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Old Aug 29, 2018, 02:34 PM
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Blackiris Blackiris is offline
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Default Your Favorite Anime Composers

I’d been very interested to hear what your favorite anime composers are and for what reasons. Bonus points if you also name a couple of soundtracks or tracks you specifically like.

Here’s my list:
Joe Hisaishi
No need to say much, I guess. I just love his orchestral style, his beautiful melodies, both the carefree and dramatic ones.
Favorite work: rather than a single outstanding soundtrack, more like select tracks from most of the Ghibli soundtracks, but also Kikujirō.

Takagi Masakatsu
Out of all composers I know, his style has touched me the most personally. His music has a very gentle, human style. Some of his pieces defy a "clear" structure and he often uses "normal" singers instead of professional ones, but that makes his work so special. Truely a one-of-a-kind composer. I’ve listened to many of his non-soundtrack works and there’s so much to discover.
Favorite works: Wolf Children soundtrack, Yama Emi live concert (seriously, watch this concert if you’ve got two hours to spare)

Michiru Ōshima
If I think of romantic, orchestral beauty, Ōshima is the first one that comes to my mind. Especially her dramatic and melancholic pieces are just so good. She’s done a couple of soundtracks I don’t care about much (Aura, Patema), but the majority of her works I know is truly outstanding.
Favorite works: Zetsuen no Tempest, Akagami no Shirayukihime, Fuse

Yōko Kanno
Everyone knows her, no need to say much. I like how she explores so many different genres and everytime her music has a unique touch. Too bad she doesn’t do much anime work anymore, but here’s hoping for Carol & Tuesday.
Favorite works: Wolf’s Rain, Zankyō no Terror

Makoto Yoshimori
Another composer with a truly unique style. He mostly did the soundtrack for Takahiro Ōmori’s works, especially Natsume Yūjinchō sticks out. There are some experimental pieces on his sountracks where he uses unusual sounds that don’t really work offscreen. What I love about him are his gentle, relaxing, and incredibly warm works. Often rather minimalistic and a little bit bittersweet.
Favorite works: Natsume Yūjinchō, Koi Kaze

Satoshi Takebe
He’s only done two anime soundtracks, both for Gorō Miyazaki. I’ve absolutely fallen in love with his Poppy Hill soundtrack. His slightly jazzy style is unlike anything you usually see in anime and for some reason very nostalgic to me.

Takeshi Hama
I know exactly one of his (few) soundtracks, but his work for Maōyū Maō Yūsha is outstanding in so many ways. The greatness of the music didn’t really occur to me while watching this anime, but when I listened to both of the soundtrack releases, I was dumbstruck. The worst part: Almost nobody seems to know or care about this release. Not all of the tracks are great, but some really do stick out. There’s a piece with a children’s choir that’s incredibly powerful and beautiful. There’s a peaceful medieval flute-and-guitar track that’s immediately catchy. There are several rather unique vocal tracks, one of them sung by himself (under a pseudonym). It’s rad, really.

Yukari Hashimoto
The first time I encountered her was when I was watching Penguindrum. And truly, many of her motifs for this soundtrack very beautiful (I recommend the seventh bonus album). Especially the last episode of the anime has the *perfect* musical accompaniment. But I’m also fond of her other works.
Favorite works: Mawaru Penguindrum, Udon no Kuni no Kin’iro Kemari, Sangatsu no Lion

Kenji Kawai
Another big name. His orchestral renditions and melancholic string/choir/flute music are very memorable and definitely his trademark. He’s also done some experimental and ambient music, but nothing I’d really care about.
Favorite works: Seirei no Moribito, Subete ga F ni Naru

Tenmon
The master of bittersweet music for Shinkai movies, though the two have parted ways.
Mostly rather simple, but very memorable and earnest style. I’ll always love his work.
Favorite works: 5 Centimeter per Second

Honorable Mentions:
Toshiyuki Watanabe for his heartwarming Uchū Kyōdai soundtracks.
Jun Maeda for his simple, but very touching contributions to the KEY library.
Takeshi Senō for his laid-back and relaxing work on Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha. as well as his participation in Aria.
Shigeharu Sasago for his equally relaxing and laidback compositions for Aria and Ristorante Paradiso (as ko-ko-ya).
Toshio Masuda for his meditative, slightly melancholic work on Mushishi and Kamisama Hajimemashita.
Takatsugu Muramatsu for his beautiful work for Marnie and Mary.
Hayato Matsuo for his classical Sugiyama-inspired orchestral style for JoJo Part 1 and The World God Only Knows.
Akio Matsuda for his elegant, intricate and very classy Glasslip soundtrack as well as his contributions to Hibike! Euphonium.
Masanori Takumi for his work on Koi Kaze.
Yuki Kajiura for her dramatic/melancholic/choral music, especially for Madoka Magica.
Yasuharu Takanashi for his powerful, sad string music for Naruto Shippūden and the new Kitarō as well as his Shiki soundtrack.
Gō Shiina for his energetic and emotional soundtrack for Kyōsōgiga and YoyoNene.
Naoki Satō for his wonderful orchestral contributions to X (TV) and Eureka Seven.
Kō Ōtani for his unique and lovely work on Haibane Renmei.
Susumu Hirasawa for his unique "weird" but very memorable contributions to Satoshi Kon’s works (especially Millenium Actress) and Berserk.
Kotringo for her incredibly sweet voice and her soundtrack for Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni.
Masami Itō for her equally sweet voice in her contributions for various anime.

Last edited by Blackiris; Aug 30, 2018 at 02:40 AM.
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Old Aug 29, 2018, 09:33 PM
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Yoko Kanno
What can I say? She knows how to write a song. How many composers out there jump between Bossa Nova, Flamenco, multiple varieties of Jazz, Trip-Hop, Reggae, Shoegaze, Industrial Rock, Classical etc. between their soundtracks? I love her variety.
Favourite Works: Terror In Resonance, Ghost In The Shell S.A.C.

Hiroyuki Sawano
I know he gets hated on a lot on here and I certainly won't deny him his faults, but goshdarnit, I like his stuff. No one else does quite what he does. Plus the production on his albums is always impeccably perfect. There's always so much happening in his songs, but there's never a sound out of place in the mix.
Favourite Works: Kill La Kill, Kabaneri Of The Iron Fortress, Aldnoah Zero

Taku Iwasaki
I love his willingness to experiment. I'm always impressed that every soundtrack he's done has its own distinct vibe, while still always sounding like Taku Iwasaki.
Favourite Works: Gurren Lagann, Jormungand, Akame Ga Kill!

Yuki Kajiura
She's simply a master of creating ambience.
Favourite Works: Basically anything she's done for Ufotable or Shaft/Akiyuki Shinbo.

Makoto Yoshimori
I'm not sure what it is, but I can't imagine this guy playing his songs without a smile on his face. Whether it's a gentle smile or something more manic, I can't imagine this guy not enjoying his job. Some of his tracks can honestly be downright annoying, but it's worth it for the rest of it. He's also made some legitimately unnerving tracks and I really want him to do a horror/psychological thriller show. And he's definitely unique, that's for sure.
Favourite works: Bacanno!, Durarara!!, Kuragehime

Yasushi Ishii
He's only done three anime, and I honestly don't know how well the soundtracks actually go with the shows, but man are those three soundtracks fun albums. Lots of 70s influenced rock, some Trip-Hop, Electronics, all laden with top notch production and ton of fun studio effects. He also has a ton (over 200) of songs available for free download from his blog. I recommend checking it out. http://blog.livedoor.jp/daibakarenji/
Favourite Works: Hellsing, Darker Than Black, Drifters, which is all of them...
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Old Sep 12, 2018, 05:31 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackiris View Post
Takeshi Hama
I know exactly one of his (few) soundtracks, but his work for Maōyū Maō Yūsha is outstanding in so many ways. The greatness of the music didn’t really occur to me while watching this anime, but when I listened to both of the soundtrack releases, I was dumbstruck. The worst part: Almost nobody seems to know or care about this release. Not all of the tracks are great, but some really do stick out. There’s a piece with a children’s choir that’s incredibly powerful and beautiful. There’s a peaceful medieval flute-and-guitar track that’s immediately catchy. There are several rather unique vocal tracks, one of them sung by himself (under a pseudonym). It’s rad, really.
Wow, just checked that soundtrack out. It is VERY cool. Thanks for the recommendation.
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