Kanami Oka is an artist from Zushi, Japan. I first met Kanami during my time living in Zushi while exploring the Japanese ambient and experimental music scene. Her work focuses on “picking up, selecting, and reconstructing the sounds of the environment that surrounds her.”

Within this mix, I’ve included two of Kanami’s improvisational pieces, たゆたうand まなざし—described as “neither pretty nor artificial, but fragile and fleeting miracles.”

Surrounding these works are some of my own pieces, combining field recordings gathered from around Kanagawa. I use field recordings as a form of documentation, archiving the acoustic characteristics of places before they inevitably change.

Accompanying these recordings are improvised synth notes created on my computer. These digital sounds are intended to respond to and enhance the ethereal qualities of the environments captured. The blending of organic field recordings with digital synth sounds reflects the evolving relationship between technology and nature.

Kankyō Ongaku translates to “environmental music,” and this mix serves as a personal response to the living environment of Japan.