Hisaishi: Music from "Spirited Away" and "Howl’s Moving Castle" (久石譲：あの夏へ・人生のメリーゴーランド)

"One Summer's Day" from "Spirited Away" (2001) 千と千尋の神隠し：あの夏へ - 0:00
"Merry-Go-Round of Life" from "Howl’s Moving Castle" (2004) ハウルの動く城：人生のメリーゴーランド - 3:12
Joe Hisaishi - 久石譲 (b. 1950)
Stanford Collaborative Orchestra Spring Concert (June 3, 2017)

flute: Papa Odita-Honnah, Eva Wang
oboe: Luisa Galhardo, Chetan Rane
clarinet: Diego Hernandez, Julian Bava
bassoon: Stephen Koo
horn: Jeffrey Chang, Scott Reid
trumpet: Anand Upender
violin: Spencer Guo, Teresia Chen, Woody Wang, Katie Fo
viola: Jennie Yang, Hannah Thompson
cello: Clementine Chou, Caroline Aung, Michael Chung
bass: Jared Cavazos
piano: Taide Ding
melodica: Jeffrey Chang

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The collaboration between Joe Hisaishi and critically-acclaimed director of animated films Hayao Miyazaki is one of the longest, and possibly most celebrated, in film music history. Through Hisaishi's distinctive melodies and lush sounds, and Miyazaki's expansive imagination and fantastical imagery, these films and their scores tap into deeply nostalgic emotions that are often ignored by other media.

"One Summer's Day" opens Miyazaki's 2001 film Spirited Away, as protagonist Chihiro and her parents lose their way while driving through the woods and find themselves in the Spirit World. The piano first introduces a simple melody, played above sparse instrumentation, that serves as the main theme for the duration of the piece. As more instruments join in, parallel fourths, fifths, and octaves create an open harmonic landscape while descending bass lines evoke a feeling of expansion and exploration. These mysterious lines accompany Chihiro's entrance to another world, marking the beginning of her journey from childhood to adulthood.

"Merry-Go-Round of Life" is the main theme of Howl's Moving Castle (2004). Set in a world at war, the a film evokes both a magical kingdom and a steampunk city. The piece follows a simple theme and variations form, with solo piano again introducing the theme as in "One Summer's Day." Hisaishi's melody and harmonies weave effortlessly between major and minor tonalities, evoking the same sense of nuance and ambiguity in emotion found in Miyazaki's stories, which typically exhibit neither true villains nor fully resolved plot lines.
The strings usher us into the first variation with a lively waltz accompaniment. Evocative of circus music played in old-fashioned carousels, the music is Miyazaki’s anti-war statement; it represents a nostalgic celebration of life in reaction to the dangers of modernity. This yearning for youthful simplicity anchors us in time as the music weaves through its variations.

Program Notes by Stephen Koo

Видео Hisaishi: Music from "Spirited Away" and "Howl’s Moving Castle" (久石譲：あの夏へ・人生のメリーゴーランド) канала SCOr: Stanford Collaborative Orchestra