Yoko Kanno facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Yoko Kanno
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| 菅野 よう子 | |
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Kanno at Anime Expo 2010
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菅野 洋子
18 March 1963 Sendai, Japan
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| Other names | Gabriela Robin |
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| Years active | 1985–present |
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| Labels | Captain Duckling Records |
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Yoko Kanno (born March 18, 1963) is a famous Japanese composer and music producer. She creates music for many popular things. These include anime shows, video games, TV dramas, and movies.
Kanno has written music for well-known series like Cowboy Bebop, Terror in Resonance, and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. She is also a keyboard player and the leader of the band Seatbelts. This band performs many of her amazing songs.
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Yoko Kanno's Early Life
Yoko Kanno was born in Sendai, Japan, on March 18, 1963. Her first experiences with music were at church with her parents. She learned to play the piano at home and the organ at her kindergarten.
In elementary school, she started joining music composition contests. However, in high school, she became more interested in literature than music.
Discovering New Music Styles
Kanno went to Waseda University to study literature. But she spent her free time writing music for student groups. Her parents had only let her listen to classical music. At university, a friend who played drums introduced her to different rhythms.
She shared how this experience changed her view on music:
I thought my friend was a genius. I had heard drums on the radio before, but it was like I had never really noticed them. Then I see drums performed live, and was able to experience a beat for the first time. I started to take heavy interest in music that wasn’t classical and joined the band elective.
While in this band, she learned about how popular music is put together.
Starting Her Music Career
While at Waseda, a Japanese video game company called Koei asked Kanno to create music for their game, Nobunaga's Ambition. The game became very popular. This success helped launch Yoko Kanno's career in music.
Yoko Kanno's Music Career
Yoko Kanno has created many famous theme songs. These include "Kiseki no Umi" for Lodoss War and "Voices" for Macross Plus. She also composed "Tank!" for Cowboy Bebop and "Gravity" for Wolf's Rain. She wrote the entire soundtrack for Turn A Gundam.
For the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex soundtrack, she wanted to make it feel human. She explained that she imagined a serious, "manly" world for the original story. She tried to break that image with her music. The main idea was to "be human" and relax.
Exploring Different Music Styles
Yoko Kanno has composed music in many different styles. These include blues, classical, jazz, techno, and J-pop. When asked if she liked one style best, she said:
Ah ... I hear everyone talk about how many genres [I work in] like classical, jazz and others, but personally, I don't divide music by genre when creating. I don't create by saying, 'I must create a classical piece here,' or 'I must create a jazz piece here.' When I create music, I don't consider at all which genre I like best, but what the scene or the anime calls for, like a love [theme] or a mood. There isn't one genre I like more than the others. I find all of them satisfying and all inspire me in different ways.
She creates music based on what the story or scene needs. She enjoys all music styles.
How She Works
When Kanno works on anime, directors give her instructions and storyboards. This helps her compose. She likes this way of working because she doesn't have many rules. She once said:
In my case, the creators talk to me and ask me to do a soundtrack a year or two before the animation is finished. At that time, I think of the plot in my brain, when the characters' names—everything about the characters—has not been decided yet. This is even when the title has not be decided yet.
This means she often starts composing before everything about the project is finalized.
Seatbelts and Video Games
Yoko Kanno was the main member of the band Seatbelts. This band got back together in 2004. They composed the music for the PlayStation 2 Cowboy Bebop video game.
She also composed for Koei games in the late 1980s and early 1990s. She worked on Napple Tale for the Dreamcast console. Because she was so involved in the Cowboy Bebop anime, the game by Bandai also featured her music.
Music for Movies and Commercials
Besides anime and games, Kanno also creates music for live-action films and TV commercials. She has composed for many well-known brands. Some of these include Canon, DoCoMo, Microsoft, Nissan, and Toyota. Her work in films started in the 1990s. Many of these films have been shown at international film festivals.
Kanno has attended several anime conventions. She was at Otakon and Anime Expo in 1999. She also made a surprise appearance at Anime Expo in 2010. In 2013, she performed her solo PianoMe concert at Otakon.
In 2019, she composed a special three-part song called "Ray of Water." This song was for the ascension of Emperor Naruhito. It was performed for him and Empress Masako at the enthronement celebration.
The Mystery of Gabriela Robin
On many of Kanno's songs, a person named "Gabriela Robin" was listed as the lyricist and singer. However, when these songs were performed live, other singers like Maaya Sakamoto or Origa would sing them.
In 2009, "Gabriela Robin" said she would perform live for the first time. This was at Kanno's 2009 Tanabata Sonic concert. But at the end of the concert, Yoko Kanno herself sang a song called "Moon." This song was previously credited to Robin. Kanno then revealed that "Gabriela Robin" was her own secret name. She used it to write songs that mixed English and Japanese words freely.
Yoko Kanno's Personal Life
Yoko Kanno speaks Japanese, a little English, and some French. She has shared her thoughts on spirituality. She said that Japanese people believe in gods everywhere, in plants and animals. She also mentioned that Christianity has a beautiful image in Japan, but people see it more like something from picture books, not as a religion.
Kanno enjoys music, photography, and writing. She has written journals for Newtype magazine. She often included her own photos with her articles. In 2010, a collection of her photos of Maaya Sakamoto was shown at Sakamoto's birthday concert.
In 2011, Yoko Kanno showed her support for the victims of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. She composed a song called "Kimi de Ite, Buji de Ite" (Stay With Me, Stay Safe). Later, she composed NHK's official support song for the earthquake's first anniversary. This song was called "Hana wa Saku" (Flowers Will Bloom). It featured famous people from the affected areas.
Yoko Kanno's Music Works
Yoko Kanno has created music for many different types of projects. Here are some of her main works.
Studio Albums
- Song to Fly (1998): All songs were composed and led by Yoko Kanno.
- 23-Ji no Ongaku (2002): All songs composed by Yoko Kanno. Maaya Sakamoto sang the vocals.
- CM Yoko (2008) and CM Yoko 2 (2009): These are collections of music she made for commercials over the years.
- Space Bio Charge (2009): A collection of songs by Yoko Kanno with her band, Seatbelts.
- Yoko Kanno produce Cyber Bicci (2011): This album includes older songs with Ilaria Graziano and new music.
Anime Music
Yoko Kanno has composed for many popular anime series and movies:
- Please Save My Earth (1994)
- Macross Plus (1994)
- Memories: Magnetic Rose (1995)
- The Vision of Escaflowne (1996)
- Cowboy Bebop (1998)
- Turn A Gundam (1999)
- Escaflowne (2000)
- Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door (2001)
- Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (2002)
- Wolf's Rain (2003)
- Genesis of Aquarion (2005)
- Darker than Black: Kuro no Keiyakusha (2007)
- Macross Frontier (2008)
- Kids on the Slope (2012)
- Terror in Resonance (2014)
- Spy x Family Season 2 (2023) - She arranged the opening theme song.
Video Game Music
She has also composed for several video games:
- Romance of the Three Kingdoms (1985)
- Nobunaga's Ambition Zenkokuban (1986)
- Uncharted Waters (1990)
- Napple Tale: Arsia in Daydream (2000)
- Cowboy Bebop: Tsuitou no Yakyoku (2005)
- Ragnarok Online 2 (2007)
- Volzerk: Monsters and Lands Unknown (2023)
Television Drama Music
Her work also includes music for TV dramas:
- Mayonaka Betsu no Kao (2002)
- Gochisōsan (2013)
- Naotora: The Lady Warlord (2017)
- Cowboy Bebop (2021)
- The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House (2023)
Movie Music
She has composed for various movies:
- Yamato Takeru (1994)
- Tokyo.sora (2002)
- Kamikaze Girls (2004)
- Honey and Clover (2006)
- Our Little Sister (2015)
Images for kids
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Kanno at Anime Expo 2010
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Kanno at Otakon 1999
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Yoko Kanno (left) with Megumi Nakajima performing at Anime Expo 2010
See also
In Spanish: Yōko Kanno para niños
