Satoru Kosaki: This time, the secret theme of the anime’s music is mainly using wind instruments. OTAQUEST: Regarding the theme music for each character, different musical instruments are used by each species. I got inspiration from this when making Legoshi’s theme music. I think the charm of the lines is the same as the charm of the sounds of trumpet and clarinet if we convert it to music. It’s simple but shows various expressions. Satoru Kosaki: Each of her lines has their own expressions and they are lively. OTAQUEST: What did you feel about the characteristics of Paru Itagaki’s art? I often start making productions from visual images, but especially this time, it was hard to get the image until I got the rendering, so I made it from the image of the original manga. Satoru Kosaki: It came from the overall view of BEASTARS and the visual image of Legoshi. OTAQUEST: For the main theme, what kind of image did you have when creating it? It could turn into a different genre just by different arrangements. The main theme is a triple meter waltz, but if it’s played by live musical instruments, it would sound like a street performance, and if it is played on a piano or string instruments, it would sound like Chopin. Satoru Kosaki: Yes, I realized that Eastern European classical music has similar roots by actually making that kind of music this time. The diversity of Gypsy music is definitely felt there. OTAQUEST: Classical music, jazz, and various genres of music appear in the anime. Pathos is one of the themes of the music this time. That’s why I decided to choose Gypsy music as the main theme. Nostalgia, vitality, and exoticism are all together in the music. It is an ethnic style of music that has influenced classical music by merging with local cultures.
When I thought about what kind of music would fit that kind of story, Gypsy music came to my mind. It was very challenging, and I thought by adding regular music to BEASTARS would make the attractive and cool pictures feel ordinary. Satoru Kosaki: In the first meeting, the director was very particular about how they wanted to add music, and he said: ‘I want to control the part where music inspires instinct’. I think what you just described led to the music, but how did you develop the imagination of the music? OTAQUEST: The music left an impression of an ethnic tone and a feeling of live musical instruments. There are various species in the anime, so it’s about the conflict of instinct and reason based on ‘diversity affirmation’. Satoru Kosaki: In terms of the theme, I feel that there is nothing like the ‘Anthem of a human borrowing an animal figure’. OTAQUEST: For making the music of BEASTARS, how did you interpret this anime? We sat down with him to discuss the inspiration and ideas behind the music for BEASTARS, and how his experience had contributed to creating its absolutely wonderful soundtrack. Kosaki has a long storied career creating music for an array of popular games and anime over the course of his 20-year (and still going strong) career.
#Anime soundtrack composer series#
BEASTARS is one such show where the music complements the storytelling in a seamless way, thanks to the work of series composer Satoru Kosaki. It takes the right composer with the right experience & creative mindset to help build the world being presented with the appropriate musical arrangement. Slump, and many more.Like all forms of video media, the music in anime is a powerful element that contributes to the story being told. He also composed the theme for Doraemon, an anime series that ran for 26 years, and he also scored songs for Kamen Rider, Tiger Mask, Dr. The Dragon Ball Fandom page notes that, altogether, Kikuchi composed 23 packages of music for the original Dragon Ball show and its sequel Dragon Ball Z, which resulted in over 400 different pieces of music. In the years that followed, he earned worldwide recognition for his contributions to the Dragon Ball franchise.
#Anime soundtrack composer professional#
He first rose to prominence in the 1960s, making his professional debut as a composer in the 1961 film The Eighth Enemy. Over the course of his career, Kikuchi worked on numerous anime productions, movies, and television shows. The report also notes that his close family members and relatives organized a private funeral for the late composer. He is said to have been undergoing medical treatment at the facility prior to his passing. Shunsuke Kikuchi, the prolific Japanese composer who worked on Dragon Ball, Doraemon, and Kamen Rider, has passed away at the age of 89.Īccording to an Oricon news report, per Kotaku, Kikuchi died on April 24 at a medical facility in Tokyo after suffering from aspiration pneumonia.