Music is Music: Masayoshi Fujita

Take a close listen to Masayoshi Fujita's latest record, Apologues, and you might hear the rattle of plastic-beaded necklaces or the muted tones of a vibraphone smothered under a tea towel. Fujita has been toying with the prepared vibraphone since he moved to Berlin nearly a decade ago, and he has a good handle on how to bring out new and nuanced sounds. Although he's had a steady stream of collaborations with electronic improvisers like Jan Jelinek and a couple vibes-through-processor discs by "el fog," this is only the second release under Fujita's given name. In 2013, he gave us Stories, a mostly solo vibraphone effort with a couple tracks bulked up with cello and violin. On Apologues, cello and violin are back and joined by a bigger cast of characters. Accordion, flute, snare drums, horns, and clarinet all accompany the vibes. Calling these instruments "characters" isn't a stretch, when you find out that each song on this record comes with its own story. The instruments sometimes even served as inspiration for a scene. Case in point: "Swallow Flies High in the May Sky." Until recently Fujita had never heard the clarinet played in-person, and after an evening of clarinet-filled chamber music, he was so taken with the instrument that this piece emerged. Listen for yourself, and see what you think.