ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the early electronic music of Asia and Oceania including Australia and New Zealand. The development and dissemination of electronic music worldwide occurred rapidly following the establishment of studios in Europe, the United States, and Latin America. Although initially influenced by exposure to Western electronic music, the efforts of electronic musicians in Asia and Oceania gradually became independent and blended elements of local music styles with Western-influenced theories of composition. The development of tape music in Japan also marked the beginning the nation’s fascination with electronic instrumentation and the eventual domination of Japanese industry in the development of music synthesizers and other music technology. The technological means for creating electronic music in Japan were first provided by the Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo KK, an electronics firm founded by engineer Masaru Ibuka and physicist Akio Morita in 1946 to manufacture telephones and amplified mega phones.
