Whether it’s scoring a feature, composing an album or building a bespoke library, sonic worldbuilding requires dedication to the craft — something Aska Mastumiya has in spades.

The Japanese-born, LA-based artist has been making music for well over a decade, and has been playing it for quite literally all of her life. Nurtured by deeply musical parents, Aska was playing classical piano at the age of three; by the time she was able to speak, communicating with notes, chords and melodies had become second nature. If musical parents had lit the match for Aska’s sonic passions, encountering punk music in her early teens ignited a life-long obsession and odyssey that would take her through the rock and indie scenes, find her singing in a choir and recording in the middle of the Mojave Desert, and eventually land her in the world of media composition.

While 2018’s Skate Kitchen marked her first solo feature film score, Aska had already collaborated on a variety of shorts, commercials and fashion films, working with directors like Spike Jonze and scoring for brands like Porsche and Chanel. Her stunning soundtrack for After Yang in 2022 simultaneously cemented her as one of the preeminent composers of her generation and allowed her to share credits with one of her long-time heroes, the late Ryuichi Sakamoto.

In 2024, Aska’s latest score — the soundtrack for a hugely popular literary franchise that’s been rebooted for the small screen — is set for release shortly, following in the wake of what will be her first ever professional sample library. We caught up with her to learn how her creative process has evolved, whether film composition has shaped her own music making, and how the meditative power of crystal bowls can be utilised as an incredible instrument.

You've been making music for well over a decade — how has your approach to composition changed over time?

You know, I went through so many different phases and genres of music that I feel like I've now reached this place where everything that I've ever done and gone through in my life, all the different sidetracks I’ve taken that are connected to music, every project I've done — it’s all arriving at a place where everything is connected. When you're just going through it, you don't know why you're interested in certain things that are seemingly unrelated, but there's always a time when it all comes together to make sense.

Right now, I’m making my piano album. I've been writing every day, dedicating my time to it. I started playing piano when I was three — that was my origin of music. Then, I kind of swayed away from the piano, and went into playing with an indie rock band. Then I was playing with an electronic band, then singing in an LA-based choir, then playing in a crystal ball band — and now, since the past few years, I’ve been composing. I went through many different stages of music-making, yet I’ve come back to piano. So my approach has gone through many evolutions, and then come back full circle.

How did your creative process changed when you transitioned into the film music landscape?

With Skate Kitchen, I actually made all the music based on the script — I didn't even watch the visuals. I read the script, and I just started writing music in response to whatever the emotions or the feelings that the script was evoking. Then I edited my compositions to the footage. It was actually the same with I’m Your Woman, too — that was based on the script. But I don't have a preference; I’m just open to what comes naturally for each project.

It’s funny; I just started doing film without even thinking that I wanted to be a composer, and without realising that it was even a thing. It just started expanding naturally. But I never really had an intention of “I want to be a composer”, or “I'm studying to be this”. I've always just done what I feel is truly what I want to do — and I've just kept following that in every moment of my life.

Has the process of film and TV composition informed your own personal music making in any way?

I mean, I'm working on my piano album right now. Because it's just solely dependent on me, as opposed to the collaborative process of a film, I feel so much more pressure. It's so much more challenging and different to make your own music and put it out to the world — it's a totally different level of pressure that makes you feel more exposed and vulnerable. Sometimes, when I'm composing, I'm really embracing spontaneity and improvising. I’m like “That sounds great — that’s perfect!”. So I’ll decide to build on something further, and it's almost like I feel more free.

However, with my own music making, I'm so careful and cautious. Obviously, it's not always like that with film music; sometimes I’ve felt like I'm going to lose my hair by the time I'm done working on a project. I suppose it just really depends on where you're at, mentally, in that moment, and what your relationship with creativity is at that point. Overall, though, making music and composing — it is very different.

What sort of collaborative quality do you look for in a director?

I like it when I speak to them and can see their work and understand where their creative process comes from. I only want to work with people that I respect. Because when I actually have that respect towards people that I’m collaborating with, when they’re asking me to try something new, or revise something, or give suggestions, I'm infinitely more open to trying that because I have trust and faith in what they're saying. I believe that it will make my music better. So, really, I have to have that trust with them. Because there’s a responsibility that lies with them about how my music is going to be conveyed to a wider audience. I really need to be able to respect and believe in their vision.

What do those first conversations with a director often look like? What leads up to you sitting down and thinking of the first sound or melody?

I feel like I'm pretty fortunate in the way that I've been getting many projects based on them already liking my music, and what I do. So they come to me and they ask “What kind of ideas do you have for the music?” Then, from there, I start wondering what the palette of the sound for the show or the movie should be? I’m very lucky; I get to have the freedom to explore right away.

Most recently, I worked on The Spiderwick Chronicles. And, because it's set in a fantastical world and there's ogres and all these kinds of creatures intertwined with nature, I used lots of sounds of trees breaking or creaking. On some of them I worked with Paul Corley who's this amazing sound designer. So he helped record and design these nature sounds I could incorporate into the score. Then there’s the characters, creating their individual sounds to embody their personalities — so it's really just gathering and processing and building a sound palette for the show.

I love sounds in general, I'm obsessed; my voice memo is filled with random sounds from all over the world. For instance, there’s my daughter. She’s used to travelling with me. There was one time, when we were in Italy, and I really wanted to get this bell-song from the Vatican. (Laughing) And I was climbing up, like trying to get as close to the Vatican as possible, and was stopped by the security. My daughter was like, “Mom, you need to stop.” But I was just thinking, “I really need to get this sound right now!”

What was the last sound you recorded?

I have a seven month old baby, and I have a recording of a sound that he's making at the moment. Maybe it will end up on a song! You never know. I actually just recently started editing all the sounds that I've been collecting, so that I can actually make selections of field recordings and music ideas. Because it's just so organised, and I have so many songs, I want to make sure that I know how to achieve vastly different kinds of sound.

I just built my first modular synthesiser rack, which was really exciting to me because I've been wanting to do it for so long, but was always really intimidated by modular synthesisers and how to use them. I built my rack, and now I'm using it for this Netflix project I'm working on out of Japan. I'm using the modular synthesiser all the time now! That's just my interest; exploring sounds, and it always comes back around to whatever project I'm working on, and I’m so happy that I get to incorporate new stuff all the time.

Speaking of libraries, why were you drawn to crystal bowls for your upcoming release?

I had a crystal bowl band in 2012 — this is back when nobody else was playing them, because now I think everybody is much more open to them, particularly in a meditative space. Me and my friend got really into them, and we played live shows and toured with our crystal bowls band. We even made a record at the Integratron in the desert. So now, when I was asked about making a library, I was like, “I want to make a crystal bowl library!” The essence of the crystal bowl lies in the vibrations produced when the balls are played. There’s seven bowls, and there are different sizes which play different vibrations and emit different frequencies. The way you experience the sound of the crystal bowl is very physical. I guess, because they say that the human body has a high percentage of water, and sound waves can travel through water, that might be why the crystal bowl sound is such a uniquely physical experience. So that's why I love them, and that’s why I'm making the library. Because I've always loved the sound.

What's your perfect environment or space for composing?

It really depends on the project. I think, this year, I want to be more free in the sense of being able to relocate to, say, Iceland or Japan, so that I can feel more inspired in all these different ways. I want to start working in that way more. But right now, working on my piano album, it's the first time I'm actually working in an environment where it's effectively just a huge space with one piano. There's no computer — I'm just writing on paper. That has been hugely inspiring to me; just a pencil, paper and piano. Simple.

Where do you most often find inspiration?

I like to play instruments. My assistant looks at the computer screen, which allows me to feel more free, focusing on the sound. I've always enjoyed just playing and seeing where that goes. It’s so much more responsive and spontaneous; so many things that can happen, accidents or surprises that can lead you to something else. I'm always looking for something other than just control, which is why I love modular synthesisers, because it's not as controlled. Even if I use a sequencer, it produces patterns of notes that I would never come up with. And every note is triggered with different modules and making random sounds that, if I was controlling it, would never be produced. I'm just touching the surface of modular synthesisers, but I’m really fascinated by it. Now I want to build a bigger rack. I'm really, really excited. But I just know it's a rabbit hole that I’m going to go deep down. I mean, it’s already how I spend all my time off. I don't go shopping, or buy clothes — I'm just always going to Perfect Circuit, this synthesiser store in LA. That's where I spend all of my time and all of my money.

How would you describe your sound?

I’d describe it as really raw. Maybe as having no filter? There's many mistakes in my sounds, I’m rarely seeking perfection. When I make mistakes, or when something sounds dissonant, I just go with it. So there's many mistakes, and wrongness, and a kind of unfiltered feeling. Those sorts of imperfections and boldness become intrinsic. That’s my sound.

What advice would you give to up and coming artists and composers?

Always do what you want to do most in the moment. Let that lead you away. Trust where you just feel like you should always, and do what you enjoy the most. I really, truly believe in that. That’s how I decide if I want to work on a project or not — I ask myself, ‘Is this what I want to be doing the most right now?’ If it feels right, I do it, if it doesn’t, I won’t — no matter if the project looks good. Just because it seemingly looks good on paper, that doesn't really mean anything. You should always choose the things that will creatively feed you.

Keep up to date with Aska's projects here.