Japan-born London-based producer Hiro Ama announces debut album Music for Peace and Harmony WithGuitars [Video]

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What do we turn to when we’re in need of peace? Some might head to the forest or the sea. Some might reach for standard remedies: yoga, meditation, a long bath, a cup of tea. And others might buy an obscure 1980s Japanese synthesiser with a name that literally translates to “peace and harmony”, and use it to make a debut album.

That’s exactly what Hiro Ama did. “A lot of things are fragile and chaotic at the moment in this world, and I wanted to make music to soothe my mind and heart,” says the musician and Teleman drummer. He turned to the Wakaru, a Japanese synth from the 1980s that he stumbled across while browsing for weird instruments on the internet about ten years ago. He liked the recognisable sounds of the Wakaru: traditional instruments such as the koto (Japanese harp), flutes, and drums. The idea to use …