Hiroshi Ebina’s new album is a spiritual follow up to his previously released It Just Is, and is focused on finding the silver lining in life’s challenging situations. With a minimal approach using acoustic and electric instruments, the album evolves from simple collections of notes into quiet yet complex forms of music. Hiroshi says that it is “meant to be a gentle reminder that nothing unreal can harm us, whether it’s about past events or predictions for the future. All difficulties come with a seed of happiness, and the darkest time is always followed by the dawn”. Hiroshi dedicates this album to his partner Miki, who gave him tremendous support when he was going through some difficulties in his own life.
Silver Lining cover art photography by Hiroshi
Hiroshi Ebina is a Japanese sound artist creating electronic / acoustic ambient music.
Hiroshi has a unique multi-disciplinary background, ranging from composing ambient music, performing gagaku, the traditional ritual music in Japan, as well as photographing minimalist landscapes in cities and nature. After spending years in Tokyo and New York, Hiroshi Ebina resettled himself in his hometown outside Tokyo in 2018. While exploring scenic sounds using guitars, modular synthesizers and tape machines, Hiroshi studied hichiriki and biwa, traditional gagaku instruments, and dance under the guidance of musicians from the Imperial Household Agency.
Serendipity is quintessential part of Hiroshi’s unique soundscapes, as he incorporates sound and silence that emerge and disappear as though by chance. His compositional process is like spreading dots and lines on a white paper and give them some orders. Then those lines and dots start showing some shapes. For him, music not really about being accurate about rhythm or pitch. He is more concerned with texture, the spaces between each note, and how it feels to his ears.
