In the Japanese anime industry, Miyazaki Hayao and Hisaishi Jo are known for the excellent films that result from their collaborations, including such memorable works as KAZE NO TANI NO NAUSICAÄ (Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, 1984), TENKUU NO SHIRO LAPUTA (Castle of the Sky Laputa, 1986), TONARI NO TOTORO (My Neighbor Totoro, 1988) and PORCO ROSSO (1992); Miyazaki directs the visual and Hisaishi composes the aural. Their next effort, MONONOKE HIME (Princess Mononoke) due out in July 1997, is eagerly anticipated by fans worldwide.
Although he may be known to U.S. fans for his composition for anime films, Hisaishi also has a modestly successful music career in Japan. From October through December of 1996, Hisaishi went on a three-part concert tour of Japan. The first leg of the tour, entitled Orchestra Nights, touted Hisaishi playing selections from his latest album, Piano Stories II - The Wind of Life, with the New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra. Only two dates were available for this concert, but it was also broadcast on television. Ensemble Nights, the second part of the tour, featured Hisaishi and a string quartet playing selections from Piano Stories II and many previous works. Seven dates played throughout November.
The final leg of his concert was more intimate and catered to his fans. Piano Solo Night was showcased at much smaller venues than both Orchestra and Ensemble Nights. His performances were, save for one piece, just Hisaishi playing the piano, his instrument of choice although he is also skilled as a violinist. On December 15th, the second date of a Tokyo show, Hisaishi stepped onto the stage of the Globe Theatre at the Panasonic Club.
The Globe Theatre is modeled very much like its namesake--a center stage with pit floor seats and arranging balconies up above and around the stage. It was hard for anyone to have a bad seat. At about 6:30pm, Hisaishi walked out onto the stage, sat down at the piano and proceeded directly into the program.
The first six pieces were from Piano Stories II - fanciful and jubilant in tone as their titles suggested. "Friends" and "Kids Return" were boisterous and had Hisaishi's fingers dancing over the entire range of the keyboard. Wearing a crimson bandanna on his head, Hisaishi commanded images of a contemporary Mozart or Bach.

Hisaishi Jo strikes a pose with Miyazaki Hayao.

Right before intermission, Hisaishi started into "Fantasia for Nausicaa." The theme for KAZE NO TANI NO NAUSICAÄ, this piece has a place in the heart of every anime fan. Slow and moving, "Fantasia for Nausicaa" brings out emotions in the listener with long, sweeping movements. In its original orchestra recording, its haunting tones are perfectly suited for strings, winds and percussion. But "Fantasia for Nausicaa" translates well to a piano solo, especially at the hands of the man who composed it. The performance of this piece ran well over ten minutes, but the audience was enraptured and no one even moved.
Following a brief intermission, Hisaishi stepped back out onto the stage greeted by thunderous applause. He launched into "Drifting in the City ~ Solitude in her," a delightful contemporary piece. Afterwards, he was joined by a guest oboe player for "Two of Us" and "DA MA SHI," playing off of each other, shadowing and trading notes. For "Les Aventuriers" and "Asian Dream Song," the last piece of the program, Hisaishi launched into another duet of sorts - with a computer-controlled piano. Somewhat renown for his willingness to use and harness computers for music, Hisaishi almost seemed to play accompaniment to the controlled piano. Mainly used for fast repetitive background rhythm, the artificial player did shine at moments, letting Hisaishi rest his hands when he took a backseat to the computer. "Asian Dream Song" was more like anode to a spirit of freedom and youth rather than an anthem.
No concert is complete without an encore and after a loud round of applause and an organized chant of "encore," Hisaishi stepped back out onto stage, accepted many bouquets of flowers and sat back down. His encore piece was "Ohmu Theme" from NAUSICAÄ. The delightful chant of a child-like race of giant insects, "Ohmu Theme" was a perfect ending to the evening.