Dr. Martin Regan’s composition The Book of Names for string quartet and narrator was premiered on October 5, 2024 by the Apollo Chamber Players at Zilkha Hall, Hobby Center (Houston, TX) featuring the legendary actor and activist George Takei. It was subsequently released on August 22, 2025 on the Azica Records recording BAN: Stories of Censorship. Regan’s work was on the ballot for a Grammy Award under the category Best Contemporary Classical Composition.
The Book of Names is a poetic musical statement that evokes the anguish and loss of identity experienced by the 125,181 Americans of Japanese ancestry who were incarcerated by the U.S. government during World War II under suspicion of loyalty to Japan.
The work begins quietly and pensively, gradually becoming more dissonant and chromatic as it builds in intensity toward an agonizing climax. A spoken tapestry of selected names from the Ireichō is woven into the musical texture before the piece fades away in quiet reflection, leaving a sense of introspection and gravitas.
The Ireichō, or The Book of Names, created in 2022, is a comprehensive list of every person of Japanese ancestry incarcerated in World War II camps. Its digital counterpart, the Ireizō, serves as an online monument. Both were created to confront and correct the historical erasure of the identities of those who endured wartime incarceration.
Dr. Reganʻs works have been performed around the world, and he is especially well-known for his work with traditional Japanese instruments. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Hawaiʻi in 2006 and is currently a Professor of Music at Texas A&M University, where he has been on faculty since 2007.
