Mushishi
| This is for all you music historians and theorists out there. I find it difficult to put my love for the Mushishi soundtrack into words. It's a hauntingly beautiful collection of melodies that evokes so many different thoughts and emotions. It's made me feel joy and brought tears to my eyes. I would LOVE to be able to emulate it to a certain degree. I'm looking at at tonal systems, historical influences, form and style. What makes this soundtrack so beautiful? So exotic? So mysterious? I'm not particularly interested in the instrumentation at the moment. That's another whole subject that I don't want to tackle. I put the odds of me getting a conclusive response to this post... unlikely... but I thought I'd take a shot at it anyways. Perhaps there's somewhere/someone better to ask? - - - So on to the topic at hand: There's an absolutely wonderful interview with Masuda hidden away in the Mushishi DVD extras (you can find it on YouTube) detailing the unusual processes he went through in the composition of the soundtrack, including some pretty interesting ideas based in the contrast of light and darkness, however there is little to no mention of the technical aspects I'm looking for and I have been unable to find any other quotes from him on the subject. I had originally assumed that the Mushishi score was inspired by the traditional music of the time (a fictional period overlapping the Edo and Meiji periods), but it's my understanding that musical culture preceding and lasting through the dawn of the Meiji period emphasized volume and speed... some things Masuda's soundtrack most certainly does not. :p I've spent quite a bit of time toying with traditional Eastern Asian scales and have stumbled upon some familiar melodies. I've gotten some interesting results by changing a few of the intervals in the Sakura Pentatonic and some Chinese scales. Perfect fifth intervals seem to be prominent enough in the soundtrack to be worth mentioning. Masuda seems to use them to evoke power. Movement seems to be emphasized not through harmony but by melody and rhythm. But again, I'm looking for more than that! Is it reminiscent of court music? Does it seem to be influenced by western systems? Southern or northern Japan? Left or right? Chinese or Korean influences? I'm not seeing any hints of common practice tonality, other than tuning. And that's just a guess lol. I'm looking to buy a book or two on the subject but "traditional Japanese music" strikes me as being a bit broad of a topic to commit to and I'd like to single out some styles or, well, something. Anything works. So uh, thanks in advance? If you made it through all that text, I appreciate it. ;) |
| 090 - XXX - ##3X |
| I'm no music historian or theorist, but even I can appreciate the wonderful thoughts you've put in to analyze the styles of Mushishi's soundtracks. Thanks to your mention of the Masuda interview, my respect for him as a composer reached an even higher level. As for talking about the styles in specific, I don't have a definite response. I rather categorize Mushishi's soundtracks as if it have it's own tier, and I don't think it's exaggeration in the slightest. This series has some of the most magnificent music in all of anime. |
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| Thank you! I'm continuing my search on and off. I'll update the thread with whatever I find. |
| 090 - XXX - ##3X |
| Please do update the thread! I'm completely addicted to the soundtrack. In fact I listen to it every single day, especially while studying. I even try to slow the speed down to 80% to be able to recognize even the most subtle sound. Man how much I love it. My favorite pieces are: 1.Ganpuku Ganka (Eye of fortune, eye of misfortune) (眼福眼禍) (ED of episode 25). LOVE the biwa sound, so haunting and mysterious. 2.Hinata (Sunflower) (ED of Hihamukage) Simple piano piece but lovely and peaceful. 3.Hihamukage (Played during the eclipse). It's fast, catchy and thrilling. 4. Bound for the Bonfire Field 篝野行 Kagari no Gyou (ED of ep 24) Love the sound of the shakuhachi flute (I guess), it sounds like the voice of a manly guy, deep and husky. 5. Mild Late Autumn Weather 小春日和 Koharu Biyori Strangely, I havent heard it in the anime. It comes with the soundtrack to Mushishi Zoku Shou and Hihamukage. It's fucking romatic man. Just play the song when I'm looking at a mildly pretty girl and I'm sure I'll fall in love with her. The list goes on and on but I mustn't bore you :) |
| I'm a sucker for strong female characters. |
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