Do you know Hiroyuki Sawano? He is a Japanese composer, lyricist, musician, and producer quite famous for works in anime, series, movies, and games. Sawano was born in 1980 and began playing piano in elementary school; by the age of 17, he studied piano, composition, arrangement, and orchestration with Nobuchika Tsuboi. His soundtracks are so enchanting that I decided to write an article just to talk about them.
You must have definitely heard the compositions of Hiroyuki Sawano in some anime or game. He is famous for making soundtracks (OST) related to science fiction, sci-fi like in the anime Aldnoah Zero, Guilty Crown and games like Xenoblade X. He also made soundtracks for popular anime like Shingeki no Kyojin and Nanatsu no Taizai. Sometimes he is at the same level or even above Yuki Kajiura and Taku Iwasaki. Some even call him the Hans Zimmer of the East.
In case you're one of those who never stopped to pay attention to the background music, or even listened to them separately on google, you might have some nostalgia in this article.
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The works of Hiroyuki Sawano
Hiroyuki Sawano uses the code [nZk] in his songs to show his authorship. His music tends to be energetic and formulaic, helping to maintain focus. Sometimes a soundtrack can touch the heart with a feeling of sadness, as in the case of the different versions of Vers in Aldnoah.Zero.
One of the criticisms regarding Hiroyuki Sawano is that he tends to recycle many versions of songs, and sometimes his rhythms are repetitive. We can even notice several different versions of the same song present in the anime, not that it's something unusual. Sawano surprises with bombastic songs that are highly vocalized during action scenes, or instrumental versions of openings and endings.
List of works where Hiroyuki Sawano worked:
- Aldnoah.Zero - OST and Endings;
- Blue Exorcist;
- Guilty Crown;
- Kill la Kill;
- Koutetsujou no Kabaneri - OST and endings;
- Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn;
- Nanatsu no Taizai;
- Owari no Seraph;
- Re:Creators;
- Sengoku Basara;
- Shingeki no Kyojin;
- Xenoblade;
The songs that captivated me were those from Aldnoah zero, especially &Z, AlieZ, Vers, and their oriental versions. And how can I not remember the songs don't worry and uncontrollable from Xenoblade X. Well, these are my preferences, but there are many other songs that go beyond.
Vocalized songs - A perfect match
Many of Hiroyuki Sawano's compositions are vocalized. One of the standout singers of his compositions is Mika Kobayashi. She was born in 1978 in Hiroshima and usually sings mainly songs in English. Several songs from Shingeki no Kyojin and Aldnoah.Zero are sung by Mika Kobayashi and composed by Hiroyuki Sawano. In XenobladeX, she sings several songs including uncontrollable.
Another standout voice belongs to Mizuki, a mysterious girl who actually seems to be the vocalist of the band Itsue. She sings the endings of Aldnoah Zero as AlieZ. There is also a version sung by Mika Kobayashi known as MKAlieZ. We cannot fail to mention Aimer and cyua with their beautiful voices, which are quite present in Sawano's compositions.
We recommend the video below which has a compilation of the best songs sung by Hiroyuki Sawano. Remembering that many epic openings and endings are not present in this video, due to copyright.
There are several notable composers in Japanese works; unfortunately, talking in detail about all of them would be a long task, so I talked about my favorite! Composers are like weapons in an arsenal, and their effectiveness is usually determined by their talents. Do you like Hiroyuki Sawano? What do you think of him? Who is your favorite composer?