beethoven International Music Competition UK 2026
- Feb 26
- 2 min read
Tadashi Yamazaki, a composer and physician from Tokyo, Japan, has been awarded the Second Prize for his composition Symphonic Poem "Ise Jingu (Ise Grand Shrine)" at the Beethoven International Music Competition UK, 2026 Season 1.
Following this recognition, Tadashi Yamazaki expressed his gratitude and further reflected on the cultural inspiration and compositional thinking behind the work:
"Hello. I’m glad to have the opportunity to speak in front of you all. My name is Tadashi Yamazaki. I usually work at a clinic as a physician in Tokyo, Japan. Now, I got the second prize in category of Original Composition. I’d like to thank to whom it may concern, my family and my friends, for winning the prize."
"I describe Japanese Gods world in this work through the Grand Shrine, Ise Jingu. It is hard to translate into English to express Japanese Gods. Someone uses 'deities' or 'Kami' in Japanese, instead of 'gods'. In Japanese mythology, Ise Jingu is the most authoritative shrine deifying Amaterasu-Omi-Kami as the ancestor of the Japanese Imperial Family, and is officially called just Jingu. The essence of Shintoism is that gods reside in all organic as well as inorganic matter in the world. Although I am not a Shintoist myself, I can’t help but feel deep relationship between Shintoism because my parents were from Ise. Also, I recognize Jingu as a sacred place, like many Japanese people. Shinto is a religion that our world is blown by their force as natural disasters. As if the forest in Jingu claims: 'You must not intervent in our world!'"
"In fact, however, damages by human beings seem to be more serious than that by nature, in recent years. Nature must be preserved forever, and people must respect each other. That is an essence of Shintoism. The form of this piece is based on a compound ternary form, and the augment fourth, Devil's Chord. This theme is derived from my experience of my grandfather's memorial service, which was held in a Shinto style. For example, the sound of Japanese traditional instruments such as the hichiriki and the sho. That sound expresses Japanese Gods world. I tried to replace various Japanese instruments with Western instruments in this work, but it was difficult to find appropriate instruments, especially the kakko and thesan-no-ko. Therefore, I substituted timpani and the bass drum instead of them. The portamento at the beginning is inspired by the sho. The work is consisted of two parts. Firstly, the augmented fourth represents world of thousands of Japanese Gods. Secondly, the tonal music with the viola or wind instruments is presented as earthly existence. I hope you listen to the piece with those images. Thank you.“
The Beethoven International Music Competition UK is a prestigious global contest celebrating talented musicians, composers, and ensembles of all ages. Honoring the legacy of Ludwig van Beethoven, the competition recognizes both technical excellence and artistic creativity across various categories. The competition provides a platform for emerging and established artists worldwide to showcase their skills, gain international recognition, and connect with a vibrant musical community. Learn more and enter at www.beethovenmusiccompetition.com
