SATO Tokuso
Born: 26 February 1872 – Died: 4 February 1943
Particulars:
Tokuso was born in Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan. He arrived in Mourilyan Harbour, Queensland, Australia in 1894 aboard the Sagami. He was a single man and had been living in Mourilyan for 47 years, working as a labourer on Mill Estate, when the Pacific War broke out. When he was arrested, he handed over 132 pounds to the District Finance Officer in Meanjin / Brisbane. He also had with him one bag, one box, and a pillow. He was interned at Hay Internment Camp in New South Wales. He was admitted to hospital in May 1942 and returned to camp on 18 May 1942. He died at a later date of a coronary occlusion. His grave is in the Japanese Cemetery, Cowra in New South Wales, Australia.
–Mayu Kanamori
More info:
David Shield
Artist/s Statement:
‘Thunder and Starlight 雷と星光’
In Memory of Tokuso Sato
This piece was composed in memory of the cane farmer Tokuso Sato, originally from Kumamoto Prefecture in southern Japan. Born in 1872, Mr Sato migrated to Australia and worked in the Queensland cane fields until he was interned. He died in the internment camp aged 70.
The jyushichigen is a zither like instrument, sometimes called a bass koto, that was created in Japan in the early 1900s around the time Tokuso Sato was alive. The instrument has a wide range of sounds that reflect the environment of a cane farmer in Queensland – from the wonder of seeing stars so different from home, to the crackle of fire from the cane burning and the long hot days of summer. It’s also filled with the dangers of such a life and concludes with the thunderous sounds of a tropical storm rolling in capturing the essence of his second home.
This piece was composed in a traditional score for the instrument. With no stave, Japanese sheet music instead makes use of a series of numbers and symbols to differentiate each string and technique. The jyushichigen score is particularly interesting as, like the era it was made in, it uses a combination of western numbers and Japanese numbers to indicate different strings. Japanese number for strings 1 to 10 and Western numbers for strings 11 to 17. While some Japanese scores are written vertically, this piece is written in the Yamada style which is read left to write like western music. The artist deemed this appropriate for the memory of Mr Sato, who like the instrument, straddled two cultures.
Artist Bio:
David Shield is a Yamada Style koto, jyushichigen, and shamisen musician, kimono maker, and Japanese interpreter based in Brisbane, Australia. He spent many years learning his art in Japan under the renowned musician Tanno Isejyu. He regularly returns to Japan to continue his studies and performs for groups both in Japan and in Australia, and makes all his own kimonos.