Music of Spirited Away

The music for Studio Ghibli's 2001 Japanese animated fantasy film Spirited Away directed by Hayao Miyazaki, features a score composed by Joe Hisaishi and performed by the New Japan Philharmonic symphony orchestra.[1][2] Hisashi received critical acclaim and numerous accolades for his work in the film. An original soundtrack that contains 20 tracks from the film score and one song was released in July 2001, whereas an image album that had five songs and five instrumentals, released three months before, in April 2001. Both of them were re-issued on a double disc vinyl LP in 2020.[3][4][5]

Background

Originally, the opening track "One Summer's Day" was an instrumental theme. Later, Hisaishi added lyrics to those tunes, and named the new version of the song "The Name of Life" (いのちの名前, "Inochi no Namae") which was performed by Ayaka Hirahara. It was not featured in the album.[6]

The closing song, "Always With Me" (いつも何度でも, "Itsumo Nando Demo", lit. 'Always, No Matter How Many Times') was composed and performed by Youmi Kimura, with words by Wakako Kaku.[7] The song was intended to be used for Rin the Chimney Painter (煙突描きのリン, Entotsu-kaki no Rin), an unproduced Miyazaki film.[7]

Original soundtrack

Spirited Away Original Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by
Joe Hisaishi
Released11 July 2001
Studio
Genre
Length59:54
LanguageJapanese
Label
ProducerJoe Hisaishi
Joe Hisaishi chronology
Brother
(2001) 		Spirited Away
(2001) 		Quartet
(2001)

Spirited Away Original Soundtrack (千と千尋の神隠し サウンドトラック, "Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi Saundotorakku", lit. 'Spirited Away Soundtrack') is the soundtrack to the film released on 11 July 2001 by Studio Ghibli Records and published by Tokuma Japan Communications. It featured 20 of Hisaishi's score from the film, and the end credits song "Always With Me". Ahead of the US release, Milan Records distributed the album on 10 September 2002.[1]

All music is composed by Joe Hisaishi, except where listed.

Track listing[a]
No.TitleLyricsComposerLength
1."One Summer's Day" (あの夏へ, Ano natsu e)  3:09
2."A Road to Somewhere" (とおり道, Tōri michi)  2:07
3."The Empty Restaurant" (誰もいない料理店, Daremoinai ryōri-ten)  3:15
4."Nighttime Coming" (夜来る,Yoru kuru)  2:00
5."The Dragon Boy" (竜の少年, Ryū no shōnen)  2:12
6."Sootballs" (ボイラー虫, Boirā mushi)  2:33
7."Procession of Gods" (神さま達, Kamisama-tachi)  3:00
8."Yubaba" (湯婆婆)  3:30
9."Bathhouse Morning" (湯屋の朝, Yuya no asa)  2:02
10."Day of the River" (あの日の川, Ano hinokawa)  3:13
11."It's Hard Work" (仕事はつらいぜ, Shigoto wa tsurai ze)  2:26
12."The Stink God" (おクサレ神, O kusare-shin)  4:01
13."Sen's Courage" (千の勇気, Sen no yūki)  2:45
14."The Bottomless Pit" (底なし穴, Sokonashi ana)  1:18
15."Kaonashi (No Face)" (カオナシ)  3:47
16."The Sixth Station" (６番目の駅, 6-Banme no eki)  3:38
17."Yubaba's Panic" (湯婆婆狂乱, Yubaba kyōran)  1:38
18."The House at Swamp Bottom" (沼の底の家, Numa no soko no ie)  1:29
19."Reprise" (ふたたび, Futatabi)  4:53
20."The Return" (帰る日, Kaeru hi)  3:20
21."Always With Me" (いつも何度でも, Itsumo nando demo)Wakako KakuYoumi Kimura3:35
Total length:59:51

Image album

Spirited Away Image Album
Soundtrack album by
Joe Hisaishi
Released4 April 2001
GenreImage album
Length37:20
LanguageJapanese
LabelStudio Ghibli
ProducerJoe Hisaishi

Besides the original soundtrack, an image album titled Spirited Away Image Album (千と千尋の神隠し　イメージアルバム, Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi Imēji Arubamu) accompanied the film's music. The 10-track album was released on 4 April 2001, three months before the film, by Studio Ghibli Records.[8]

Track listing[a]
No.TitleLyricsArtist(s)Length
1."To The River Of That Day" (あの日の川へ, Ano hinokawa e) Yamagata Yūka3:54
2."The Night Is Coming" (夜が来る, Yoru ga kuru)  4:25
3."The Gods" (神々さま, Kamigami sama)Joe HisaishiSizzle Ohtaka3:55
4."The Bathhouse" (油屋, Aburaya)Hayao MiyazakiTsunehiko Kamijō3:56
5."People In The Wonderland" (不思議の国の住人, Fushigi no kuni no jūnin)  3:20
6."Lonely, Lonely" (さみしい さみしい, Samishī samishī)MiyazakiHiroshi Kamayatsu3:41
7."Solitude" (ソリチュード, Sorichūdo)  3:49
8."The Sea" (海, Umi)  3:22
9."White Dragon" (白い竜, Shiroi ryū)MiyazakiRikki3:33
10."Chihiro's Waltz" (千尋のワルツ, Chihiro no warutsu)  3:20
Total length:37:20

Reception

A review from Sputnikmusic rated 4.5 (out of 5) to the album opining that it "nearly as perfect as the film it accompanies".[9] Clara V. Nguyen, staff writer at The Harvard Crimson, reviewing the soundtrack said that: "Joe Hisaishi's soundtrack has stood the test of time, and features memorable leitmotifs that pair with the film's themes of courage and friendship. Immediately recognizable to audiences all over the world, Hisaishi's musical signatures bring a sense of cohesion and familiarity to director Hayao Miyazaki's otherworldly vision by creating their own kind of magic."[10] James Southall of Movie Wave wrote "Hisaishi's music has an eternal, child-like quality without actually being childish. It's like a wistful, sentimental, romantic portrait of childhood innocence - not of an adult's view of children, which is how most composers would have done it, but of a child's view of adults. Parts of it really do sound like they belong in a 1940s Max Steiner score. There are so many positives about the music and so much for Hisaishi to be applauded over that it seems a shame to point out the negatives, but there are some. For one thing, despite everything that is good about the composer's approach to the material, parts of it are just a little generic and the themes don't stick long in the memory. Also, some of the sequences which are dominated by (live) percussion aren't especially interesting and could maybe have been left off."[11]

Filmtracks.com wrote "Hisaishi's output for the animated genre has created a unique voice in the realm of children's music that is difficult to compare to any other film music composer. His airy and whimsical tone and almost Golden Age-style of melodic grace make his music instantly recognizable, and Spirited Away is no exception. One of the primary reasons Spirited Away remains a popular score among Hisaishi collectors is precisely because of its embodiment of the composer's trademark animation sound."[12] Calling the score as a "lush, sweeping aural adventure", he praised the theme "One Summer's Day" as "beautiful, the winding melody and its yearning quality a hallmark of Hisaishi's music, and of Studio Ghibli's films."[13]

Accolades

Award Category Recipient Result
Annie Awards[14][15] Annie Award for Music in a Feature Production Joe Hisaishi Won
Chicago Film Critics Association[16][17] Best Original Score Joe Hisaishi Nominated
Japan Academy Film Prize[18] Best Song Youmi Kimura – "Always With Me" (いつも何度でも, Itsumo nando demo) Won
Japan Gold Disc Award[19] Animation Album of the Year Joe Hisaishi Won
Japan Record Awards[20] Best Song Youmi Kimura – "Always With Me" (いつも何度でも, Itsumo nando demo) Gold
Mainichi Film Awards[21] Best Music Joe Hisaishi and Youmi Kimura Won
Tokyo Anime Award Best Music Joe Hisaishi Won
Tokyo International Anime Fair[22] Best Music (Theatrical Film) Joe Hisaishi Won
29th Saturn Awards[23][24] Saturn Award for Best Music Joe Hisaishi Nominated

Personnel

  • Kazumi Inaki – A&R
  • Tomoko Okada – A&R
  • Joe Hisaishi – composer, arranger, producer, conductor, orchestrator, piano
  • Jodi Tack – design, layout
  • Laetitia Bellon – design, layout
  • Shohei Kaneko – vocal director
  • Hiroyuki Akita – assistant engineer
  • Shigeki Fujino – mastering engineer
  • Shinichi Tanaka – recording engineer (orchestra)
  • Masayoshi Okawa – recording engineer (score)
  • Christopher Kimball – executive producer
  • Emmanuel Chamboredon – executive producer
  • Keith Walner – executive producer
  • Wonder City Tokyo – artist management
  • Jun Nagao – orchestrator
  • Kazunori Miyake – orchestrator
  • New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra – performer
  • Masaki Sekijima – production manager
  • Soichiro Ito – production manager
  • Hiroshi Kuwabara – orchestra recording staff
  • Masaya Yasue – orchestra recording staff
  • Masamichi Ohashi – orchestra recording staff
  • Shinya Tanaka – orchestra recording staff
  • Hirokazu Fujita – orchestra recording staff
  • Suminobu Hamada – orchestra recording staff

Source:[1]

Notes

  1. ^ a b The Japanese titles are noted in each track of the album

References

  1. ^ a b c Miyazaki's Spirited Away (CD). Milan Records. 10 September 2002. Archived from the original on 19 February 2015.
  2. ^ Vincentelli, Elisabeth (12 August 2022). "The Composer Who Turns Hayao Miyazaki's Humane Touch Into Music". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 15 August 2022. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  3. ^ "Joe Hisaishi – Spirited Away Soundtracks – (Vinyl LP)". Rough Trade. Archived from the original on 4 May 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  4. ^ "Joe Hisaishi: Spirited Away – Soundtrack Vinyl 2LP". TurntableLab.com. Archived from the original on 8 October 2020. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  5. ^ "Joe Hisaishi – Spirited Away: Image Album". Light In The Attic Records. Archived from the original on 30 September 2020. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  6. ^ "晩夏(ひとりの季節)/いのちの名前 (The name of life/late summer)". Ayaka Hirahara. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  7. ^ a b "Yumi Kimura". Nausicaa.net. Archived from the original on 20 April 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  8. ^ "久石譲 千と千尋の神隠し イメージアルバム (Joe Hisaishi Spirited Away Image Album)". Tokuma Japan Communications. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  9. ^ "Joe Hisaishi - Spirited Away (album review)". Sputnikmusic. Archived from the original on 25 August 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  10. ^ V. Nguyen, Clara (31 July 2021). "The 'Spirited Away' Soundtrack at 20: Rediscovering the Name of Life". The Harvard Crimson. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  11. ^ "Hisaishi: Spirited Away". Movie Wave. Archived from the original on 4 February 2008. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  12. ^ "Spirited Away (Joe Hisaishi)". Filmtracks.com. Archived from the original on 3 January 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  13. ^ Han, Karen (27 May 2020). "The perfection of Joe Hisaishi's Spirited Away theme 'One Summer's Day'". Polygon. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  14. ^ Martin, Denise (5 January 2003). "'Lilo' leads Annie noms with 10". Variety. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  15. ^ "Annie Awards :: 30th Annie Awards". annieawards.org. Archived from the original on 9 February 2017. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  16. ^ "Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 2002 (Nominees)". Chicago Film Critics Association. Archived from the original on 15 May 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  17. ^ "This Year's Nominees". Chicago Film Critics Association. Archived from the original on 8 October 2003. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  18. ^ 日本アカデミー賞 2001年(第25回). allcinema (in Japanese). Stingray. Archived from the original on 9 February 2005. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  19. ^ "The 17th Japan Gold Disc Award 2002". Recording Industry Association of Japan. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  20. ^ "第43回日本レコード大賞 (43rd Japan Record Award)". Japan Composer's Association. Archived from the original on 9 October 2003. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  21. ^ "第56回 日本映画大賞 (56th Japan Movie Awards)". Mainichi Shimbun. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  22. ^ "Results From Tokyo Anime Fair Awards". Anime Nation. 19 February 2002. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  23. ^ Phillips, Jevon (6 March 2003). "'Towers,' 'Report' top Saturn nominees". Variety. Archived from the original on 6 January 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2003.
  24. ^ "Minority Report & Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Win Big at the 29th Annual Saturn Awards" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2020.