Of the DVD "Joe Hisaishi in Budokan - 25 Years with Studio Ghibli"! (a very free translation of the actual Japanese title 久石譲 in 武道館...)
I (and others) have waxed lyrical about the merits of this wondrous concert, but that was probably not enough to convince just how much this DVD will be worth your time (and dime...).
The basics:
Back in August 2008, Hisaishi assembled the 200-head strong New Japan Philharmonic World Dream Orchestra, the 400 singers of the Ritsuyukai Choir, the 100 children of the Little Singers of Tokyo and another 200 people to make a "public" choir in the massive Nippon Budokan Arena in Tokyo. To this rather potent mix were added five vocal soloists and on occasion three marching bands from high schools in the vicinity of Tokyo. Hisaishi performs some piano parts himself between conducting the massed forces of musicians.
Clips from the nine Ghibli movies were shown on a screen hung over the orchestra and it must have been an awesome experience to hear the concert live. A breakdown of the pieces performed follows. I suggest you sit down, this is going to take a while:
1 - Suite from Nausicaä from the Valley of the Wind (1984):
A furious timpani solo/duo opens up this suite, followed by Hisaishi playing the main theme, of Nausicaä "The Legend of the Wind" on solo piano before the orchestra joins in. The full choir performs "Dies Irae" and provides the first of many spine-tingling moments during the concert. "Days Long Gone" showcases Hisaishi's talent for woodwind writing before the children choir literally la-las its way through Nausicaä's "Requiem". With a reprise of the main theme on strings, the suite comes to a crashing crescendo.
2 - Suite from Princess Mononoke (1997):
Taiko drum hits start this suite, soon followed by orchestra and choir performing the score's oriental-sounding main theme, "The Tale of A[bleep!]aka". More taiko and field drum lead to the furious "The Demon God (Tatari Gami)", which dwarves the OST with its immense sound and scope. Solo French horn roars forth before the rhythm of Tatari Gami take over again, with the men adding a particularly barbaric chant.
One of the concert's scoregasm moments follows with "Mononoke Hime", performed by Hisaishi on piano and alto Masako Hayashi. She has a rich and sonorous voice, which suits the sound of Mononoke well. When orchestra and full choir join her at the two-minute mark, it's simply a "WOW!" moment. The song ends as quietly as it had begun, just Hayashi and the piano.
3 - Suite from Kiki's Delivery Service (1989):
Haven't seen the film yet, but I will. Kiki's music starts with the main theme of pizzicati strings and woodwinds, giving the music a light and care-free feeling. Again, woodwind solos shine, and a tambourine-led middle section is wonderful in its dancing rhythm. Hisaishi couldn't help the big smile on his face while conducting this!
"Heartbroken Kiki" continues the suite in a rather melancholic fashion with more woodwind solos, before Yasushi Tomoshima brings in his magic with a splendid violin solo. Pun fully intended, but the music is heartbreaking.
4 - Suite from Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (2008):
The longest selection in the concert, the most recent collaboration between Miyazaki and Hisaishi has a lot to offer: from the opening extravaganza for orchestra and choir to depict the colourful underwater vistas of Ponyo, to the Wagner-inspired "Ponyo of the Fish of the Wave" to the sinister tango of "Fujimoto's Theme".
However, the three highlights of the suite are the operatic "Mother of the Sea", once again sung by Masako Hayashi; the dreamy "Rondo of the Sunflower House", performed by Hisaishi's daughter Mai and the cute closing song, "Gake no ue no Ponyo", performed with aplomb by all the vocal soloists and choir. Special mention must go to seven-year old Nozomi Ohashi, who is wonderful and hits every note right. The song comes to a huge orchestral and choral finish and never fails to put a smile on my face. Everybody now: "Ponyo, Ponyo, Ponyo, sucking on your toe..."
5 - Suite from Laputa - Castle in the Sky (1986):
This one starts off with Hisaishi dismissing his orchestra, and instead calling in three high school marching bands. They perform Pazu's "Morning Fanfare" while marching into the Budokan Arena, and the large amount of percussion and fat brass (literally! I think I saw a Wagner tuba somewhere!) is wholly appropriate.
Then follows the absolute highlight of the concert, at least for me. When I saw a video clip of "Kimi wo nosete (Carrying You)" for the first time last year, my jaw hit the floor and I had goosebumps and was teary-eyed for, like, an hour after. Performed by the marching bands and the ginormous choir, this is the one track (outside of LotR) that I could listen to forever. It is just sublime.
The marching bands then exit the arena while performed "The Huge Tree", the ending piece from Laputa. Again, the choir adds an enormous layer of sound to the proceedings and I'm floating somewhere beneath the ceiling in pure film music bliss. If you don't or can't get enjoyment out of this music, then there' something seriously wrong with you.
6 - Porco Rosso (1992):
Things quiet down a bit with the jazzy "The Bygone Days" from Porco Rosso. Hisaishi performs on piano the five-minute piece, complemented by a small jazz band culled from his orchestra: a couple of trombones, a drum set, and two saxophones. Very laid back and a nice break from the orchestral onslaught on the concert's first half.
7 - Suite from Howl's Moving Castle (2004):
It's a pity that there wasn't an organ to perform this suite's opening, but the string sections do just fine.
The first part is basically Theme and Variations on the score's main theme, "Merry-Go-Round". Some have called Howl's Moving Castle to be Hisaishi's most complex score for a Miyazaki movie. Again, the music is very colourful and diverse, returning and highlighting to the Merry-Go-Round waltz repeatedly. And once again, Hisaishi's woodwind mastery and writing for strings must be mentioned. An urgent, horn-led middle section for the sorceress Sulliman is very dramatic.
In a brilliant move, Hisaishi lets two groups of brass quartets on opposing ends of the orchestra perform "Cave of Mind" in a haunting and very effective call-and-answer fashion. Coupled with the unforgettable sequence of Howl drinking a star on the screen, I was in tears once again. The suite ends with another reprise of the waltz theme, again with Hisaishi at the piano leading the orchestra to a huge finish.
8 - Suite from Spirited Away (2002):
Two vocal pieces from Miyazaki's 2002 masterpiece Spirited Away follow, both performed by soprano Ayaka Hirahara. The first one, "The Name of Life", is accompanied by Hisaishi on piano, and is the vocal version of the score's opening piece, "Summer Road". Very moody, but very beautiful at the same time. The second song, based on the gorgeous melody of "Reprise", adds the orchestra to Hirahara's lovely voice and soars with the same elegance as the original piece. This is, once again, simply beautiful music, thematic, well orchestrated and performed. Scoregasm material, of course!
9 - Suite from My Neighbour Totoro (1988):
In a smart move, Hisaishi and Miyazaki end the concert proper with two uplifting and rip-roaring selections from Totoro. Celeste, piano and harps open "The Path of the Wind", before bouncy bassoon ushers in "Sanpo", the film and score's opening song. Performed by all the vocal soloists, Hisaishi does something rather unique and funny: he gives each verse of the song to a different part of the choir or a soloist and group of the orchestra: first woodwinds (flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons), then brass (horns, trumpets, trombones, tuba...Hisaishi is grinning like the Cheshire cat at this point!), then strings (violins, violas, celli and basses). After an interlude of snare drum and saxophones, the soloists go next, accompanied by timpani first, then xylophone and marimba, followed by harps and finishing with celeste and piano. Finally, everything and everybody comes together for another rousing finish. Awesome!
The second song, "Tonari no Totoro", starts somewhat more wistfully, but soon picks up speed and mood. A gorgeous interlude with Hisaishi on the piano is followed by a tour-de-force race to the finish line, with tambourine and cymbals gone wild, key and meter changes and everything this film music fan could wish ever for.
Here, the concert per se ended. Hayao Miyazaki walks up to the stage to shake hands and give Hisaishi some flowers. But of course, we couldn't end things that quickly, eh? Indeed, we don't and Hisaishi returns for two encores. The first one is the marvellous "Madness" from Madness, an orchestral spectacle at breakneck speed that surely must have taxed some players' abilities to hit all the right notes in time! Hisaishi is again at the piano and gets back to the conductor's podium just in time to slam the cue to a close!
After a well-deserved standing ovation, Joe Hisaishi returns to the piano a final time and starts with his most beautiful composition, from Princess Mononoke: "A[bleep!]aka and San". This piece has always been a stunner, but with the addition of the choir (singing lyrics written by Mai) in its final minute, it is more beautiful than ever. My word, this is music from someone who really and truly knows how to write good music. And good film music. I couldn't help the tears rolling down my face a third time.
And that's it. An exhausted but happy Joe Hisaishi bids his audience good-night, the orchestra and choirs take their deserved bows and I am left with one of the most satisfying items in my collection. I have said it before and will say it until everybody believes me: Hisaishi is one of the very best composers working today, and the fact that Hollywood hasn't discovered or doesn't know to use him is causes me joy rather than disappointment. By working predominantly in Japan (with the occasional European movie thrown into the mix), Hisaishi can keep his original and unmistakable voice and doesn't have to subject himself and his music to the whims and arrogance of Hollywood's many ignoramuses.
Do yourself a favour and invest in this DVD (or Blu-Ray). You may want to wait until it drops a little in price, but music this excellent deserves to be heard by a wider audience. I still thank to powers that be that they decided to release this concert on DVD, with great sound. I could watch it every day. Or at least listen to the 2-CD compilation I've made from it...
I rest my case and thank you for reading, should you have made it this far!
All best,
Christian
PS: If you find any mistakes/typos in this post...you can keep them!
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