Origin: Tokyo, Japan

Decades: 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, and 2000's

The driving force behind "Neo Geo" -- a cutting-edge fusion combining Asian and Western classical music with other global textures and rhythms -- pioneering electronic composer Ryuichi Sakamoto was among the most innovative artists to emerge during the 1980s. Born January 17, 1952, in Tokyo, he took up piano at the age of three, and regularly performed in jazz bands while in high school. Sakamoto's catholic musical tastes exposed him to everyone from the Beatles to Beethoven and John Cage, and he was also h... Read More