Japan’s Studio Ghibli is one of the world’s most influential animation studios. For over 30 years, it has enchanted audiences with its fantastical characters and heartfelt storylines. Films such as “My Neighbour Totoro”, “Kiki’s Delivery Service”, and “Ponyo”, all directed by acclaimed animators Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, are stories that warm the heart, soothe the soul, and lift the spirit.
What makes these films so endearing is their music, predominantly composed by long-time Miyazaki collaborator Joe Hisaishi. We recently had the honour of reliving our favourite moments from beloved Studio Ghibli films through the Symphonic Ghibli concert, performed by the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) at Dewan Filharmonik. Here are our thoughts on the show:
Conducted by Gerard Salonga, the concert began with symphonic pieces from the 2004 film “Howl’s Moving Castle”. The audience was instantly transported back into the magical, imaginative world of Hayao Miyazaki with iconic tracks like “Merry-Go-Round of Life” and “Cave of Mind”. After a brief introduction by the conductor, the performance continued with selections from “Princess Mononoke”, including the stirring “Legend of Ashitaka” from the 1997 classic.
As is often the case at animation symphony concerts, cosplayers were in attendance. Several audience members wore adorable red ribbons, a nod to the beloved character Kiki from “Kiki’s Delivery Service”, which the orchestra performed next. It felt almost as though we were watching the entire film again during the 25-minute set, which began with “On a Clear Day – A Town in an Ocean View” and ended with “Mother’s Broom”. Throughout the first half of the concert, each piece had the audience mesmerised, regardless of whether they had seen any of the films.
This was proof that music truly has a magical way of capturing our hearts and evoking certain emotions. After intermission, everyone was surprised when the iconic character No Face from the film “Spirited Away” appeared on stage as part of the string ensemble, playing the cello. It was then obvious which film the orchestra was ready to perform next for fans but before we were all spirited away, they opened the second half of the show with “Castle in the Sky” from the film of the same name.
The “Spirited Away” segment was one of our favourites of the night as the ensemble performed several iconic pieces such as “One Summer’s Day”, “The Dragon Boy”, No Face” and “The Return”. The MPO then took us back in time to where it all began – a match made in heaven – with “Requiem” from “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind”, the film where Joe Hisaishi first collaborated with Hayao Miyazaki.
After a spectacular performance of iconic Studio Ghibli symphonies, MPO ended the night with pieces from the conductor’s personal favourite film, “My Neighbour Totoro” – a film in which his sister, singer-actress Lea Salonga, voiced one of the characters in the English dub. Sadly, fans had to return to reality, but the wonderful thing about these Studio Ghibli films is how we can always return to them whenever we wish, reliving some of those iconic moments and experiencing the magic once more.
