Review Postscript: Kuragehime and a Makoto Yoshimori Concert
I really shouldn’t need to point out how different the experience is between listening to music in a live-concert setting and from the comfort of your own home. Even for a concert in which the set-list is made up entirely of instrumentals, I really love the way the music comes to life within the concert hall, conveyed through not only the instruments, but also the performers’ body language. This latter component can be very interesting to observe as in the case of Makoto Yoshimori as he plays a piano rendition of “Umi to tsuki no yume,” my favorite piece from the Kuragehime soundtrack:
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.
Nice. I suppose it isn’t difficult to set up a piano recital. It probably is more difficult (expensive) to set up an orchestral performance, and it doesn’t sound like there were a lot of people in the audience.
Agreed. Watching live performances has that extra atmosphere that really adds to the experience. In fact, even just watching his swaying and playing in that vid is quite fascinating.
@Joojoobees
It’s a nice, intimate environment, at least based on the two piano recitals that I’ve been to while a college student. But yeah, the tradeoff is that the audience is small. Maybe it’s made up of anime and J-drama fans since I think Yoshimori’s done work on dramas as well.
@Yi
If only we could get more instrumental concerts in the states… but maybe that’s what folks like Eminence can do when they do make their regular visits.