FILE - Maestro Ryuichi Sakamoto poses during a photo call for the film "Coda" at the 74th Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Sept. 3, 2017. Japan's recording company Avex says Sakamoto, a musician who scored for Hollywood movies such as “The Last Emperor†and “The Revenant,†has died. He was 71. He died March 28, according to the statement released Sunday, April 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis, File)
TOKYO (AP) – Ryuichi Sakamoto, a Japanese musician who scored for Hollywood movies such as “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant,” has died. He was 71.
Japan’s recording company Avex said in a statement that Sakamoto died on March 28.
Sakamoto, who had suffered from cancer in recent years, had also acted in films, including playing a Japanese soldier in “Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence.”
He was a pioneer in electronics music of the late 1970s, founding the Yellow Magic Orchestra with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi. He has been nominated several times for the Grammy Award, and won for his work in “The Last Emperor.”