On 18 June 2026, the Altmarkkreis Salzwedel District Adult Education Centre hosted an ‘Artists’ Café’ at the Artists’ and Scholarship Holders’ House. The guest was the Japanese composer Yasuko Yamaguchi, who has been living and working in the Hanseatic city as a scholarship holder since April.
At the end of her three-month residency, the composer offered insights into her current work and presented her artistic projects. The focus was on her compositional cycle “Schattenlicht”, which originated from an encounter with the Italy-based glass artist Oki Izumi. Her fascinating glass sculptures had already inspired Yamaguchi to compose the first part of “Schattenlicht” back in 2022. A second part has since been completed, and during her stay in Salzwedel she worked on the continuation of the piece.
The third part of “Schattenlicht” is being created under the influence of the Altmark region and its unique atmosphere. Inspired by the former division of Germany and by the rivers Jeetze and Dumme, which merge to flow as one, Yamaguchi is developing a composition for accordion and percussion. Both instruments initially appear as independent voices, but as the work progresses they draw ever closer together and eventually enter into an intense musical dialogue.
“For me, music is about shaping time with sounds” says Yasuko Yamaguchi, describing her artistic approach. This idea runs like a common thread through her works, in which sounds, memories, spaces and moods are interwoven in a unique way.
At the Artists’ Café, the composer gave an impressive presentation of her work and offered the audience an inspiring preview of ‘Schattenlicht 3’: she gave an exemplary performance of the piece – which draws on her impressions of her stay in Salzwedel – on the piano. The world premiere, featuring the intended original instruments – accordion and percussion – is already being planned. @AMK
