Hikari Oe
Oe Hikari (大江 光) b.
1963 is a
Japanese
composer who has
autism. He is the son of Japanese author
Kenzaburo Oe.
Hikari Oe was born
developmentally disabled. Doctors tried to convince his parents to let their son die, but they refused to do so. Even after an operation, Oe remained
visually impaired, developmentally delayed,
epileptic and with limited physical coordination. He does not speak much.
When Oe expressed interest in music, his parents arranged a piano teacher, Kumiko Tamura, for him. Instead of speaking, Oe began to express his feelings in music and through musical composition. Eventually he was taught musical notation.
Kenzaburo Oe has credited his son for influencing his literary career because he tried to give his son a "voice" through his writing.
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Music of Hikari Oe, Vol. 1 by Hikari Oe, Hiroshi Koizumi, and Akiko Ebi (Audio CD)
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Music of Hikari Oe, Vol. 2 by Hikari Oe, Hiroshi Koizumi, Akiko Ebi, and Tomoko Kato (Audio CD)
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Photo of Oe Kenzaburo with his son Hikari*
Hikari Finds His Voice (commentary by Professor Dick Sobsey)
