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As if stepping into a hazy dreamscape where time blurs and memory fades, ironomi invites listeners to let go and drift. Composed of Junya Yanagidaira (piano) and Yu Isobe (lute, 17-string koto, electronics), ironomi — or いろのみ, meaning “fruit of color” — is a Japanese duo whose name itself hints at an aesthetic ethos tied deeply to the colors and shifts of Japan’s four seasons. The titles of their compositions draw from romantic, anachronistic vocabulary found in literary works from the Heian period, bringing an eternal resonance to their music. Unconventional in their approach to both sound and silence, ironomi creates a realm where the tones of classical music dissolve into atmospheric textures, interweaving the natural world with the delicate intricacies of digital alchemy
For ironomi, the piano is not just an instrument; it’s a canvas they stretch to its breaking point, sampling it in real time and reintroducing its phrases through subtle delays and looped reflections. These phrases, barely audible ghosts of sound, linger momentarily before being recast and transformed. This recursive process ensures that no note, no gesture, ever repeats precisely the same way. The result is music that feels alive, fleeting, and unbound to any fixed form, a process that mirrors the changing seasons.
Since their beginnings in 2007, ironomi’s albums have been whispers on the wind. They’ve released 12 albums to date, including works like ironomi, RECODE, ubusuna, ZONE and Four Nocturnes, under Ryoondo Tea, STARNET MUZIK and their own imprint ironomi rec.
In 2010, ironomi made their debut on KITCHEN. LABEL with sketch. sketch is a live improvisation by ironomi, recorded in the summer of in a traditional wooden house atop a hill in Mashiko, Japan. The album blends piano textures with documentary field recordings, capturing the atmosphere of a Japanese summer, from the buzz of cicadas to the subtle play of light and shadow in nature.
