Masayoshi Fujita Announces New Album Forest of Tranquility

Japanese composer and vibraphone artist releases “Portal to the Universe,” inspired by his soundtrack for Expo 2025 Osaka’s living nature installation.

Single out: September 15, 2026
Album out: November 13, 2026 via Erased Tapes

Japanese composer and vibraphone artist Masayoshi Fujita will release “Portal to the Universe” on September 15, 2026, the first single from his upcoming album, Forest of Tranquility, due out November 13 via Erased Tapes.

The album grew from Fujita’s commission for Expo 2025 Osaka, where he created the soundtrack for a large-scale living nature installation featuring approximately 1,500 trees, a central pond, and an open-air sanctuary designed to help visitors reconnect with nature.

For the installation, Fujita developed weather-reactive compositions using sensor systems. Each two-hour piece had sunny, cloudy, and rainy versions, with musical textures changing according to the weather. Frog calls were also incorporated to represent rainfall.

A sound journey through nature

Fujita describes “Portal to the Universe” as a song created for the end of the day.

“This song was made as the last song of a day. It feels like you are slowly drifting in the vast universe and the sea of memory.”

The track combines cicadas, chimes, woodwinds, distant children’s voices, and spacious ambient textures to create a reflective soundscape. It introduces the broader atmosphere of Forest of Tranquility, an album shaped by natural sounds, acoustic instruments, and subtle changes in energy throughout the day.

The album features marimba, vibraphone, percussion, Armenian duduk performed by Hayk Karoyi, and Japanese shō performed by Mattias Hållsten. Field recordings of birds and frogs, atmospheric drones, and white noise inspired by mountain winds further expand its soundworld.

“I wanted to have a lot of space in between the sounds,” Fujita says.

An album shaped by the rhythm of the day

Forest of Tranquility unfolds across seven long-form tracks, each reflecting a different point in the daily cycle. The music moves from the brighter mallet percussion of early morning to the increased activity of noon, the calm of afternoon, evening nocturnes, and a final closing meditation.

The tracklist includes:

1. Portal To The Universe
2. Departure
3. Forest of Tranquility
4. Light, Wind and Water
5. Komorebi Dance
6. All Creatures Bow to Evening
7. Time To Go

The title track explores stillness and the feeling of a soft beginning in the forest, while “Komorebi Dance” takes its name from the Japanese word for sunlight filtering through leaves.

From Berlin to the mountains of Japan

After spending 13 years in Berlin, Fujita relocated to rural Japan in 2020. He now lives with his family in Kami-cho, Hyōgo, a mountain village approximately three hours west of Kyoto.

Working from a former kindergarten, Fujita creates music surrounded by forests, water, and the natural environment that continues to influence his work.

His approach follows the tradition of Japanese environmental music, or kankyō ongaku, associated with artists such as Hiroshi Yoshimura, Midori Takada, and Haruomi Hosono. His compositions are designed to exist alongside their surroundings, offering listeners a calm and immersive experience.

Asia remains an important audience

Fujita has recorded more than 15 million streams worldwide, with Japan and several other Asian territories representing a growing part of his international audience. His listener rankings include South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore, China, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Vietnam.

He is scheduled to perform at Wonderfruit Festival in Thailand from December 3 to 7, 2026. Additional Asia dates are currently in development.

Forest of Tranquility will be released on CD, vinyl, and digital formats through Erased Tapes.

Masayoshi Fujita’s “Portal to the Universe” will be available on September 15, followed by Forest of Tranquility on November 13.