Firstly, sometimes you don’t realise that you’ve been somewhere that you’ve seen in a movie or anime until much later.

In my case, I was reading the Wikipedia article on The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and realised that I had indeed been to the National Museum of Tokyo:

Secondly, after hearing and meeting Minori Chihara and Chiaki Ishikawa at Animelo Summer Live 2011, it was intriguing to see that Minori Chihara’s forthcoming album, D-Formation has a track, この世界のモノでこの世界の者でない 作詞, written by Chiaki Ishikawa and Daisuke Kikuta of Elements Garden. (Thanks Keiri for the help with the translation!)

D-Formation (Dream Wonder Formation) Album details in Japanese are at http://lantis.jp/special/chihara/d-formation/

Thirdly, the DVDs and blu-rays of Animelo Summer Live 2011 are now available for pre-order from CD Japan, with a scheduled release date of 28 March 2012.

Day 1 on blu-ray
Day 2 on blu-ray

NOTE – It again appears that some of the performances will not appear on the videos. Check http://pc.animelo.jp/anisama/2011/rainbow/goods/#cd_dvd_bd closer to the release date. At this stage Isao Sasaki, Kalafina and T.M.Revolution are *NOT* listed as appearing on the videos.

So, not surprisingly, this jazz arrangement of Steins;Gate‘s opening theme caught my ear. While I slightly prefer BGM arrangements because of how rare they are, OP/ED arrangements still earn my favor if done well. And this jazz arrangement certainly fits that criterion. Give it a listen after the jump!

Steins;Gate OP: Hacking to the Gate (Jazz: piano & bass)

Now, I’m hardly a fan of Kanako Itou’s vocals on the original. While the visuals and the chaotic rhythms and synth work well to bring out the sci-fi component of the show, Itou’s delivery is adequate in its expression of the series’ loneliness and despair but doesn’t do much beyond that.

The jazz arrangement captures the song’s sentiments well, though. Its introduction feels heavy as the bass and piano chords hammer out a melancholy atmosphere, and the piano follows that up with a bluesy rendition of the melody all the way up to the chorus. Given what I’ve heard so far, I didn’t expect the chorus to go all-out in hammering the distraught emotions home like the original did, and my predictions were largely spot-on; the pianist delivered an ear-pleasing passage that, while not emphatic, still retained the despair or the original in a way that resembles a plea for help.

The bridge is fairly simple in the way it moves along whimsically, but I do like how you can catch snippets of the chorus in the improvisation before it segues back into the chorus and ends it there.

There is no instrument that has dominated the soundtrack scene quite like the pianoforte. If you think about it, it’s not really that surprising. Practically thinking, using a piano cuts labor costs – whereas it would normally take around five violinists (or ten piccoloists, but no one wants to listen to that many piccolos anyway) to sound ten different notes at once, one pianist can handle that, no sweat. But that’s beside the point. With a clear and crisp tone that can duplicate the delicate shimmering of bells or summon an impassioned thundering of notes, the piano is truly beautiful in its own right.

Since anime is also awesome and this post is on an anime music blog, I have to connect my obsessing over the instrument to anime somehow. That’s where notable piano solos in anime come in. Below are ten tracks (in no particular order) that I believe represent the best of piano in anime BGM. Before someone asks me “where’s Hisaishi’s ‘One Summer’s Day’, ‘Ashitaka and San’, ‘Sixth Station’, etc. etc..?”, let me clarify. When I said solo, I meant it literally. I know that a solo can still have an accompaniment, but to prevent myself from being overwhelmed by the sheer number of options, tracks with anything other than piano weren’t considered. With that cleared up, let’s get started!

One crucial role the piano has come to serve in anime BGM (well, BGM in general, now that I think about it) is the performance of those melancholy pieces that usually accompany the emotional and/or gloomy parts of a show. It isn’t too much of a surprise that the pianoforte has risen to this task, since even in quiet solitude it never sounds “empty”. Such is the case in “Watashi no Theme”, a piano rendition of Tatami Galaxy’s protagonist’s theme. I love the wistful ache in this track because it speaks of so many things, be it loneliness, unreachable dreams, or nostalgic pasts. It conveys the kind of sadness that’s associated with wandering alone on a busy street pondering what went wrong in life (did I mention it’s raining? Well it is). All of these notions are packed in without the music ever rising above its restrained atmosphere. That’s pretty impressive, considering the standard emotional work establishes mood with dramatic displays of passionate zeal.

Watashi no Theme (Piano ver.) – Tatami Galaxy

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Of course that doesn’t mean a depressing piece has to hold itself back to be impacting.  Case in point: “The Will (Piano ver.)”, from the Rurouni Kenshin ~Tsuiokuhen~ OVA. In all aspects, the piece resembles a requiem, a composition for the dead, and it definitely isn’t taking the celebratory approach to the funeral. The deliberate funerary march chords tread on with heavy steps, until things finally escalate into powerful and impassioned hysterics as all the guests burst into tears. It’s an absolutely dismal piece that is depression incarnate, adept for darkening my spirits further when I’m in a foul mood.

The Will (Piano ver.) – Rurouni Kenshin ~Tsuiokuhen~

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

But enough with these dreary tracks, let’s move onto something a little more lively! I’ve always enjoyed Mina Kubota’s melancholy piano compositions, but I like her upbeat tracks just as much. “Sora no Theme (piano ver.)” has a spring in its step that’s ridiculously infectious to the ear. After the bouncy beginning, the vivacity only slacks off in a middle portion that’s symbolic of obstacles and hardship with its downer atmosphere. Nevertheless, the contrast when things pick up again is wonderful, giving the end a soaring finish that’s confidently triumphant. After listening to “The Will” one too many times, this is the perfect, refreshing pick-me-up.

Sora no Theme (Piano ver.) – Kaleido Star

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

The buoyantly jazzy “Livremente ~ Chiisana Itazura” will always be on hand, just in case I need backup, though. In this animated piano tune, the notes dance, quick on their feet. The resultant sprightly and frolicsome sound gives the piece a charming spontaneity that I’m terribly fond of. Coupled with the addictive rhythms, this is music that wants you to move right along with it. Indeed, practically all of Ken Muramatsu’s catchy piano jazz deserves some mention here, since I had such a difficult time choosing one out of the many options he’s composed.

Livremente ~ Chiisana Itazura – Kurenai

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

The next piece doesn’t just want you to dance, it is a dance. A waltz to be more precise. “Introduction & Waltz”, once it begins with its showy chords and scales, quite obviously derives its inspiration from classical music. Nevertheless, it doesn’t take itself too seriously, which is what I appreciate the most about it. Adorning a spirited, regal melody with a generous amount of florid flourishes, the solo sounds much too fancy and dramatic to be anything but in good fun. In the end, all I’m able to do is tap my feet and savor the melodramatic music.

Introduction & Waltz – Ouran High School Host Club

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

The next selection is a relaxed piece fittingly titled “Bartender” (guess what anime it’s from. You get one try). This track is the kind of laid back composition that you’d expect to hear playing in perhaps, well, a bar. It doesn’t aim to have you experience an emotional catharsis, an ecstatic high, or anything extreme of the sort. It’s simply a pleasant piece that opts to create an easygoing atmosphere which conveys a contented and unhurried sensation that’s enjoyable, especially as a break. After all, listening to sentimentally weighted stuff all the time can become a little tiring.

Bartender – Bartender

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

“BARTENDER” might have been nonchalant, but compared to the next solo it’s as turbulent as a stormy sea. From the anime franchise Aria, “Soshite Fune wa Iku” is sublimely bucolic in a way nothing else has quite been able to match. The aural experience is so enchanting; the music gains a picturesque beauty, turning silence into calm water and sound waves into shimmering ripples on a crystal surface. It’s so wonderfully soothing that listening to it is akin to an emotional cleansing. Take my word for it: it becomes very hard to entertain any heartfelt ugly thoughts when this is playing within hearing distance.

Soshite Fune wa Iku – Aria the Animation

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

From Binchou-Tan, “Ameoto” is also notable in its serenity. However, it possesses a different kind of calm. This little composition has not the serenity of water but the dreaminess of air (it’s air-headed! Get it?). Instead of following a very distinct melody, the notes, like a breeze, seem to wander, meandering from one half-formed reality to the next, only lightly brushing existences and never closely interacting. I think of the music as Impressionist in nature – the concepts are formed, yet they do not have distinctive boundaries. It’s as if they’re not quite there. All of this makes for a very unique ethereal and otherworldly aura that’s incredibly well-crafted.

Ameoto – Binchou Tan

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Of course the top ten would have to include some selections that expound on love, the emotion humans have been obsessed with since forever. What better way to start than with a track from the anime adaptation of the classic love story Romeo and Juliet? “Deai”, or “Encounter”, chooses to depict the innocent side of the sentiment. While the music remains quietly affectionate for the entire duration, it also conveys a sensation of movement. How this quickening influences the flow of the music, thereby capturing the sensations of first love, is truly this piece’s strong point. It creates the perfect portrait of two enamored lovers, hearts stirring as they spend brief, stolen moments of time in each other’s company. Thinking of these images, I get mushy every time hearing the heartwarming sentiments this piece gushes.

Deai – Romeo x Juliet

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

And finally, Tenmon. This guy knows how take a lovely tune and arrange it into an even lovelier sounding piano work. “One more time, One more chance (Piano ver.) is probably my favorite out of them all. The theme itself is quite beautiful already, but that isn’t what I consider the forte of this track, especially since it repeats so many times. Instead, what makes this work unique is the feeling with which it is performed. Every rendition of the theme is different – sometimes it’s played delicately and tenderly, other times it’s performed powerfully and passionately. Consequently, the melody is transformed every time it’s repeated, capturing a different aspect of love every time.

One More Time, One More Chance (Piano ver.) – Byousoku 5 Centimeter

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

So there we are, ten notable piano solos from anime BGM. As I said before, there were many, many tracks that I wanted to include but couldn’t either because of lack of space or inclusions of other instruments (Albergo from Gunslinger Girl, anyone?). I may have also clear-out forgotten some well deserving compositions (which you can feel free to remind me of in the comments).

As they say, meeting up with people you’ve corresponded with over the internet is the most fun part of an anime convention. Not only do you get the joy of putting a name to a face, the social barriers are greatly reduced, and so, things never really feel that awkward when they otherwise might be. The turnout was pretty huge too. In addition to the regulars like Mike, Rome, Jeremy, and Dan of Anime Diet, Kylaran, Shinmaru, Yumeka, Jan Suzukawa, Mystlord, Benu, and Canon2D, we were joined by the likes of eternal, kevo’, the duo from Borderline Hikkikomori, Toastcrust, Fangzhao, and calaggie and we were even able to re-enact the Madoka fanboy wars which got amusingly heated at times. Also managed to catch omo a few times too! And, of course, I was able to meet up with Jayson Napolitano over at Original Sound Version. Jeez, that’s a ludicrously long list of names and it sure made it difficult to go anywhere without bumping into someone I know.

The hectic whirlwind that was Anime Expo means a lot of material that I’ll be churning out over the next few days, but for those who want a quick rundown, here’s a few brief shots/reactions I had on a day-to-day basis after the jump:

Day 0:

• Maon Kurosaki seems really new to this whole press interview thing, which might not be a surprise given that she’s only transitioned into releasing music recently (September 2010). Until then, she had been a singer/live performer at the Akihabara club Dear Stage.
• During the Nirgilis interview, I was caught with my pants down when it turned out that their producer was Hirofumi Iwanaga, the same guy who worked with Rasmus Faber on his Platina Jazz stuff. Needless to say, I wasn’t prepared for that encounter and he came across as being a nice, but busy guy. Still thrilling all the same and I expressed how much I/we enjoyed those jazz arrangements and the only thought I have now is how I’d like to be able to sit down with him longer for a chat.
• I’ve discovered I probably prefer interviewing producers than artists themselves. They’re the ones that drive much of the process and we don’t really get to see that side nearly enough. They also probably have more interesting things to say (more relevant to my interests at least).

Day 1:

• Kalafina panel was the first order of the day and that was a bit of a letdown (for reasons that I shall reveal in a later post!). Part of it does involve the level of control the management puts on them though. “A bit” is also a key phrase since I did learn quite a few other things.
• Nirgilis concert was a half and half sort of deal.
• Arrived late for the Name That Anime Tune contest. I think that had Shinmaru and I arrived on time, we could have been able to do well for ourselves. Alas, we were forced to play as armchair contestants. Still fun though (especially when the contestants couldn’t identify the Gao Gai Gar theme! I mean, they practically say the name of the show in the lyrics! Hilarity ensues).

Day 2:

• Miku conference was very informative and I took a healthy set of notes. I really disagree with their execution and marketing plan, but I’ll save that for another post (probably will collaborate with Kylaran on this one).
• Maon panel was pretty decent and I learned a bit more about her. Some of those PVs they showed offered a nice amount of fanservice in the form of Maon cosplaying various characters.
• Kalafina concert, like Nirgilis, was a bit of half and half. It also made me wonder about the inverse relationship between the quality of choreography/audience interaction and the quality of the vocals.
• There was also that Mikunopolis concert that mostly left me baffled/befuddled. Mostly because I’m not quite sure how this concert report will shape up. It doesn’t help that I don’t know most of the songs that played either, so I’ll be hunting online for a setlist over the next few days.

Day 3:

• My panel was good-not-great. The presentation was marred by video issues and some hefty foot-in-mouth disease when my mouth started going on autopilot during “Mezame” (I do know the difference between a violin and a guitar! Honest!). But the feedback I got back was generally positive and it gives me something to build on for next year (Doing presentations is a skill I really need to polish).
• Nirgilis panel was pretty solid and the qualities they showed on stage transferred to the panel room. They’re nice, funny, and laid-back and seem to be more open than any of the other musical artists who came to AX this year. You can totally tell since their producer wasn’t sitting next to them, casting a steely eye over would-be question askers.
• The Maon concert might have been the best concert of Anime Expo if you looked at it from a holistic view. The quality was fairly even on the musical and performance aspects and that made it a great experience. Also, it might have been the only show where I was happy with the footage I took (a Flip is fine for some occasions, but don’t rely on it for zooming too far).

Miscellany:

• I bumped into Nirgilis at pretty much all the Club Nokia concerts I went to. Should have used their panel as an opportunity to ask them what they thought of Kalafina, but it didn’t occur to me until after that panel had ended.
• The only concert that I have the setlist to is Kalafina (of the artists who came, I’m most familiar with their works). I’m flying blind for Mikunopolis, Nirgilis, and Maon Kurosaki though, so hopefully someone will post those up soon.
• I really need to practice my verbal communication skills a lot more.

That’s about the scope of it. Met old friends, made contact with new folks, had a great (if tiring) time. I’m also wondering what sort of economic impact has befallen Kinokuniya since they didn’t have their usual bargain bin for soundtracks/other CDs this year, which means I can’t share what sorts of filthy lucre I was able to purchase because I didn’t buy anything. Them’s the breaks I guess.

So without further ado, for those of you who are going to Anime Expo and are very much interested in anime music, I’ll be doing a presentation that focuses entirely on Yuki Kajiura’s music. Details for the event are as follows:

Date: July 03, 2011
Time: 10:30 AM
Location: LACC 515A (shown as LP 3)

That Kalafina ended up coming to this year’s rendition of Anime Expo and will be performing a live concert the day before was a stroke of good fortune (I submitted the idea for this panel long before I knew they’d show up as guests!), so with luck, those who are interested in Kalafina and attended the sold-out (!!!) concert will show up for this panel.

As you can probably guess from the post title, this is going to be more of a broad overview than anything else, but I’m really excited to see how this one will go and hoping that all attendees (oldies and newbies) will get something out of it. In a sense, this Kajiura presentation is a bit of a litmus test to see how well-received a discussion/presentation of anime music beyond the OP/ED themes will fly towards a more general audience and if it turns out well, you can definitely expect more from me in the future.

Wish me luck, and I hope to see all of you there!

Somehow I think this actually makes them look more human.

Part 1: Idol Bodies, Idle Minds

There was a time where musicians were like meticulous artists brushing paint onto a canvas: noble  Bohemians living for their art; here, I lament musicians becoming more and more like the brush itself: a replaceable tool that can be used and disposed.

You may have noticed a somewhat disturbing trend over the course of this past decade in the collective music industries of Japan and Korea. There has been a notable drift towards mass-market appeal and short-term financial gain through sexual titillation – something I’ve dubbed the “Idol Culture” – that has come to permeate much of East Asia. The idol process perniciously eliminates the creative nativity between the musician and music, wherein the artist has become more of an attractive representative for the music than the actual creator. I’d like to offer some of my thoughts on the matter that have stemmed from my personal experiences with people who are deeply immersed in this culture and big fans of the music created in this sort of environment. Also, please take the time to check out zzero’s post from this past October regarding a similar topic.

I’d like to start out by explaining a bit of my background. I’m a Korean American born in New York City currently living in the suburbs of Metro Atlanta. Culturally, I was raised very “American;” I really only related myself to Korean popular culture through the dated and often quaint viewpoints of my parents. Most of my friends growing up were also “American” in the typical sense, aside from a circle of Korean friends that will come up later. The point is that, growing up, I was very far removed from anything popular in Korea and have remained as oblivious until relatively recently.

The early/mid-2000’s was around the time that boy groups and girl groups were really starting to get popular in Korea. Groups like Big Bang and Wonder Girls and Girls’ Generation (aka SNSD) (consider them Korean versions of Backstreet Boys and NSYNC) started to appear. My Korean friends just ate this stuff up.

Given that I am the most cynical person this side of the local insane asylum, I just could not understand what they were on about. Sure, the girls were attractive, the marketing was clever, and the music videos were well-edited, but there was no lasting value to me, nothing “there.” These idols and their boob jobs and their pretty faces and expensive haircuts and fashionable outfits seemed like vehicles to wow people into spending their money. They are ideal images who lend their voices and likenesses to songs made by a technician on his MacBook. Could these people even be called musicians given their shallow participation in the creative process?

I bring this up because much fuss has been made over the producer/artist dynamic in music production. The ideas and feedback generated from this relationship are often profound, helping transform the work from its early visions into the finished product. A good example of this on the anime side of things is the oft-cited relationship between Yoko Kanno and the singers with whom she works. I won’t go into details here, but the gist is that when artist and producer come together as creative equals, the synergies result in a richer final product that is ultimately a lasting work with staying power. Not so, in idol land. The vast majority of these idols are as involved in the creative process as McDonald’s employees are in the cooking process. They stand there, follow instructions, and have someone else deliver the final product. The artist that can talk about the music, what it means to them, and how the creative process unfolded is quickly becoming the exception rather than the norm.

Instead, idols, boiled-down, are facades, tools to create sexual tension and incite desire to buy albums, merchandise, and concert tickets. They are the result of a well-oiled corporate machine that has learned how to efficiently and quickly maximize profit.

It’s no longer enough to have talent to become successful. In fact, now it’s not even necessary. If you look good, people will buy your song. If it has a catchy beat and auto-tuning, have a guest artist fill in a hip-hop section in the middle and stick a “FEATURING [NAME]” label at the end of the song  title, and you’ve got a top-ten hit. If a studio happens to find a looker that also has a semblance of singing talent, they’ve hit the jackpot. More recently, I’ve noticed my friends saying that it’s nearly impossible to keep up with the influx of new artists. The competition is ferocious, and the market is becoming saturated; the supply and demand curves only intersect at one point, and the former sure is shifting to the right.

At the very least, this competition may invite attempts by labels to differentiate themselves by improving the quality of their music. There is some genuinely good music out there by idols that give a damn about what they’re pumping into the mic. Some even write their own songs! It’s just that they’re being drowned out by the sheer mass of utter garbage. What I’m saying here, basically, is this: be an intelligent listener. Listen to what moves you, but know when what you’re listening to isn’t good enough to be worth your time. McDonald’s is delicious, but I don’t eat there exclusively. Know quality when you hear it. Reject instrumentality.

You may not have an idol body, but, for heaven’s sake, don’t have an idle mind.

Rating: Concerned

A month ago, I had talked about the degree to which Madoka’s background music resonated with the anime community. All of a sudden, people were talking about how epic Yuki Kajiura’s music sounded and the fan response got to the point where we saw people trying to recreate all those memorable pieces as a stopgap while waiting for the soundtrack’s release. As a BGM fan, I felt like I was witnessing something special.

So as we look around today, the music scene surrounding Madoka is still alive and well and there have been a few arrangements that have caught my attention since the last post. My musical tastes, being what they are, tend to gravitate towards certain types of arrangements moreso than others, so that’s what you’ll be getting here. Anyhow, if you’re curious, check them out after the jump!

I’m usually not one for OP/ED arrangements because they tend to be a bit overdone. However, there’s just no way I can turn away from this, so here’s the first one. It happens to be my favorite of the lot, and so, I do hope you enjoy this jazz arrangement of the ending theme, “Magia:”

Talk about not being able to have seen such an arrangement coming. A pure piano arrangement? Sure! Get someone to play a mournful violin solo of the song? Yeah, I can see that. But smooth jazz? The cognitive clash that comes out of this is part of what makes it enjoyable because the original stood out for being a really heavy, intense piece, filled with a discordant atmosphere throughout. Here, the keyboard work is so mellow that you can relax to it, perhaps in a jazz lounge with a pint in hand. It also makes a departure away from the source material through an enjoyable bit of improvisation in the middle to spice it up a bit with variety. I don’t often see jazz arrangements outside of the Platina Jazz series, so this was a very welcome change.

The next piece features my favorite instrument: the piano. Now, piano arrangements are a bit more common, but once again, most tend to cluster around OP/ED themes. This one takes things a bit further through a 7-minute piano medley of the BGM. It’s something I’d like to see more of at any rate:

It starts off with that melancholy piece that feels emotionally heavy, as if it’s weighted down by the tragic burdens the show’s characters must carry. As the piece begins to shift, it slows down just enough to reinforce the burdening image before picking up the tempo to transition into Mami’s battle theme. The piano work here feels really intricate, and the way it’s performed brings a grandiose aura to the piece as a whole. The sense of motion associated with all the action going on makes it feel like this piece flies at a rapid pace while showing off Mami’s dignified, cool demeanor, brimming with confidence.

Those who’ve seen the anime know this flash and dazzle doesn’t last, and the piece moves into the minor key where things turn dark and grim, with dissonant tones coming to the fore before ending almost abruptly (guess what happens here!), replaced by an ominous, chaotic atmosphere. Here, the lower registers give off a groaning sound that, when combined with the rest of the piece, feels grotesque, befitting a fall from grace. The ugly, monstrous feeling dominates this section, depicted through the piano’s grinding melody. Soon after, tragedy sets in and with it, the short motif from Fur Elise which serves as a transition to Kyoko’s prayer.

I really like Kyoko’s prayer. There’s a melancholy gentleness of spirit flows about it as though to say that she knows what must be done and what must be done is so very heartbreaking. Unfortunately, there’s no hope in sight as the piece winds down with “Magia,” leaving you hanging without a faint glimmer of hope to really cling to. It’s depressing all the way to the end.

Is this next piece hopeful? I’d hope so since it’s very much emblematic of the anime’s end. Here’s yet another piano arrangement courtesy of the talented Animenz:

While Kajiura is best known for her brilliance with EPIC violins and choruses, it’s very easy to overlook some of her more tender themes. I really like how this theme channels that bittersweet emotion just right. Here’s what Animenz says about the piece in general:

I also noticed that this is one of the few soundtracks of Madoka which is actually in a major key. And damn, I really love this track, it’s gives you a good feeling and at the same time it’s incredibly sad. As if the music wants to tell you: “Don’t worry, everything will be fine“. Once again, many thanks to Yuki Kajiura for composing this epic piece of music!

Well, I couldn’t think of how I should name the sheet (I actually thought about naming it Untitled soundtrack 2 but it sounded just silly) and so I decided for “last theme – miracle” because it’s the last heard soundtrack of Madoka. And a miracle truly happened.

Some Miscellaneous Notes:

There’s more than just these arrangements floating out there. For one, Zakufan showed me an arrangement of the brooding, melancholy theme played by a music box. There’s also an ocarina arrangement tucked in his set of links!

I’m extremely curious to see what kind of Madoka arrangements come out of this summer’s Comiket. Sure, we’ve had a ton of electronica and trance versions of anime music, TAMusic is probably going to put out more garbage, but wouldn’t it be great if there were some symphonic, piano, or jazz albums of anime BGM mixed up in there somewhere? I’ve raised the possibility of someone going all out and setting Madoka to a symphonic poem. I’d do it if I knew enough about music composition to do it.

As I mentioned in the review, I love the way this piece brings out a dreamlike quality that’s wrapped in a bubble of innocence as though it were trying to shelter and protect the dreamer within its warm embrace. To watch Makoto Yoshimori go about performing this piece, it’s as if the music controls him rather than the other way around. His body sways to and fro, guided along gently by the flowing melodic currents that, though they sometimes bring about disappointment, never lose sight of their child-like idealism. The aura of hope remains with the piece to the very end, and our hearts bid the characters well in their attainment of happiness in spite of their tribulations.

The only question that surfaces as I watch the video is this: has Makoto Yoshimori gotten so prominent as to warrant a piano recital? It’d be interesting to know if any other anime composer outside the Big Three ever conduct such affairs since we never seem to hear about them.

Hat tip goes out to (who else?) Ottocycle.

So with April soon over, it’s time to acknowledge that Anime Instrumentality has passed its third year in existence, with all of the privileges that the milestone brings. For one, it puts us in a class alongside other blogs that somehow aren’t sensible enough to die at the commonly-observed two-year mark. Also, there are quite a few curmudgeony benefits that come with age that’ll explain a bit later.

But first, the reminiscing! That naturally leads into my attempts to come up with a series of posts that try to cover a wider topic so that they’ll bring some diversity to the steady stream of review after review after review. Last year’s focus was on all of the anime music, both BGM and OP/ED, from 2000-2009 (indexed here for your pleasure). That series was a whole lot of fun to write and people enjoyed the snippets that I put up. This year, as you can probably guess, the focus is on anime composers. In the interest of completeness, we’re finding that this series is actually very challenging to write about, mostly because listening to a composer’s entire discography is no small task. Still, we’re having fun with that and you can expect Taku Iwasaki’s profile to come out sometime in May.

A lot of other things happened too. The Aniblog Tourney brought us into the mainstream (and scaring away our hipster fanbase for good). I attended Anime Expo as a member of the press corps, albeit, for Original Sound Version (but still got an article about Megumi Nakajima and May’n as well as an abridged concert report out of it anyways). We also scored an interview with the jazz arranger, Rasmus Faber (and you really should check out his music!). Oh, and we also doubled our dedicated staff, adding Aftershok and Yu to the team, encouraged others to contribute guest posts, and through that, possibly discouraging anyone else from creating a site wholly devoted to anime music critiques/reviews. That last bit is kind of a shame, but what can you do?

I mentioned above that the three-year mark entitles me to certain benefits. Not to the point where I can pontificate like what Andy Rooney does every week (if Anime Instrumentality reaches the five-year mark, I’ll think about it then), but close. A few examples:

• When normal, average people take me out to karaoke, expecting me to join in and sing Justin Bieber or Lady Gaga songs with them, I’m allowed to be totally shameless in picking and singing anison while they look on, wide-eyed in shock, surprised that I can sing in Japanese (with the aid of Romanized lyrics written on a piece of paper). Besides, I’m not familiar with any Top40 song that’s come out in the last 20 years in the States anyways, so it’s a bit of a lost cause to expect me to know the tunes that everyone else knows.
• I can loudly proclaim that the music today is worse than the music from ten years ago, abetted by the idol phenomenon that prizes looks over ability and whose fans have the attention-span of a gnat as they move from idol to idol with no concept of loyalty. And then sheepishly admit that I don’t really listen to idol-pop. In all seriousness, the only issue I have with idols is their ubiquity. Sometimes, I wish they’d just go away, but most of the time, they’re pretty easy to ignore.
• Complain when shows with good music (I’m frowning at you, Cross Game) never get a soundtrack release. Complain when shows with good music only issue soundtrack releases bundled with the DVDs/Blu-rays. This latter issue is actually becoming more and more commonplace. While I can see why the bundling happens (I doubt soundtrack CDs sell all that well unless it’s for something like Macross Frontier), it absolutely drives me nuts all the same. Sometimes, we get lucky like we did with Working!! and Kara no Kyoukai’s soundtracks. Sometimes not. All I can say is that Madoka better have a standalone soundtrack release or I’ll quietly rage. Or find some more productive way of showing my displeasure.

So yes, Anime Instrumentality might be old, but it has not quite reached the point of being crotchety just yet. Either way, we look forwards to seeing faces old and new as we venture into our fourth year of existence!

Normally, when you encounter anime music arrangements, you’ll tend to come across instrumental arrangements of opening and ending themes, and for good reason: those themes tend to be the most memorable musical aspects of an anime series. Rare are albums in the mold of Rozen Maiden’s Strings and Piano albums, which make such efforts feel all the more precious. So with that in mind, hearing arrangements of Connect and Magia are all within the realm of expectations. But a massive fan arrangement compilation of Madoka’s background music? Now that’s cause for excitement! Check out the embedded Youtube video after the jump:

So here we have it! The video segment opens up with the ED theme, Magia, and the instrumentals do an excellent job of channeling the intensity of the grief and pains the characters experience in Madoka. At about the 3:02 mark, the melody does a clever transition over to the OP, Connect, for a short while before going back to Magia. Keep your ears open for that as you go through it because it can be easy to miss.

5:00 mark: A pulsating rhythm leads us into “Mami’s Theme.” I’m fairly sure that years from now, when people discuss Madoka’s soundtrack, this piece is going to be favorably compared to Kajiura’s other famous choral tracks like “Salva Nos” and “Himeboshi.” Part of the reason lies in its implementation within the anime. During this segment, the titular character is engaged in a wonderfully captivating choreographic delight. The music and chorus that sounds out as she whirls around, firing off her large collection of guns, lends the scene an aura of elegance and grace, effectively ingraining it in our heads for a long time to come.

7:57 mark: For some reason, my brain is telling me this is the preview music. I don’t recall it being used in the anime proper, but that could just be my memory being off. Anyhow, I’ve always loved this melody for bringing with it an aura of mystery and, in fitting with Madoka’s overall atmosphere, a cloud of melancholia, as it makes us wonder what tragedies are in store for the characters.

9:52 mark: Tragedy seems to be the big theme in this segment. The vibraphones move slowly and deliberately in the introduction, giving way to a mournful flute melody that expresses the overwhelming sense of hopelessness that drapes over the entire setting. This track is one of Kajiura’s better melancholy tracks as it tugs upon your heartstrings as you look for that ray of hope to burst forth and relieve the suffering the characters are experiencing.

13:29 mark: Someone remind me, is this part pretty much Sayaka’s descent into tragedy? I don’t remember exactly when this gets played, but the Spanish guitar that comes in later at 14:22 somehow reminds me of the series of unfortunate decisions where Sayaka’s idealism falls to the brink of despair and… ahh but I shall keep silent here. Suffice to say, this track feels emotionally heavy. Others have called it a swan song. I’m going to say that description sounds about right.

16:00 mark: The ominous, heavy steps, emphasized through the cymbal crashes and the foreboding strings convey the monstrosity that Kyouko has to fight. So while there’s a menacing aura that’s highlighted in the continuous motive (the motive you hear in “Magia’s” introduction), there’s also a torrid downpour of tragedy, as a character who doesn’t want to kill must do so so that others may live.

19:00 mark: A variation of the theme you hear in 9:52. As I listen through this segment, I can’t help but feel an overwhelming resolve that refuses to back down, no matter how many dead-ends are encountered. The crescendo that comes in around 21:00 serves to drive that persistence home, one that continually struggles against the imminent tragedies until the person in question is all but dead from the endeavor. It’s almost heartbreaking to think of all the tragedies Homura’s had to endure as she tries to create that happy ending.

24:00 mark: A really upbeat, flowing arrangement of “Connect.” In this version, one can’t help but taste the sweet victory that the characters have achieved. The buoyant tones wouldn’t be out of place in the ending theme of an RPG. So in that vein, the energy that this arrangement exudes is appropriate. We want the characters to find their happy ending, don’t we?

Final Notes: No standalone soundtrack in sight, but I do hope that Madoka gets one since I’d hate to have to actually buy the bundled CD/DVD/Blu-ray box set just to get my Kajiura fix, especially when the music is as good as it is. Anyhow, shoutout goes to Ottocycle once more, who somehow keeps me abreast of these sorts of things.

The responses I got were pretty overwhelming and encompassed over 90 (!!!!!!!) composers (if you can believe that). Speaking as someone who can name maybe half that number, this was a pretty staggering amount and suggests that there may be more anime music fans amongst the fanbase than I’ve seen so far and that most are just kind of dormant. Anyhow, you’ll want to know how things will look over the next 15 months (yes, we do intend to cover 15 anime composers), so check out the list after the jump!

I also plan to run through the methodology and maybe do some comparisons between the sites where I put up the request. That boring quantitative stuff I’ve thrown on page 2, so if you’re really interested how things unfolded, you can look there. As for the general list and the number of points they received from voters in parenthesis:

1. Yuki Kajiura (547 points)
2. Yoko Kanno (499 points)
3. Joe Hisaishi (383 points)
4. Taku Iwasaki (295 points)
5. Kenji Kawai (233 points)
6. Jun Maeda (214 points)
7. Susumu Hirasawa (127 points)
8. Shiro Sagisu (124 points)
9. Tenmon (120 points)
10. Kou Otani (118 points)
11. Toshihiko Sahashi (114 points)
12. Yoshihisa Hirano (111 points)
13. Yasuharu Takanashi (103 points)
14. Michiru Ooshima (101 points)
15. Kotaro Nakagawa (83 points)

Names that barely missed the cut include: Naoki Sato, Kouhei Tanaka, Masumi Itou (Hikaru Nanase), and Mina Kubota.

How This Will Work
Each month, we’ll be highlighting a composer and place a bit more emphasis on reviewing their albums. In fact, we’ll try to toss out somewhere around 3-4 reviews specific to that composer each month. Before we even do that though, we’ll start off with a general profile where we highlight any important biographical tidbits, the sort of stuff you’d find on Wikipedia for instance, but that will make up a small portion of the profile. The bigger portion is in analyzing just how far we feel they’ve progressed as an artist and analyzing the consistency of their works.

So while last year’s big post series revolved around looking at anime soundtracks from 2000-2009, this year’s series looks to be just as ambitious. Maybe even more so. Do look forwards to it and hopefully you can gain some newfound appreciation for the composers you’re familiar with or find a new composer to check out.

For those with a lot of time on their hands, check out page 2 if you want a peek at the methodology as well as a site-by-site breakdown.

Back when I started watching anime, it never occurred to me that Japan would embrace the holiday to the point that they’d roll out their own Christmas tunes; up to that point, my experience with “foreign” Christmas music was mostly confined to “Feliz Navidad” and Asian-language variations of popular Christmas carols. It wasn’t until I finally watched Nadesico that I realized, to a mixture of horror and delight, that Japanese Christmas music is just as cheesy and unbearable as those commonly heard over here in the States!

“Christmas in the Galaxy” has that festive air that lights up the anime through the Nadesico’s kitchen crew’s joyous, peppy melody. This song ranks pretty high on the cheese factor, even when I first encountered it, but now, listening to it is tolerable on account of the nostalgia this piece invokes. It hearkens back to my younger days where I was first introduced to anime and, despite not having a solid background with the anime tropes Nadesico poked fun of, I still found the show hilarious.

It wasn’t until I watched the Christmas episode of Love Hina that I was exposed to the kind of Christmas music that really resonated with me. The Love Hina Christmas Special, if memory serves, opened with the wonderful “Koi no Tenshi Mai Orite.” Like the Nadesico track, it maintains the joyous levels of energy through it’s pop-ish flavor, but mixes in enough of the heavenly high chorus in the introduction as to render it a perfect song for the season.

Koi no Tenshi Mai Orite

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Now, if high bursts of energy aren’t your thing, the Love Hina Christmas Special did add a very heartfelt, sentimental track in Yonekura Chihiro’s “Winter Wish.” Her vocals are already really soothing, but what clinched it for me was the guitar work (or is it a dulcimer?). Between the two Love Hina Christmas tracks, I have difficulties deciding between them. It’s really dependent on the mood I’m in. When I want that infusion of happiness, “Koi no Tenshi” works. When I’m looking for mellower holiday fare, “Winter Wish” fits the bill.

Winter Wish

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
You’d have to make a jump all the way to 2005 to listen to the next one, but by doing so, you’ll hit upon a series that’s well-loved on this site. Yes, I’m referring to none other than ARIA the Animation, which features a track titled “Santa Claus no Sora” performed by the late Eri Kawai. I love how evocative it is. Just imagine Santa Claus’s predicament for a moment. You’ve got the job of delivering toys for girls and boys around the world at night. What must the world look like from the skies above at this late hour? This song answers that through a soft, tranquil melody that’s wonderfully soothing, conjuring images of the world in a deep, peaceful slumber, hearkening to the lines of that iconic poem where “all through the house,/not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.” As the song proceeds, the twinkling sound cultivates a magical energy that augments the quiet joy that gently issues forth.

Santa Claus no Sora

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
“Silent Night” by any other name would be just as serene, and that’s exactly what you get out of Bartender’s “CHRISTMAS CHAMPAGNE ~ Kiyoshiko.” The arrangement takes the original theme and sets down a strong, serene melody, while retaining the quiet sense of joy that’s similar to the ARIA track. It’s difficult to dissociate the show’s content from this track, so whenever I hear it, I imagine myself sitting in some quiet lounge, taking a sip here and there, and letting the alcohol warm me up as I enjoy the snow falling outside.

CHRISTMAS CHAMPAGNE ~ Kiyoshiko

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Ef – a tale of memories’s “Holy Day” takes more of a traditional approach to Christmas, what with the introduction filled with harpsichord, organ, and bells that jingle on through the night. The joy that flows through the piece once it hits its stride immerses you into the bright lights and festive air that characterizes many a town square at this time of year, filled with throngs of revelers. It’s a great mood-setter, one that captures the upbeat tones of the season as the piece fills your heart with gladness.

Holy Day

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Last, but not least, a discussion of Christmas anime music wouldn’t be complete without a mention of Toradora!’s Christmas insert song, “Holy Night.” Now, I’m not altogether fond of this theme since well… it feels like a generic Christmas song except sung by Rie Kugimiya and Eri Kitamura. That said, it’s not lacking in sentiment, especially when taken in the anime’s context. The singing might leave much to be desired, but it still made for a special moment when it showed up during the anime all the same.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

What you’ll get here is a brief rundown of the questions that were asked at the panel and the answers they gave. The questions don’t exactly follow the order in which they’re asked (else it’d jump around a whole lot), so without further ado, check out what they had to say after the jump!

On the Anime Expo Concert:
No surprises here; they definitely had a lot of fun and enjoyed every minute of it. Both of them put in a lot of work to prepare themselves for the concert and they felt that doing so contributed a lot to making the experience an enjoyable one for all. May’n did take the time to learn a few English phrases to rouse the audience (that wasn’t necessary since the crowd was plenty excited). Megumi Nakajima didn’t go that far, but she did work on her image a bit so as to match her personality to her performance. From the language standpoint, Nakajima felt that her singing was more than capable of bridging that gap because music is a universal language.

If memory serves, this was also Nakajima’s first international concert, and she was worried about how the fans would react. Those fears evaporated once she took the stage and saw how enthusiastic the fans were.

One interesting point that May’n did raise about the concert was the difference between Japanese and American fans. Fan behavior in Japan tends to fall under a sort of group mold, where the swaying and reveling is done in unison. American fans contrasted themselves by being more individualistic. While there were pockets in the crowd who moved to the music in a same manner, on the whole, Americans did whatever struck them at the moment and so, there’s greater freedom for individual self-expression. Megumi Nakajima chimed in by adding that this had the effect of making her concert experience feel as though she was communicating to each member of the audience rather than to a group, and so, the distance felt much closer and the event was more personal.

On Their Career Trajectory:
Both seemed pretty content with how their careers are coming along. May’n in particular is happy where she is and isn’t looking to explore other musical genres with any urgency aside from spontaneous ventures into stuff like rock music. This characterizes her tendencies in general, so when she moves into different types of musical genres, it’s not consciously planned. More often than not, she just sings whatever she wants to sing. And despite the success of artists such as Nana Mizuki, May’n has no plans to go into voice acting.

Likewise, Nakajima doesn’t have any long-range plans to branch out beyond idol-pop. She’s a big fan of 80s-era idols and wants to sing music that hearkens back to this time period. She particularly admires Kawai Sonoko’s because Sonoko’s music is varied, each with its own character. If given the chance, she’d love to perform a duet with Sonoko someday.

From the voice acting side, there’s no planned movement there either since Nakajima is very much content with the way things are. In her various roles, she always strives to serve as a good role model. This goes back to her childhood where the manga she enjoyed often featured a main character who was a star, and she often looked up to those characters.

No mention of Nakajima’s career is complete without a talk about how successful her GUMI Vocaloid has become. She feels honored to know that people will use that character’s voice to make music for years on down the line.

On How Well Their Characters Represented Themselves:
The conversation slowly turned to their work on Macross Frontier, specifically, how well they were able to relate to their characters. May’n really thought that Sheryl Nome’s personality was a good fit for her because of how she enjoys the stardom that Sheryl experiences. In addition to that, May’n feels that both she and Sheryl take great pride in their music and when they perform, both will express their emotions freely, passionately, and with full confidence.

Nakajima gave a more general response in that her inexperience of being a seiyuu somewhat parallels what Ranka felt like when her stock began to grow. Beyond that, she felt like their lives were too different to make for a worthwhile comparison.

On Working with Yoko Kanno:
This segment was probably the most interesting to me personally because the relationship between composers and performers, I think, plays a major role in determining whether a song will flourish or fail. And Kanno’s ability to get the best performance from her vocalists by composing music that fits their idiom has been shown time and time again with the likes of Maaya Sakamoto being the most prominent example.

With that kind of reputation under Kanno’s belt, May’n was pretty nervous, but through working with Kanno, May’n found her to be a very warm, caring person. Their relationship progressed to the point that May’n was comfortable enough to go to Kanno with thoughts and suggestions with regard to Sheryl’s songs and establish a good rapport.

Nakajima saw Kanno more of a motherly person who was very supportive as the two were quickly able to gain a mutual understanding of one another while they worked.

One thing that they did confirm about Kanno is that she’s quite the lively personality. Nakajima describes times where Kanno will dance around and May’n confirms that this is especially the case when a recording session goes particularly well.

On Visiting America:
May’n's biggest surprise was in seeing the food portions and how big they were. I actually hear this a lot from friends from Europe who come over to the US and how everything looks and feels super-sized. In May’n case though, she was very pleased with the size of the portions and rates her dining experience rather highly.

For Nakajima, the surprise was in seeing the amount of open space. I guess that in Tokyo, everything feels cramped and so, all this free space that we take for granted was a total revelation to her. She was especially startled at how beautiful the blue sky was as she got off the plane. That event was noteworthy enough for her to enter into her diary.

A few ground rules: when I say anime composers, any composer who’s written any music for anime (including OPs/EDs/insert songs) qualifies. That was easy, wasn’t it? Basically, the only vocalists that are permissible for this are those who actually compose music. Obviously the extent to which you enjoy their music is important and will probably be the primary criterion by which you assemble your list. You can also consider other things like their quantity of work they’ve done. But when you put together your list, do rank order them from most favorite to tenth favorite. Nothing more needs to be done, but you are welcome to add comments about why you chose X person.

Lastly, do try to come up with ten. I specifically stress the word try, because it’s perfectly OK if you aren’t able to come up with that many. If you’re stuck, it does help to look through some of your favorite shows and see who composed their music, but if all else fails, just list one, or two, or five. That’s totally fine. This is mostly to satisfy my brimming curiosity anyhow. Yes, I will use the results for an upcoming article series that focuses upon composers and not to attempt at an objective measurement of who exactly are the ten best anime composers out there. Do fill this out by December 31, 2010. I’ll be scattering reminders every so often!

For what it’s worth, it’d be terrible of me if I didn’t include my own Top 10 list, so here goes:

1. Joe Hisaishi
2. Yoko Kanno
3. Michiru Ooshima
4. Shiro Sagisu
5. Akira Senju
6. Yasuharu Takanashi
7. Yuki Kajiura
8. Taku Iwasaki
9. Toshihiko Sahashi
10. Masumi Itou (also goes by Hikaru Nanase)

Whether you’re new to this article series or you’ve hung around since its inception, here are all of the posts exploring the past, located in a list for your convenience. Feel free to reminisce along; there’s no expiration date when it comes to gushing about the music that’s defined some of your favorite shows:

• The Introduction – From Whence this Idea was Conceived and How the Journey Began
• Anime Music of 2000 – Love, War, and Guitar Smashing. (Love Hina, Inu Yasha, and FLCL)
• Anime Music of 2001 – Read it or Die & Miss Out on Kajiura’s First Major Success (Noir, Kenshin, Spirited Away)
• Anime Music of 2002 – Drinking at Cafe Alpha in Purgatory (Haibane Renmei, FMP, 12 Kingdoms)
• Anime Music of 2003 – Feeling the Gravity While Aloft in the Grand Stream (Gunslinger Girl, FMA, Kino’s Journey)
• Anime Music of 2004 – For the Love of Life, Dolls Materialize Beyond the Clouds (Mai-HiME, Rozen Maiden, Elfen Lied)
• Anime Music of 2005 – Chronicling a Summer-lit ARIA in the Silhouette of a Breeze (Blood+, Honey and Clover, Nanoha)
• Anime Music of 2006 – Lost My Music in the Host Club’s Red Garden (Paprika, Ergo Proxy, Welcome to the NHK)
• Anime Music of 2007 – Two Sketches that Pierce the Heavens (Moribito, ef, Romeo x Juliet)
• Anime Music of 2008 – A Spicy Library War Lacking in Deculture (Code Geass, kurenai, True Tears)
• Anime Music of 2009 – A Finale to the Design Class’s Summer Wars (Erin, Xam’d, KnK, Bakemonogatari)

On top of all this, I’ve gotten close to two dozen recommendations for stuff I should be listening to, from the near-unanimous cry for giving Toshihiko Sahashi’s Simoun score a shot (many consider it to be his best work), to Yasuharu Takanashi’s Towards the Terra, to a couple shots completely out of left field in Kaze no Shoujo Emily and an anime baseball movie. There’s obviously a lot to try out, and as the Fall 2010 season has shown so far, the quantity of good soundtracks continues to pile on with no end in sight. I’d go as far as to say 2010 has been an enjoyable year musically, and you can look forward to a summary once the year ends.

When all is said and done, I’m left with a huge queue of stuff to review and as daunting as it seems, I really look forward to exploring the albums of yesteryear while keeping my ears alert for newer stuff. I’ll also try to come up with another article series to give myself some breathing room between review writing just to mix it up a bit. If you’ve any suggestions on what could make for a fine article series, feel free to send them my way.

Random thoughts that prevent this post from being content-free:

• Is there a Japanese-run anime music blog that does what I do here? Even if I have to run that site through Google Translate, I’d still like to know. Save for contests like Saimoe, there seems to be very little cross-pollination going on between the fanbases in Japan and those in the West. I’d like to see that changed somehow. For now, links to anime soundtrack sites is sufficient.
• While we’re on the bit about cross-pollination, what about the lines drawn between anime and game music? Will there be more artists who cross the lines and work in both mediums? Already, names like Nobuo Uematsu, Kou Ootani, Hitoshi Sakimoto, Taku Iwasaki, Michiru Ooshima, Yoko Kanno, Yuki Kajiura, among others, have worked on both game and anime music, and I expect this number to increase as games become more and more cinematic, and so, will have similar requirements for their melodies.
• To stir the pot a little, my top 10 soundtracks from the last decade are, in order: Spirited Away, Red Garden, ARIA (entire franchise), Gunslinger Girl, Kenshin Seisouhen, Romeo x Juliet, Ouran High School Host Club, Mai HiME, Haibane Renmei, and Spice and Wolf. I expect some vehement disagreements here and that my responses to at least half of those will be: “I haven’t listened to that soundtrack. Sorry. :p”
• The above list is a boring concept. I should come up with a list of the best soundtracks you’re not listening to though given my readership, I don’t know how well that’ll fly since you might be listening to them already.
• One short project up for consideration is to determine whether the soundtracks to all yuri anime are solid and enjoyable. Number of counterexamples found so far: 0
• Composers who aren’t as well known, but who I’ve learned to look out for: Masaru Yokoyama, Makoto Yoshimori, Shougo Kaida, Ken Muramatsu, Akihiko Matsumoto, Kotaro Nakagawa, and Hiroyuki Sawano.
• Composers who need to write more anime music: Kaoruko Ohtake (maybe I should just listen to more Natural Highs), Takeshi Senoo, John Williams (I can dream, right?).

It took me the better part of the year to get all the way to 2009, but getting that chance to revisit all the music from shows that I’ve watched and those that I only know of through the music feels like a long, but rewarding journey. I’ll express more of that joy and nostalgia in an afterthoughts post consisting of what I’ve learned, new stuff to check out, etc; this one is reserved solely for 2009′s shows, the year that brought us the divisive, but popular K-ON!, an end to the enthralling Kara no Kyoukai movies, and, of course, the excitement and mystery embodied in Eden of the East. Musically, this year saw names like Masaru Yokoyama and Akihiko Matsumoto put their stamp down while video game composers I’ve enjoyed have made ventures into the realm of anime music. There’s a lot to talk about, that’s for sure.

So as usual, full clips are delivered here, Youtube ones are spoilered. I’ll be cheating a bit and linking to reviews when warranted to save time else I’ll be repeating myself a bit too much. Beyond that, just sit back, and enjoy the bevy of tunes from the recent past!

Queen’s Blade
Let’s start with a surprise. Yes, Queen’s Blade’s reputation has preceded it because of the multitude of T&A on display in every episode. It’s understandable why that might make Queen’s Blade so off-putting for many, but there’s a not insignificant number of writers who can vouch that underneath the fanservice is a solid story. And though I can’t personally vouch for the show’s content, I can vouch for its music. Masaru Yokoyama’s contributions to the soundtrack have been solid, and I’d definitely put his name on my radar since he looks like to be a very strong up-and-coming anime composer. I especially like the way the main theme for the series turned out. The first does have a strong, adventurous spirit behind it in the vein of the type of music you’d expect out of medieval fantasy epics while the second conveys the end of a long, victorious, heroic journey.

Main Theme A

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Main Theme B

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Guin Saga
And while we’re dwelling on fantasy epics, Guin Saga certainly fits the bill given its roots as a series of fantasy novels penned by Kaoru Kurimoto that served as a major influence in Kentaro Miura’s work on the popular Berserk manga. From all the reports I got, the Guin Saga anime is found wanting, and that’s not too much of a surprise since adapting a 100+ volume novel series into 26 episodes and expect some sort of finality is sheer folly even in the best circumstances. I did catch bits of it early on and that was mostly because of Nobuo Uematsu’s involvement with the score. If you’ve listened through the Final Fantasy series where Uematsu serves as the composer, Guin Saga’s music should sound familiar since his style from the FF games does carry over to the anime. “Grand Opening – The Thread of Fate” draws forth the anime’s epic scope and makes for an appropriate opener for the soundtrack. The entire “Mongaul Suite” is also worth giving a listen, but of the four tracks that comprise the suite, it’s the “2nd Movement (Sortie)” that reminds me the most of Uematsu’s FF scores somehow.

Grand Opening – The Thread of Fate

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Mongaul Suite – 2nd Movement (Sortie)

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Kemono no Souja Erin
Here, we have another fantasy anime. This one isn’t as action-oriented, but from all the screenshots and summaries that I’ve seen and read, the story looks to be compelling, filled with plenty of drama brought about by solid writing. The setting is also one of its other strengths. If you’ll recall the review I wrote of Kemono no Souja Erin’s soundtrack, one of the points I made was that composer Masayuki Sakamoto brings out the “long time ago in a fantasy world different from our own” tones through good use of traditional instruments, evidenced in tracks like “Kodai no Kamigami” and “Ashita,” with its upbeat flute melody.

Kodai no Kamigami

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Ashita

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Bounen no Xam’d
You really can’t go wrong with Michiru Ooshima since the orchestral delights that she’s been serving up continue to persist along with the addition of a vocal work from the chorus that sounds suspiciously like the one used to sing FMA’s “Brothers.” It’s a series packed with action, making it a good match with Ooshima’s musical tendencies and I really hope that I can find the time to actually watch the whole thing since I’ve heard nothing but good reports flying in (well, except for the ending).

堕夢人のテーマ～現に一添えの想い～

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Kara no Kyoukai
Kara no Kyoukai’s atmosphere is downright heavy. There’s just so much darkness enshrouding the characters and setting that it’s a big part of why the movies are so immersive. And when it comes to sculpting that dark atmosphere, I can think of very few composers who can match the outstanding work that Yuki Kajiura has done. The tracks in the first movie are the most memorable ones and I wish I could give them names other than the generic tags like “M01″ which draws forth the mystical, haunting aura of the setup through Kalafina (who perform some excellent theme songs which I’ll cover later) or “M12+13′s” discordant opening that takes us into a heavy rhythmic section before dispensing with an utterly glorious section that combines grace and power in one awesome package.

M01

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

M12+M13

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Tatakau Shisho: The Book of Bantorra
While I did not watch this show, the reports from people who have been watching suggest that it gets better and it all ties together rather well, which means patience is the key to enjoying this one. And while you’re trying to make out all of the religious/mythological elements or whatever it is this show throws at you, hopefully you do pay attention to Yoshihisa Hirano’s score. Of all the anime composers that come to mind, Hirano is probably one of the few who works the most in the classical style with his channeling of Mozart in Ouran High School Host Club and Orff in Death Note. I’m not quite able to identify the composer whose influence Hirano works off of in Bantorra (though Orff might not be a bad bet), but the work he does is compelling if you enjoy the heavy dose of ominous choral pieces that he scatters in this score.

Magic

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Antagonism

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Umi Monogatari
What is a Ken Muramatsu soundtrack that doesn’t carry the relaxing tones that he’s used from his previous works? If you’re going into Umi Monogatari expecting anything new from him, there really isn’t much to speak of. His music is still soothing as he, once again, employs that combination of traditional Japanese music with the light jazz that dominates his earlier works. It’s still a good listen, though the same can’t be said for the anime series, which didn’t really have that solid of an execution because one character in particular wasn’t too sympathetic. Good for doing homework since it blends right in without being distracting, yet still holds up even if you do focus on the music.

Eikyuu no Nagisa ~a dream in beach~ (Umi Monogatari Theme) – Shinrabanshou

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

“Teidanuhikyari” (Shima Uta) – Aragaenu mono

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
GA: Geijutsuka Art Design Class
I’ve always been partial to slice of life music with an upbeat tone to it, and I suppose that’s a major reason why GA: Geijutsuka Art Design Class’s soundtrack jibes with me so well. Its music stirs you with its energy that pushes you to expand your horizons by consuming a broad swath of enriching experiences and accumulate a storehouse’s worth of insights to help you think outside the boundaries of what you thought was possible. The characters’ approach to art lessons has an irresistible amount of gusto, captured in tracks like “GA ~ art design class.” Yes, I’m aware that this soundtrack isn’t for everyone, but it meshes well with my outlook, and so, it’s one that I’ll put on whenever I need that extra bit of energy to see me through whatever it is I’m doing.

GA ~ art design class

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

So many minds

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Summer Wars
The fantastic adventure that Summer Wars brings to light is captured through Akihiko Matsumoto’s score, which combines glorious orchestral pieces along with heavier synth tracks in its depiction of the virtual world. As I commented in my review of the Summer Wars soundtrack, it does tend towards experimental music in the middle, making it less appealing to me since the tracks that I enjoyed the most were the orchestral tracks. That said, “Kasou Toshi Oz” certainly has its place since it unveils the bustling virtual world bit by bit, and the alarm-y nature of the track feels like a wonder revelation. Still, nothing beats the excitement that the “Overture” summons. Listening to that, you feel like you’re about to embark upon a grand adventure of a lifetime!

Kasou Toshi Oz

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Overture to the Summer Wars

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Aoi Hana
This yuri anime offers up Takefumi Haketa and with that, a clear sign of what to expect: good melodies that have this tendency to reuse 2-3 thematic components. In Aoi Hana’s soundtrack, he doesn’t abuse this to the extent that he does with Someday’s Dreamer’s soundtrack, but it’s worth mentioning for people who are looking for greater melodic differentiation within a disc. For the rest of us who enjoy sweet orchestral and/or piano airs, this is a wonderful soundtrack to relax to.

Komorebi wo Kakeorite

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Date

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
That was more than what I meant to cover and is indicative of how much my anime viewing habits along with my penchant for musical delving has come. But it’s not quite over yet! So take up that last remaining storehouse of energy and let’s rip through the OP/ED/Insert songs on page 2!

When I say difficulty, I really do mean it. If there’s one thing that I’ve learned writing all these music reviews, it’s that the writing process never gets easier with time; you’d think it would with 2+ years under my belt. I don’t know how some of my peers in the anime blogosphere deal with it, but I’m always in awe at the folks who can turn out a post every day and still have them be insightful and enjoyable reads. I’m not one of those people, unfortunately, and so, continue to struggle. It’s a long process, though not an unpleasant one (otherwise I wouldn’t be doing it!), but I do encounter those rough patches from time to time.

Writing is ultimately a form of self-expression, but for me, it’s also a reflection of the clarity of my thinking process. And if what I’ve experienced tells me anything, it’s that my thinking process is messy. It’s not uncommon for me to write a jumble of paragraphs only to reread what I’ve written and find it nearly incomprehensible. Problems abound: repetitive phrases, utter incoherence, contradictory statements, superficial analysis, boring passages, the list goes on. I try to catch as many as I can, obviously, but I’m sure I don’t catch them all. If too many of those issues pop up though, then it’s time to head back to the drawing board so I can figure out how to refine and clarify my thoughts further or scrap it and start over if necessary. It’s important that my writing is coherent at the bare minimum even if it lacks the flourish that others possess.

So for those curious to see how messy my thinking process is, check out how my review of Makoto Shinkai’s Promise album unfolds on the TypeWith.me Time Slider. Just hit the play button to watch my thoughts evolve from a rough draft version to the final form. Do keep in mind that it’s pretty lengthy though, and you’ll only need sit through half of it to get an idea. Maybe this’ll give aspiring writers hope in the fact that even people who write extensively still have difficulties! We’ll see.

As promised in the thread title, I also perform an unboxing, this one of the Makoto Shinkai album. Though Pireze_icie at Hunting the Elusive has taken pictures of his copy, I decided to go ahead and do mine in video form. I do have a tendency to babble/ramble when I narrate, which is why this unboxing is close to 10 minutes long, but I hope you enjoy it!

I’ve also hit 250K views recently. Guess this post is an excuse to celebrate that arbitrary milestone.

Hiroki Kikuta isn’t exactly a household name in the realm of video game music, at least, when you compare him to giants like Uematsu and heck, even Hitoshi Sakimoto, but he’s got a resume that stretches pretty far back. I remember really enjoying the music he composed for Secret of Mana on the SNES while playing through that and more recently, adored the whimsical melodies from his Alphabet Planet album. Otakon goers may also know him as the composer of “Shackles of Night,” which served as Otakon 2010′s opening theme.

Anyhow, there is a video of him talking (presumably) about the music that he’s composing for his Touhou arrange album, titled Touhou Zerokyo Kitan ~ Sophisticated Insanity, set to release this December. He also previews a rock arrangement of “Maiden’s Capriccio” (also known as Reimu’s theme) from Imperishable Night which you can watch below. I’d summarize the video more, but the lack of Japanese knowledge is hampering here, so I’ll just let those interested take a peak at what he’s got to offer. Anyone who can shed more light on what he’s saying, feel free to do so!

Anyway, here’s the article in question. Based on the article’s approach, I’m inclined to say that the author hasn’t really been immersed in anime music beyond skimming the Oricon charts and noticing some anime albums placing in the top ten. Some of the points it makes are contentious, especially in light of the “talented” claim, which I’ll dig into later on. In any case, I’ll give the article a blow by blow account.

So the first thing they noted was:

Theme songs and soundtracks from Japanese anime are making inroads into the mainstream J-pop music genre, drawing popularity particularly from female consumers as talented voice actresses sing the songs.

More than 60 anime songs hit the top 10 singles chart this year, according to entertainment information provider Oricon Co. Sales of CDs in the anime and soundtrack genre totaled 29.3 billion yen in 2009, up from 24.9 billion yen in 2005, according to Oricon.

I’m doubtful as to whether the soundtracks themselves has really made any particular inroads, especially into the realm of J-pop since soundtracks tend towards non-pop instrumentals, but seeing that I don’t bother looking up whether Oricon has any sort of instrumental Top Ten page, I guess I can’t really confirm whether my suspicions are true or not. If they consider insert songs scattered in some albums (think Macross Frontier’s soundtrack) I suppose they have some ground to work with.

But their noting that anime intro/outro singles tend to sell well is correct since anime music threads on forums like ASuki and news sites like ANN have documented how well the OP/ED singles for popular shows or contain popular artists (Nana Mizuki) tend to do on the Oricon charts. Now, the question of why they place so high is debatable. For instance, have these albums really succeeded in penetrating the mainstream or are anime fans buying multiple copies as a means of showing their dedication and love to the show? And if it’s the latter case, is that indicative of how well album sales can be perpetuated regardless of the singer’s vocal abilities and the album’s overall quality? I guess this reveals where I stand on the whole “talented voice actresses” bit.

The article continues:

The songs have ‘‘good melody lines and the voice actresses singing are talented,’’ Majima says. He believes customers including women, who are not necessarily ardent anime fans, can easily connect with songs sung by popular anime voice actresses.

And here we have more contentious lines. I don’t think the melodies have been all that great since each season has offered two or three OP/ED themes that have caught my fancy, which is close enough to what Sturgeon’s Law predicts. Etsuko Yakushimaru’s performances for Arakawa Under the Bridge’s OP and Tatami Galaxy’s ED theme have been enjoyable as have Lia and Aoi Tada’s work on Angel Beats!, granted, neither of the ones listed above are performed by seiyuu (a point the article emphasizes). Of the ones that are, Sphere has done decent work, but aside from “Now loading… SKY!!,” I don’t really find their other songs to be as memorable since they’re more of a zeitgeist thing than songs that’ll stand the test of time.

As for the songs resonating with the audience, that’s somewhat understandable. I suppose dealing with themes as universal as love (pretty much 90% of all the J-pop out there) or fond recollections of school life means a greater ease in striking the right chord with the listener. It makes me wonder why the connection to these pop songs’ subject material is stronger now (something I infer from Majima’s words) versus then. Has the zeitgeist really shaped how these newer works are treated compared to the older stuff? Are the Japanese still searching for their own sense of identity akin to teenagers and tweens figuring out their place in life? Maybe stuff like K-ON!’s music offers that sort of respite by using good old rose-colored nostalgia while love songs emphasize a more heartful love that is perceived to be generally missing.

‘‘This is a big boom that we’ve never seen before,’’ says Katsuragi. ‘‘The talents are going into the anime songs genre and I believe the popularity will last,’’ she added.

It’s a big boom all right, but only because music sales as a whole have gone down (see Sony’s Annual Report describing their music division) to the point that any increase in sales of albums in a particular sector will garner attention. Because of this, it’s no surprise that talents (including the not-so-talented) are going into the anisong genre for their own sake and not so much for a love of the medium but as an avenue for them to get the extra attention and ergo, sales from rabid consumers. I’ve already talked a bit about the intertwining tendencies between the music business and anime OP/EDs, and so, the marketing engine moves on.

This leads back to a major major gripe, one that’s started with a comment to my Anime Expo Macross Concert on OSV. Since I can’t link to the actual comment, I’ll write it out here, typos and all:

Nakajime on the otherhand is playing the role of an idol (Mamegu) who, depending on the performance, is also playing Ranka on top of that. She makes a lot of mistakes in her regular concerts because its expected, its cute, its what idols do. And the fans eat it up.

While I wouldnt disagree that May’n has some awesomely powerful vocal chords, from experience Megumi has a much broader range (which is why she normally covers the past Macross stuff from Macross to Macross Plus) and, more importantly, is really good at interacting with the audience. Of course, this is something you arent going to get at a concert outside of Japan though. Certainly you could argue that she should tailor her performance (and cut what I daresay were some of the mistakes she made on purpose at the beginning of the concert)to the audience she is performing for, but to that I’d reply that, since there is (legally & officially at least) no release of the albums in the US and therefore no market to speak of, that she isnt obligated to change her style to fit US tastes.

Have consumers de-evolved to the point where deliberate mistakes are an acceptable practice and must be done for the sake of keeping up appearances? Whatever happened to valuing competence?

Assuming that the comment is spot-on in capturing the expectations placed upon seiyuu and having them deliberately suck so as to pander to fans, it might explain a lot about why J1m0ne’s has been experiencing what she’s been experiencing and why I’ve been generally unmotivated in reviewing anime OP/EDs. The increasing emphasis on having seiyuu look good so as to work within the soulless idol-creation process is taking a toll on the quality of the vocalists out there as well as the quality of the voice acting work. Unfortunately, there’s no end in sight.

There’s been a lot of negativity thrown about here, so let’s end on a positive note. The music will keep me going because the quality of the BGM is going to be consistent. To crib day’s words, “I think its harder to make legitimately awful BGM; its easy to make pretty forgettable BGM, but there are honestly so many shortcuts to making wholly inoffensive BGM that to make it truly terrible is a bit of a challenge, it seems.” I’ve found it to be the case as I’ve explored what BGM has to offer. Unlike vocalists and seiyuu, composers are under no compunction to look as impeccable as a pretty picture, and so, can do their own thing without needing to answer to the fan’s beck and call. And for that, I’m thankful for this one area that rabid fans can’t despoil.

As promised, this post will contain a short blurb of all the music posted for Set #1 of the BGM Music Quiz. Although the track identification count is at two, I still hope that you all derived some enjoyment out of the music since that’s the secondary motive for writing that post in the first place (the primary motive is to cover for a lack of reviews). Since you’re probably dying to know which track comes from which series, the answers are as follows (along with the full version of the track in question):

Track 1
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Anime series: Gunslinger Girl
Track title: TEMA I
A friend of mine complained about this track appearing far too much in the series, but I’m not really sure that it’s a reason to dislike this track. In fact, as I mentioned in the comments section of the previous post, Gunslinger Girl is pretty high on my list of favorite soundtracks, maybe second or third on my all-time list. Toshihiko Sahashi’s compositions do an excellent job of conveying the European setting and the soundtrack packs a lot of variety from the mournful to the upbeat. “TEMA I,” in particular, has this melancholy violin melody that invites the listener to take a step back and see these girls’ situation for what it is. Beneath their veneer of contentment lies a rather tragic past and this piece is a solid reminder of that, which makes it perfect for its role as the main theme of the series.

Track 2
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Anime series: ARIA the Animation
Track title: Natsu Tayori
It’s really hard for me to not go into fanboy mode as far as ARIA goes. Not only was that franchise a delightfully amazing watch, none of the soundtracks disappointed me even though I was pretty sure that by Origination, they’d have few original tracks to sprinkle around. “Natsu Tayori” jumps out at me by bringing out Neo-Venezia’s laid-back and upbeat atmosphere that comes from a combination of the whistling and the choro-styled melody (that’s why they call themselves the Choro Club I suppose) that makes this piece so relaxing and enjoyable. Along with pieces like “Aqua,” “Mangetsu no Dolche,” and “Mizu no Kagami,” the soundtrack to ARIA the Animation stands out as a wonderful work that’s unlikely to be matched for its grace and elegance as well as its optimistic outlook on life, a feeling that resonates strongly with the series itself.

Track 3
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Anime series: Oh! Edo Rocket
Track title: Rocket
Per nkcl‘s request, this answer is revealed! Though I have not seen Oh! Edo Rocket myself, a hat tip goes out to SeijiSensei from AnimeSuki for introducing me to this excellent soundtrack. Much of the music on this soundtrack is big band jazz, which will undoubtedly please anyone who loves that particular genre since it’s one that I’ve found to be sorely lacking in the world of anime soundtracks. Needless to say, I was completely blown away by how enjoyable the melodies are and would heartily recommend this album to anyone needing their jazz fix.

As a slight aside, Oh! Edo Rocket focuses a lot on the individual, which is quite a step from most anime series that have a group-focused approach to the plot and characters. This makes the usage of jazz all the more appropriate since that genre tends to be more individualistic with all those solo bits and improvisation during the course of a jazz performance.

Track 4
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Anime series: Le Chevalier D’Eon
Track title: PSALMS
The guesses for this track being from Blood+ aren’t far off the mark as far as genre is concerned since there is plenty of action and supernatural creatures running about (especially zombies, lots of zombies). This track hails from Le Chevalier D’Eon and I remember that when I watched the first episode, something triggered my memory and my first thought was “Huh… the music has Michiru Ooshima’s style written all over it” and my subsequent research confirmed those suspicions. Of course, most people know her better as the composer for Full Metal Alchemist, and if you listen carefully, you can definitely hear some “Ooshima-isms” (if I may call it that) scattered throughout the Chevalier soundtrack, especially in the way she uses the cello (maybe it’s a bass?) and clarinet in “PSALMS.” So for those of you who enjoyed FMA’s music, I definitely recommend giving this one a listen since it’s practically more of the same stuff from her. Good stuff at that.

Track 5
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Anime series: Planetes
Track title: Outside Atmosphere
Finally, we come to the track that everyone is waiting for. As Nazarielle was able to deduce partway and as I hinted, there’s a strong connection between this piece and Code Geass on two counts. The first and obvious count is that both series share the same composer: Kotaro Nakagawa. The second and less obvious count is that both Planetes and Code Geass are directed by none other than Gorou Taniguchi. Unlike Code Geass, Planetes is universally acclaimed, without the over-the-top plot twists or anything complicated; the series is much closer to a slice-of-life series that can be described as “salarymen in space.” Though I haven’t seen all of it, what I have seen of Planetes has been enjoyable and I highly recommend giving that one a look.

Nazarielle’s observation of this track wasn’t far off the mark either and I can definitely see how this track gives off the feeling an observer has upon gazing at some ancient ruins resulting from some great conflict. This piece starts out with a violin motive that exudes a sense of tranquility while conveying a sense of isolation. That is, apart from the ruined structures, there is no trace of human activity present as far as the eye can see. As the observer continues to stay in the area, the chorus section comes in followed by the violin which has a warm and comforting timbre as though this piece was describing a beautiful sunrise that bathes the world in its warmth and shines its light upon the land. Naturally, the above description is fitting if you imagine this piece describing the vastness of space as the characters are in orbit and witness a beautiful sunrise. Like in most things, context is everything I guess.

And that’s it! Again, I hope you enjoyed this exercise and got some utility out of listening to the tracks.