Sadao Bekku
Japanese composer Sadao Bekku was born in Tokyo on 24 May 1922 and studied experimental physics at Tokyo Imperial University. When he won a prize for one of his works, he began travelling to Paris to study with Olivier Messiaen and Darius Milhaud.
His music, which includes five symphonies, the opera Arima no Miko and the 1963 film score Matango ('Attack of the Mushroom People'), shows French and jazz influences. Recordings of his music can be found on the BIS, Camerata Records and Naxos labels.
Sadao Bekku died in Tokyo on 12 January 2012, aged 89.