一柳慧

Ichiyanagi was born in Kobe. He studied with Tomojirō Ikenouchi, Kishio Hirao [fr; ja], and John Cage. One of his most notable works is the 1960 composition Kaiki, which combined Japanese instruments, shō and koto, and western instruments, harmonica and saxophone. Another work, Distance (1961), required the performers to play from a distance of three meters from their instruments. Anima 7 (1964) stated that chosen action should be performed "as slowly as possible".

Ichiyanagi was married to Yoko Ono from 1956 to 1963.

Ichiyanagi is the recipient of the 33rd Suntory Music Award (2001) and the Foundation for Contemporary Arts John Cage Award (2018). He has been honored with Japan's Order of Culture.