Her bandmate from that time, trumpeter Reina, attends the same school and harbors some resentment toward Kumiko, causing an immediate rift in Kumiko's new situation. The protagonist is Kumiko, a first-year euphonium player who joins her new school's band after some convincing from her new friends coming off of a bitter competition loss in her middle school band. That’s what Sound! Euphonium is all about: the trials and tribulations of navigating high school politics in a concert band. While we didn’t all have aspirations of making it big in the rock world, becoming international conductors, or competing on the world stage, plenty of people can relate to having to choose an extracurricular and becoming a band kid. It's a series that appreciates the struggle of dealing with personal tragedy in a world that constantly demands your ongoing participation in spite of your circumstances, and when its various emotional arcs hit their stride, the feeling of triumph Your Lie in April communicates is equal parts exciting and cathartic. There are tragic twists and turns abound, making the show an emotional ride, but it never loses its intense empathy for the characters it is constantly putting through the wringer. With the help of Kaori and their fellow competitors in the scene, Kosei unpacks his complicated feelings toward his late abusive mother while dealing with the drama and heartbreak of high-level solo competition. That is until he meets the talented violinist Kaori, a cheery girl whose loose approach to music inspires Kosei to begin playing again. At the onset of the story, Kosei, a successful performance competitor, finds himself unable to touch the piano again after the death of his mother leaves him without a sense of direction or purpose. It’s a grounded romantic drama for those of us who can relate more to working adults than teenagers in high school a relative rarity in anime, and a welcome one.Īnyone with a competitive streak can probably find something in themselves in the story of young piano player Kosei in the dramatic tearjerker Your Lie in April. At its core, though, Nodame Cantabile is always about the same thing – the constant struggle between one's passions and their responsibilities, a conflict that defines the central relationship and the various hardships they face along the way. Along the way they meet plenty of other people in various stages of their lives and careers, learning from them and becoming fuller people as a result, and the series even eventually extends past their time in school. Nodame Cantabile is the story of their romance, made more interesting by the way the series incorporates their full, busy lives into the evolution and drama of the affair. While Nodame falls head over heels for Chiaki almost immediately, the stark difference in lifestyle between Chiaki’s obsession with order and Nodame’s messy improvising keeps Chiaki from fully embracing their relationship at first. Talented but socially awkward Chiaki is an aspiring conductor and exceptional student at a top college when he meets the eccentric piano genius Nodame. By the end of the show, Koyuki and his bandmates aren’t famous, but they aren’t in the same place they were at the beginning either, professionally or emotionally, and that kind of growth is what makes Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad an engrossing story.įor the classical fans out there, as well as anyone who has ever worked in music professionally, Nodame Cantabile provides a rare adult perspective on the world of musicians. The relationships between the characters feel raw in a way that speaks to the experience of being in a scrappy rock band the drama that brews as they reach new milestones is melodramatic in ways that come across as genuine for a group of teenagers trying to find their place in life, and it doesn’t shy away from the realities of trying to make it in a cutthroat industry. There's no easy road to success, though, and the rocky road to personal satisfaction for the titular band proves to be almost as intense as the grungy music they play. Beck follows the newly-turned 14-year-old Koyuki, who is seeking direction in life and believes he has finally found it when he meets the 16-year-old guitar prodigy Ryusuke and the other members of his indie band Beck.ĭiscovering a new passion for rock music and a crush on Ryusuke’s little sister Maho, Koyuki dedicated himself to learning the guitar, joining Beck as they grind underground live shows and work their way to getting the attention of fans and record deals. If you were ever in a garage band as a teenager, Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad will give you flashbacks.
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