One Summer's Day

As We Say Goodbye To Summer Break

One Summer's Day by Joe Hisaishi

"Any Ghibli Studio fan knows this song from the iconic movie Spirited Away. This beautiful piece sounds so nostalgic and emotional. There's something comforting, yet thrilling about how Joe plays. I really recommend finding a video where you can see him playing live. It's a delight. =)"

As you said, this work comes from the score of the 2001 film Spirited Away, and this is just one of many highlights from an incredible tracklist. It's one of many highlights from Joe Hisaishi's 100+ film scores and solo albums. He's won the Japanese Academy Award for Best Music seven times (x).

If you've seen the movie, you'll notice that the piece fits perfectly within the whimsical and fantastical world built by Hayao Miyazaki.

That said, the track can stand alone.

Listening to the piece from start to finish can take you on a journey just as rich as one portrayed in any film. You go from broken chords and a quiet melody into lush passages spanning several octaves...before inching back to a softer and more tentative repetition of the original melodic line.

I've seen the film numerous times, and I swear I can hear the entire coming-of-age story within the notes of this piece.

But aside from that, this piece makes me feel things that no writer or director, no matter how skilled, could ever fully capture. Things that can't be put into words or plotlines. Music just does that.

Hisaishi later added lyrics and called the track - with vocals by Ayaka Hirahara - Inochi no Namae (The Name of Life). I'm more into the instrumentals-only version, but whatever floats your boat.

The music is beautiful, and it can get at some very deep, complex and subtle emotions that are different for everyone. When you put words to it, you take away too many of the nuances.

It's like...you know how for the stage version of The Lion King they added lyrics to the movie's background music, creating such songs as Shadowland? When I listen to the instrumental song, it sets a mood but doesn't put a specific scene in my mind; whereas, the lyrics make the track about a very specific situation. As much as I love the new track, I prefer the original.

(When you create instrumental versions of songs that originally had lyrics, on the other hand...I dig that.)

Overview:

Genre:
Instrumental / Soundtrack

Verdict:
background music is so underrated