Word: hirano
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Ever wondered what it might be like to ride a bullet train through 18th century Vienna? Neither have we. But it's a close approximation of how you might approach the work of 29-year-old musician Midori Hirano. The Kyoto-born classical pianist turned electronica artist, now based in Berlin, dances the divide between electronic and acoustic sound, creating lush, layered chamber music out of piano, strings, digital samples and vocals in songs that hark back to the past while hinting, irresistibly, toward the future...
...Hirano's sophomore album klo:yuri takes its cue from her minimalist full-length debut, 2006's LushRush, although she strips away much of the live instrumentation of her previous offering, relying more heavily on field recordings, synthetic effects and her own ethereal voice. These elements are blended through subtle orchestrations and seamless improvisations to create a sensual, cinematic sound - think Michael Nyman times Hans Zimmer to the power of Sigur...
...Feathers" to the slow-building threnody of "Cells That Smell Sounds" they span the spectrum of light and dark. The album's highlight comes in the form of "Null," a doozy of soaring strings, synths and syncopated percussion offset by strangely compelling counting in German, which is very Hirano: at once familiar and odd, with the ineffable quality of a dream...
...foreign nationals working in Japan in 2005, up 12% from 2000. But not all segments of society are comfortable or set up for a large immigrant workforce. "The Japanese legal system doesn't assume that foreigners will settle down to live and work with the Japanese," says Hirano of Kyushu University. "That's been an obstacle to bringing foreign workers into the medical and care-service fields." Shiro Kawahara, president of the 60,000-strong Nihon Careservice Craft Union, says his industry isn't ready to manage foreign manpower, especially when problems like low pay and overly demanding labor need...
...nations like the U.S., Canada and Taiwan do - with open arms. "They are at much more advanced stage with accepting foreigners," admits Asato of Kyoto University. In 2006, the Philippines signed an agreement with Japan similar to Indonesia's, but the Filipino students later interviewed by Kyushu University's Hirano last year weren't interested. Without an attractive package from Japan, Hirano fears none of the high-caliber Filipino nurses will want to come...