Sometimes, one can get so used to the status quo, irritating as it may be at times, that the sudden removal of that very status quo could suddenly leave one very disorientated. Even though the return to how things used to be might be positive on the surface, one could still feel like he or she is missing something. When that happens, how do you deal with it? Do you sit around and try to rationalize why you’re feeling that way, or do you recognize it immediatley for what it is and accept it? Fortunate are those who are the latter, as they are the ones in touch with their feelings, but there are some who has to learn how to come to terms with their emotions. And so it will be for Chiaki throughout the whole Paris arc, this being but the first of many future events challenging his stoic outlook on his relationship with Nodame. Enjoy the ride.
Nodame Cantabile ~Paris Chapter~, Episode 4.
Funny how Chiaki actually looks forward to the sight of Nodame’s slovenly behaviour upon his return from the Stresemann World Tour, considering how much grief he always gave her before for it. Although one has to wonder, is Chiaki really just looking forward to the "coziness" that Nodame supposedly offers, or was he just looking forward to committing domestic violence towards her again? XD
Remember the Grave of the Fireflies look?
It can be hard indeed when one learns that the world is so much larger than he or she thought it could be. When you really realize for the first time that you’re indeed lacking, that there are indeed individuals far more capable in your chosen field than you are, how do you deal with it?
Yeah, sight reading isn’t my forte, either. I still have no clue how it looks so easy for some people.
Somehow, I felt that the way Seki Tomokazu said the "that’s enough, Nodame" line here paled badly in comparison to how Tamaki Hiroshi did it in the live-action; while I could swear I almost heard a sorrowful tone in the way Tamaki said it, Seki’s portrayal simply sounded as if he was feeling "meh" while saying it. It’s not just this one isolated case; for a while now, I’ve been getting this feeling that the anime seiyuu cast (Seki and Kawasumi Ayako included) didn’t seem to put as much heart into their roles as the cast of the live-action did into theirs. Is it that they’re not emotionally invested enough into these characters as I thought, or are they blameless in that the anime medium comes with certain barriers to emoting that they can’t overcome? In any case, my personal preference is clear; key words here being "personal" and "preference", of course.
And perhaps that is why although the same scene in the live-action (they changed it to a hug though) looked very heartfelt to me, the kiss scene here merely felt like a non sequitur to me. Bleh, maybe in this case I’m just spoiled by the live-action…
Bzzzt, wrong answer! I guess communication within a relationship is a tricky thing.
To be frank, the Paris supporting characters just doesn’t seem to have the same spark as the Japan supporting characters. While the regulars of the first season like Mine and Kuroki are quite involved in the happenings driven by Chiaki and Nodame, one can’t help but get the feeling that Frank, Tanya and Yunlong are basically doing their own things while Chiaki and Nodame do their own stuff. There’s a fundamental disconnect going on here.
Maurice Ravel’s Ma Mère l’Oye, Mvt IV: Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête
"The title, which means "Conversations of the Beauty and the Beast," is reflective of the nature of Ravel’s work. This is the fourth piece from Ravel’s "Ma Mere l’Oye," or "Mother Goose," a series of five piano duets written for two children, ages six and seven.
Having been written for small children, the piano version is very simple. I would call it a beginner’s piece; there is almost nothing technically challenging about the piece itself."
- Akira,
The Nihon Review
"Recall, back from my commentary on Episode 1, that Ravel is what we call an "Impressionist," that his works don’t often follow a true structure or even concrete tones, but rather, sound a bit "muddled" and "fluid." This is true for Beauty and the Beast, as well. " - Akira
"His signature harmonies are heard very clearly, and one can hear the "conversation" between the Beauty and the Beast very clearly. The "Beauty" is the higher, more sweet-sounding, more melodic phrases, and the "Beast" is the low, dissonant parts in the bass. Dissonant chords are played during the Beast’s "speech" in order to give the impression of a large, bumbling beast, somewhat similar to a bear or a lion. The Beauty’s voice also dissonates, implying, perhaps, her fear of the Beast, or sorrow over his eventual death (As witnessed at the end of the story), as the conversation continues on and finally fades away." - Akira
Video: Ravel’s Ma Mère l’Oye, Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête
Seems like Chiaki still retains his all-sexual appeal.
Gyabo~!
Of course, sometimes it’s all too easy to take things too seriously and fall into a depression because of it. It’s probably a fairly common pitfall for most of us, but still, don’t worry, be happy.
"Will you finish what you begin?"
"I won’t fail you. I’m not afraid."
"Oh! You will be. You will be."
There sure was a
Star Wars theme going on last week. BTW, I’ve always wondered where the Moja Moja Suite came from. Its first appearance was probably in the live-action and later adopted by the first season of the anime, but who composed it?
Franz Schubert’s Piano Sonata no. 16 in A minor, D. 845 (Op. 42)
"There’s really not much to say about this piece. Upon first listen, it sounded like a generic Romantic-era piece, with not much to make it stand out. One will notice that this piece, while a sonata, is a lot less structured than the sonatas of Mozart and Haydn. It still follows Sonata Allegro form, in a bit more fluid fashion; the main theme (the first few lines of the piece) is heard, numerous times, throughout this piece. There is a modulation to A Major (you can hear it pretty clearly) a bit more than halfway through the piece, but not much else happens in terms of the music." - Akira
"The piece is fairly difficult from a technical standpoint; running sixteenth note patterns as well as large jumps in the left hand and octaves and four-note chords in both hands make the piece a bit challenging to play. Other than that, there’s nothing too fancy from a musical standpoint. The form is a bit blended, not as rigid, as per Romantic tradition; the period was marked by a rejection of strict forumlae for composing music and more about freedom of expression." - Akira
"Schubert doesn’t truly do away with form, though, choosing to retain a sense of structure in the piece, still following the Sonata Allegro form; he allows himself a bit more freedom of expression than would be possible under a strict adherence to formula, however. Other than that, though, the piece is simply another generic Romantic-era sonata; nothing special, nothing too hard, but still pleasant." - Akira
Video: Schubert’s Piano Sonata no. 16 in A minor, D. 485 (Op. 42)
Maurice Ravel’s Ma Mère l’Oye, Mvt IV: Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête (Orchestral Version)
"Later on, Ravel orchestrated the piece. It sounds just about the same, no major changes in the score itself. The orchestra, however, manages to bring out the conversation between the Beauty and the Beast in a different (NOT superior, at least in my opinion; both are equally as good) manner. The woodwinds represent the voices of the two characters, with the strings mainly playing background chords." - Akira
"The Beauty is represented by the clarinet, the Beast by the bassoon. The different timbres of the instruments are able to color both characters in more completely than the piano could, although the little tinge of "loneliness" that the solo piano version had is now gone, replaced with the dreamy, fairytale-like sounds of the violins and harp. " - Akira
Video: Ma Mère l’Oye, Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête
Jean Sibelius’s Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43. Mvt 3: Finale
"Sibelius is a Finnish composer, one of the first Finns to really reach fame as a composer, in fact. His Second symphony, widely popular, is seen as a symbol of Finnish culture and Finnish freedom, especially the last movement. While a semi-credible conjecture, whether or not Sibelius had his home country in mind when composing this piece is not known." - Akira
"The first movement is entitled Allegretto, which means a bit slower than Allegro, which, translated to normal English, means a somewhat brisk, but not breakneck, pace. Like many symphonies, it starts off slow, sparsely instrumented, and begins to build up in thickness of timbre. While not especially fast, the deft use of percussion and brass make this first movement very powerful. While I’m no expert in Finnish music, something about this piece strikes me as different from the symphonies of Haydn and Mozart, and even different from the works of his contemporaries. Sibelius’ sound is unique, different; this sort of difference can be percieved as nationalism (as was interpreted by others.)" - Akira
"The thumping of the timpanis and the loud blasts of horn make this piece especially powerful, filled with vigour. Sibelius proves that music does not have to be fast to convey power; his is a regal, stately kind of power, different from the swift, loud melodies which would conventionally signal power akin to that of a hurricane. Sibelius’ music conveys a spirit, the wishes of a people, struggling for independence; his power is the power of nationalism, of patriotism, of love." - Akira
Video: Sibelius’s Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43. Mvt 3: Finale, Part I and Part II
I actually expected the episode to end here, as I thought it makes for a perfectly good dramatic climax for the episode to do so. However, not only did J.C. Staff waste the dramatic climax here to continue, the way they ripped out parts of the next chapter to use as the lead-up to the end of the episode means they have to go for either a different introduction, or even an omission of a future side character altogether. While that particular side character is not all that important in himself, he does serve as a critical key in the future development of Chiaki’s character, so I’m going to see how J.C. Staff is going to try and make this work.
Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Sonata in C minor, Op. 13 "Pathétique", Mvt 2
"Despite its length, this piece is only three pages long; three pages of pure musical genius. This second movement may be one of the most famous piano pieces Beethoven ever wrote, along with Fur Elise and the 1st movement of Moonlight.
It’s difficult; large chords in the left hand require deft coordination and careful application of power. In order to fully express the melancholy and sweetness will be quickly lost if one bangs too hard on the piano, especially during the middle section, in which triplet chords are repeated quickly. One must take special care to not let these chords overpower the melody, a difficult task indeed.
The opening eight bars, now world-famous, are in a cantabile style. As all of you who watch this show should know, "cantabile" means "in a singing style," and that is exactly what the first eight bars of this piece sound like. Slow, melodious, sing-song, mournful, sweet— These are all words that could accurately describe the first eight measure of the piece.
Needless to say, this is a piece of music that relies almost completely on expression rather than technical expertise to impress. While certainly not a piece that beginners should attempt, it is certainly not a major technical challenge for anyone with intermediate piano experience. The piece gets slightly harder later on, coming to a passionate, crashing finale, but the inherent beauty of the piece is evident throughout. The sad tone, the beautiful melody, all convey the pathos and the tragic nature of this piece."
- Akira
Video: Beethoven’s Piano Sonata in C minor, Op. 13 "Pathétique", Mvt 2
As it is, I wonder how they’re going to try and fit the introduction of that side character into the next episode, that is if they’re going to even try at all. Considering that J.C. Staff has shown that it’s not above source material butchery, I can’t get my hopes up, but the best case scenario is if they can introduce the character while cutting out a large part of his side story, for I do have to admit that it makes the manga’s storyline meander a bit. After all, the meandering pace was one of the common complaints about the first season, so one can only guess that Chiaki Kon is going to try and fix that.
I wonder if there’s any follower of this series out there who’s getting sick of Chiaki committing domestic violence on Nodame? If there are any, it might be interesting to note that this is not how it actually occurred in the manga; Nodame actually asked the question prior to the scene where Chiaki hugged her before going to take his bow at his debut, and instead of the usual violence, the latter showed that he did actually have a sense of humour by
drawing whorlies on her face. Why they felt the need to change it this way, I have no clue.
In any case, they remain very much the One True Pairing, as they continue their journey in Paris, on towards the Weirdo Forest. What lies at the end of this road they are taking together? Stay tuned for the next movement in the symphony known as the Paris Chapter.
Ascaloth, out.
(4 votes, average: 4 out of 5)
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