Isao Tomita

Isao Tomita was born on April 22, 1932 in Tokyo, Japan.

Composed a symphonic tone poem based on incidental music he wrote for "Jangaru taitei" (1965) (aka "Kimba the White Lion"). The tone poem was recorded by the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, and was set to animation by Tezuka Productions.

While researching an echo machine in 1971 he invented "yuragi" (oscillating vibration), which led to his interest in electronic music.

After hearing Wendy Carlos' "Switched-on Bach," he learned that nobody in Japan had a synthesizer. He flew to New York in 1972 to buy one from the Moog company. When he tried to have it shipped back, Japanese customs officers wouldn't allow it. They thought it might be some kind of contraband military equipment. They demanded that he prove it was a musical instrument by playing it for them, but the Moog was difficult to program, and he didn't actually know how to play it properly. Finally, he got someone to send him a photo of a musician playing a synthesizer on stage, and the customs officers allowed it.

Within a year of acquiring the Moog, he'd mastered it. In 1974 he released "Snowflakes Are Dancing," his interpretation of some of Debussy's works. International response was immediate, and the album was nominated for four Grammy awards, including best classical album, making him the first Japanese nominee for a Grammy.

Was Ridley Scott's initial choice to score Alien (1979).

He is known for his work on Tasogare Seibei (2002), Ocean's Thirteen (2007) and Bushi no ichibun (2006). He was married to Akiko.