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seventh-zephyr · 7 years ago

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My thoughts on Keiko leaving Kalafina

So, it’s been a few days since it was announced that Keiko had left. I’m still sad about it, of course, but I feel like I need to talk about it and get it off my chest and then maybe I can have some peace of mind about the whole ordeal. All under the cut because yeah, this is gonna be long.

tl;dr Keiko means a lot to me personally and although I may not like the fact that she has left Kalafina (for both technical and personal reasons), I respect her decision and will continue to support her as well as Wakana and Hikaru in a new era of Kalafina.

Let me start of by saying that I do not blame Keiko for leaving, I know it was entirely her choice, and I respect her decision to leave.

With that out of the way, I do wonder how Kalafina’s future concerts will function. The vast majority of their songs were written for three people to sing, and there are songs that are outright impossible or near impossible to sing with only two people without leaving things out (lookin’ at you, sprinter and signal). Unless they add another person who possesses similar vocal range/skills as Keiko, a number of their songs will either have to be majorly retooled for two (such as Fantasia, and even then that shouldn’t be too hard with this song) or outright unperformable (such as Magia or ring your bell, or other songs with a lot of 3-way harmony work). Of course, songs from the oblivious single still would work perfectly fine with just Wakana and Hikaru, but nearly every other song would need to be retooled (I say nearly because even if it might be weird, something like Kagayaku Sora no Shijima ni wa could work with two people). Part of me really hopes they hold auditions for a new member because the way things stand now, live performances will become a new challenge without a decent buildup of additional music written for two voices.

At the same time, I really wish that Keiko hadn’t decided to leave. She added a lot of depth vocally to the group. My choir director always talked about a choral sandwich in Concert Choir before I got moved up to Chamber Choir. He really doesn’t talk about it at all with Chamber, but it’s something I’ve always found important. Your four choral parts (soprano, alto, tenor, and bass) make up a sandwich. Soprano and bass are like the bread, essential but not important compared to what’s actually in the sandwich. Alto and tenor are like the middle of the sandwich, the contents. They’re the important parts, they’re what make the sandwich good. Otherwise, you’d just have bread, and no one wants just bread. In Kalafina, it’s just soprano and alto. Wakana is soprano, Keiko is alto, and Hikaru is somewhere in between. Sure, Hikaru could fill in some of the vocal gaps Keiko left behind, but there are some gaps that just can’t be filled (such as Yami no Uta, a showcase of Keiko’s dark alto power). And yeah, you could flip the choral sandwich thing on it’s head here and be like “But Zange, wouldn’t the sandwich here be W and K as bread and H as the stuff in between?”, but my point with bringing up the choral sandwich is that yes, Hikaru could sing some of Keiko’s stuff. But Hikaru can’t replace her completely in songs like Alleluia, or Yami no Uta, or some others that I’m forgetting. Keiko has that kind of power, she adds that depth into Kalafina’s music and makes it interesting, something you can’t really do with only two choral parts.

Another reason I wish Keiko didn’t leave: She’s one of my biggest inspirations. When I first joined choir in 8th grade, the girls sang up and down the scales to figure out if they were a soprano or alto. We did that and I was like “Hey, some of these high notes are a little too high for me, I’ll sing alto because that’s were my voice feels more comfortable.” So that’s what I did. And almost every time we got a new song, with a few exceptions, sopranos would always have the melody. I remember being a bit frustrated at this and wondering when the hell the altos were gonna have a song where they had the melody. I had to quit choir 3rd tri that year so I could take another class, but 3rd tri was where I discovered Kalafina. And I mean really discovered. I’d heard some of their songs before as anime endings, but I didn’t know who they were. Honestly, I don’t entirely remember how I even discovered them. I know it was through Google Play Music, it was probably on the random stream list for the artists I was listening to at the time (Garnidelia and Mimori Suzuko). Whenever a Kalafina song popped up, I was like ‘hey this sounds really good, I should find more of this.’ I distinctly remember my favorite songs being ARIA, Natsu no Ringo, and sprinter (which still remains one of my favorites to this day). The only album they had on Google Play Music’s streaming was Seventh Heaven, so that was all I really knew for Kalafina music (except for those anime endings and like two or three other songs).

Fast forward to my freshman year of high school. I rejoined choir with the intention of taking it all four years of high school, and Kalafina had quickly become one of my favorite groups. I had their first and fifth albums, as well as their two best-of albums downloaded onto my school computer so I could listen to those while working on stuff instead of looking for it on YouTube. Around November or December, I found out that Kalafina released a Christmas (or as the album calls it, a ‘winter acoustic’) album. Of course, with my love for both Kalafina and Christmas music, I immediately download it onto my school computer and listened to it. It was absolutely beautiful. Around this time as well, we were really getting into gear for our Madrigal Dinner (where I sang with both the Concert Choir and the Madrigal Singers that year), which was in early December, just after my birthday, and by this point I had heard the Choral Sandwich spiel from our director a few times. It was just a normal school day, and we were doing our normal Concert Choir rehearsal during 7th hour. We were practicing one of the songs we would be singing during Madrigal, I think it was Go the Distance from Hercules. We were just practicing that song, as normal, and something in me clicks. I think ‘Holy shit, I love the alto part in this song. Why can’t we have more alto parts like this in our songs?’ followed by ‘Oh my god we get the melody in this section and it sounds really good but we almost never get the melody,’ and then it hits me: ‘Altos don’t need to sing the melody to be amazing. But when we DO have the melody, it sounds absolutely incredible. Just like Keiko.’ From that day on, Keiko Kubota became one of my biggest influences when it came to singing. Whenever altos had amazing harmony parts, I’d think, ‘How amazing would Keiko be singing this part?’ and try to sing it like I imagined she would. Low notes became a treasure to me because they were rare in the songs we were singing in Concert Choir. Whenever we were told to have a dark tone on certain parts, I smiled as I sang that part while thinking of Yami no Uta. Because of Keiko, I’ve learned to truly love the alto life. Every single note I’ve sang as an alto since that realization has been precious to me. There’s no other way I would have it, and I can say with complete honesty that I’m proud to be singing alto.

And that brings us to the present. Sophmore year, I’m in Chamber Choir now, and Keiko Kubota has just announced that she left Kalafina. I’m, of course, disappointed. Keiko was my favorite member, alongside being one of my biggest inspirations, so of course I don’t want her to leave. However, as I mentioned earlier, I respect her decision and I won’t blame her for it. I’d love to see her do some solo work, or even a revival of FictionJunction (she’s still a part of that, at least!) just so I can hear more of her incredible voice, but I can’t say for sure that it will happen, no matter how much I want it to. Wherever Keiko decides to go next, be it in music or not, I’m positive she’ll do an excellent job, and I’ll support her all the way. And just because Keiko is no longer part of Kalafina, that doesn’t mean I’ll stop being a fan of theirs. Goodness, no, their music is too good. Even if it’s just Wakana and Hikaru going forward, I’ll still support them until the very end. It’s a new era of Kalafina, with both their main composer and one of their original members gone; they need all the support they can get. Not to mention, a Kalafina without Keiko is infinitely better than no Kalafina at all.

So thank you, Keiko Kubota, for 10 years in Kalafina, and I greatly look forward to whatever you decide to do next.

#kalafina #keiko kubota #originality #real life #thank you for 10 years keiko #i'll always be thankful for you #not just your presence in kalafina #but also for teaching me that altos can do great things #rr21

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putschki1969 · 4 years ago

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KEIKO SPICE Interview ~ English Translation

Note: Once again this is a very long and icredibly insightful interview, so please enjoy it! As always, take everything you read with a grain of salt, my Japanese is by no means perfect. If you want to use this translation or parts of it, be sure to CREDIT me and LINK to this post.

KEIKO ~ Looking beyond Kalafina and finding her music as a solo newcomer, “With everyone’s help I will be able to know what kind of music I seek”

Former Kalafina member KEIKO has released her first solo album "Lantana" on December 2nd. With this work you can fully enjoy high-quality pop-music and additionally it is packed to the brink with KEIKO’s ideas and thoughts in her role as solo vocalist. KEIKO has taken the first step into her future career as a solo artist, we have asked her to share what kind of thoughts went into the making of her album. Here are her insights accompanied by some exclusive stills from the interview.

Everything that has happened this year inspired the lyrics I wrote for “Nanairo no Finale”, the song which Kajiura-san composed for me

―― On the occasion of your 1st album "Lantana" having been released on December 2nd, I would like to ask you a few questions.

Please go ahead.

―― First of all, the album title "Lantana" is the name of a flower, right? May I ask why you chose this particular title?

This album took about a year to produce, we worked without having a concept, I just chose the songs based on whether I liked them and wanted to give them a try. Additionally I received many suggestions during discussions with my staff members. So rather than focussing on the overall concept of the album we would like everyone to pay attention to the individual tracks. In Japanese the name of the flower "Lantana" literally means "Seven Changes". As the name suggests, this album represents many changes. So on the one hand the title reflects those changes and on the other hand, I just really like flowers so the name seemed fitting. Also, I wonder if we chose the name because it has a pleasant ring to it? These are pretty much the reasons why "Lantana" became our album title, it was a very quick decision actually.

―― I thought that there was a connection between all the songs of the album, the flow felt really beautiful but now that you have explained all of this to me I find the album even more interesting because there is truly so much variety, each song is completely different. is. In addition to the songs you picked to include in the album, were there many other pieces you liked among all the options you got to choose from?

Well ... This year, partly because of coronavirus, the album production was quite flexible. After it was decided that we would be doing a live-stream concert, we reconsidered a few things since we thought it might be better to increase the number of up-beat songs suitable for a live performance. Since the album production and the live performance were happening pretty much simultaneously, we made some big changes to the album to accommodate our needs for the live performance. As a result, I think it became a very well-balanced album.

―― During the MC of the live stream you mentioned something like "ff it weren't for Corona, it might have been an album with a lot of darker songs" *laughs*.

"Dark" is maybe a bit misleading *laughs*. I guess a little “more mature” is the word I was looking for?

―― But with a darker vibe?

Yeah, that’s what I had in mind but it turned into something completely different.

―― Considering all of that, has your approach to and understanding of music changed at all due to coronavirus?

I think the biggest change for me was that I could no longer sing my songs live in front of everyone ... I can't meet my fans. Not being able to meet the fans...it’s not only difficult for the fans but also for all the artists, after all this connection is very motivating and inspiring. So to have all the fans waiting but not being able to go out there and perform for them is very discouraging, you are just cut off...that was definitely the biggest change.

―― But you did get the opportunity to do a live stream. How was it? There were a few fans at the venue, right?

It was a lot of fun! When I first heard that there was a limited capacity of around 72 people due to coronavirus, I was wondering what kind of live concert it would be, but I was very happy to have at least a few people there because the feeling is completely different if you have someone actually there right in front of you listening to your singing. When I was in my early twenties I would sometimes perform in front of Cinema ROSA in Ikebukuro, back then we had like 5 fans coming to see us. I was reminded of that feeling.

―― Was there something burning inside of you, yearning to be released?

Yes ... At the day of the live I realised how many strong feelings I had suppressed before, when I was finally standing in front of the audience, all those feelings were overflowing. I truly experienced a welling up of feelings and sensation on that day. I felt excited and inspired from the early morning onwards.

―― Returning to our original topic, your album, as you said, there is a lot of variety. You once mentioned, "it's like ... like a box of my favourite chocolates."

Hahaha, that's right, I said that *laughs*.

―― I think there were many challenges in terms of song variety, but are there any songs that were particularly challenging for you?

I saw all of it as a big challenge for me. That's why I was so adamant to try as many new things as possible. With all songs I felt like I wanted to try and sing them and then later I was deciding how to use my voice in each song.

―― Did you have any difficulties regarding your singing technique?

I think the most difficult must have been “Nanairo no Finale”, I don’t even know how many takes I did until the final result. After all, this is Kajiura-san's song. It's only natural that it would feel completely different to me compared to all the other songs.

―― Well ... yes.

I have been singing Kajiura-san's songs consistently for about 12 years now, ever since I got to sing “Kaze no Machi he” for her as solo singer FictionJunction KEIKO I have been determined to do my very best, I felt like I had to give even more than before, I wanted to provide the best singing possible, I guess I was just very frustrated. “Please let me try and sing it again?” I was really stubborn like that when it came to “Nanairo no Finale”.

―― You know, I was really surprised to see “Nanairo no Finale” as the second track on the album.

Oh *laughs*. Really?

―― Didn’t you sing it as an ecore during your live performance?

Oh, that's right.

―― When I listened to the album without paying too much attention to the track order, I thought that having “Inochi no Hana” at the end was quite fitting. But to have “Nanairo no FInale” as the second track?! What? I was completely taken aback by that, it had a really strong impact on me in that particular position.

Hooray! I am happy to hear that *laughs*.

―― Regarding the song order, you mentioned earlier that you didn’t make this album with a particular concept in mind, the flow wasn’t as important to you, instead you wanted people to listen carefully to each individual song.

But I do think there is a flow when it comes to the track order. I came up with a draft first and then consulted with everyone else. Everyone agreed that we would start with "Be Yourself" but we wondered how to continue.

―― Indeed, "Be Yourself" definitely feels right as the leading track.

I had this idea of putting a very uplifting song right in the beginning, I wanted everyone to feel positive energy right from the get-go. I chose these three songs up till "Hajimari wa" as an introduction to my album because I thought they would make the listeners feel a sense of lightness and brightness.

―― “Nanairo no Finale” was composed by Kajiura-san and written by you, it has a very strong Kajiura-feel to it, even a sort of Kalafina vibe if you listen closely but it’s also very reminiscent of many of the up-tempo FictionJunction songs. It really seems to have been custom-made for you. How was it to write the lyrics for this song?

At first, I was a little surprised when I was told that I should be writing the lyrics.

―― Was that a suggestion from Kajiura-san?

Yes, the suggestion came from her. This song was a team effort, first of all I discussed it with my producer Yoda-san, then it was eventually decided that Kajiura-san would be in charge of the composition and she suggested that it would be interesting if the arrangements and lyrics were done by someone else. When I first heard of that idea I was quite shocked.

―― The pressure was intense?

Yes, definitely. When she told me I was like, “eh?” and literally froze.

―― So did she send you the song and then you wrote the lyrics for it?

Pretty much, yes. To start with, Kajiura-san sent me a song sample, at that point nothing much had been set into stone yet, the key and such still had to be decided but I really wanted to sing it as soon as possible. So I tried all kinds of singing and then suggested a few arrangement ideas to the arranger Nobuyuki Shimizu, we really thought carefully about every little detail. The arrangement changed steadily, the final result is very different from the song I originally received from Kajiura-san at the beginning, we changed the tempo and key quite a bit.

―― I see.

It was a challenge indeed but Kajiura-san told me it was very interesting to see the changes this song had gone through. As we kept changing the arrangement, the lyrics naturally changed a bit too. However, when I initially received the song from Kajiura-san I was immediately envisioning the protagonist looking ahead at a very positive and bright future, so that aspect of the lyrics hasn't changed at all. From the beginning, I had that particular image in mind, I hoped to write lyrics that would portray a positive outlook towards the future.

―― When I listened to this song live, I felt like so many things were put into motion. It's a song that feels bright but it’s also filled with determination.

That’s to be expected since the Olympics influenced me strongly. I wrote this song in the summer when coronavirus was ever present. Seeing all those athletes in the media made me very emotional. They are all so very determined to strive for next year’s Olympics even though it is still uncertain if they will even take place. I wrote my lyrics with the hope of providing a positive message for those who are working hard right now.

―― It really touches the heart.

If it hadn’t been for all those things happening this year, I don’t think these lyrics would have been written.

―― They really reflect the state our world is in right now.

Yes. Our current situation is something that cannot be ignored, it's hard to write a song that’s all fun and “yay” in times like this *laughs*. You hesitate to make something too lighthearted. But I also didn't want it to be too negative, so I wrote hopeful lyrics like this.

―― Starting to write your own lyrics with a song like that, putting all those feelings into words, I guess one could say you created something that can be left to posterity?

Yes, I felt very grateful for that opportunity.

During my time in Kalafina, my role was very clear

―― You also wrote the lyrics for the song “Yugao” in this album so I would like to hear what you have to say about this.

This is the last song we recorded. At the beginning of the album production, I knew I wanted to include something short, a minimalistic song, like a short story but then we had the live performance to think about and all of a sudden the entire tracklist had already been decided ... But I still chose this song because I was adamant about having something like this on the album.

―― I see.

For the most part the songs on my album have a pretty nice standard melody, nothing out of the ordinary so I felt like singing a sad and transient melody. It was an obvious choice that felt natural because that sort of music resonates with me. I looked at all kinds of songs for this album and in particular I wanted something calm, something you could fall asleep to while listening to the melody, vocals and lyrics.

―― Since it is in the latter half of the album, before "End Roll" and "Change The World's Color", I thought it was a very beautiful sort of overture. It’s a nice transition to two up-beat songs. Absorbing energy in a relaxed manner right before speeding up.

I thought it would be nice little surprise to have “Yugao” lead right into "End Roll" *laughs*.

―― As for "End Roll" and "Change The World's Color", I feel like your infamous strong physical presence is back with these two songs *laughs*.

Everyone, get up! *Laughs* Yes, you really feel a sense of waking-up.

―― In the middle part of the album there is a section of songs with beautiful melodies such as "Akane", "Tameiki no Kieru Machi" and "Ray". I got the impression that you really challenged yourself with quieter songs like this.

I agree. That may be the case.

―― Is that reflected in all of your music?

Yes. I have faced many challenges because this was my 1st album, I just wanted to try a lot of things. I'm sure in the future I will have a clearer vision of what I want to do. But this particular album is filled with all the things I am currently capable of doing.

―― Do you feel like you are experimenting?

Yes. I won’t know what kind of things I like and what I'm looking for without piling up experiences ... I've been doing Kalafina for 10 years, and I've been doing FictionJunction for about 12 years so I am confident in myself when it comes to these activities but as a solo artist I am basically a first-grader *laughs*.

―― So it’s like you are starting from scratch learning the alphabet all over again?

Yes exactly. But of course technically speaking I am not a newcomer when it comes to singing and being a vocalist. As for the kind of music I want to sing in the future, first and foremost this album was about trying new things and finding out how everyone around me reacts to it, ultimately I would like to make something that makes everyone happy.

―― You have obviously had a big career so far. So of course the image from that time is still in people’s minds even now that you are a solo artist. Without trying to make it sound bad but I think there are many fans out there who look at things from a biased point of view, they have these preconceived notions of what exactly the solo careers of each Kalafina member should look like.

That's right.

―― I guess there are two types of ways to handle these sorts of expectations, either you are the type that just goes ahead in a determined manner regardless of what everyone else thinks, along the lines of, “I am going to do exactly this and that. Period!” Or one can find a different approach along the lines of, “I want to try various things, how do you feel about this?" Before you went solo I actually had the impression that you would be the first type, thinking, "okay, this is the music I made and because I made it everyone should listen to it!" However, I was surprised to find out that you are actually more like the second type.

Yes. I am definitely the second type. I have zero idea what I want and I am not at all scared to admit that. I think it’s best to ask everyone around me for assistance to work through all the things that I do not know at this point in time.

―― It's simple, isn't it?

Yes it is. During my time in Kalafina, my role and my duties were very clear, we had wishes and aspirations lined up, once we had reached a certain goal and seen the results we just moved to the next step. But right now I am at a starting point and I have not seen any results yet so I think it's natural for me to go take this route.

―― I see.

Going around and asking everyone for their opinion is something we also did in the early days of Kalafina. So I thought I would start at that point once again . It's different from Kalafina though. That's why it's interesting, and the feeling of creating something together is a lot of fun. Creating sounds, creating harmonies.

―― Harmonies?

As in chorus arrangement. You can enhance the chorus pretty flexibly on the spot if you want. While working on my singing I consulted a lot with my producer Yoda-san and my assistant Asami-chan, together we added a lot more oomph to many of the choruses, I sang some parts and we also tried mixing and subtracting...I was really absorbed in the whole process of creating something together.

―― It seems to be very interesting to make so many changes on the spot.

I felt a strong desire to create spontaneous music like that. If everyone involved feels inspired while working together, then I think it’s best to go with the ideas that are born during these sessions.

―― And you will wait till the very end to share your opinion.

Yes, I am the last one. I am literally just watching everyone all the time wondering about how we should do all of this *laughs*.

I will approach the challenge of a big venue at a slow pace

―― Hearing you talk about all of this, it seems like you are having fun with your solo activities.

It is a lot of fun.

―― We as fans are also incredibly happy to see you enjoying yourself while making music. So your album contains a total of 10 songs, and at the end there is a bonus track, an acoustic version of "Akane". May I ask you why you decided to include this?

During the production, I listened to a take with just my voice and the guitar. At one point, Yoda-san had edited "Akane" in such a way that all rhythmic sections were gone. I suggested that it would be nice to hear an arrangement with only the strings, since I thought it would be very calming. Then Kosuke Oshima, who composed the strings part, dramatically changed the melody of the strings so that's why I wanted to include this version as well.

―― So once again this idea was born spontaneously in the midst of production rather than having been planned from the get-go.

Yes. We just all agreed that the melody of “Akane” was beautiful with a simple arrangement like that and the strings are perfectly complementing it.

―― When you compare the two versions, the acoustic one definitely sounds more dramatic.

The strings are pretty intense and the melody lines are dramatic so I really like it! I love the final result!

―― That’s really amazing. You pretty much did that song on a whim. A song born out of a spontaneous session.

I think we have created an album that feels like a real team effort.

―― I think you had a similar working environment during your activities as Kalafina but it's the first time for you as a solo artist to bring up ideas such as, "why don’t we try to include this song?"

No, not at all. We didn’t really have that with Kalafina. This is truly the first time for me because during our time in Kalafina we only ever received a finished song which we were then asked to bring to life. But we were never involved in the recording of musical instruments or anything like that.

―― To celebrate the release of “Lantana” a live performance is scheduled for December 16 at Zepp DiverCity TOKYO. How hyped are you about that?

To say I am not hyped at all would be a lie *laughs*. But I am honestly not that hyped. However, it is an opportunity to meet everyone which is a great thing so I want to do my very best performing live. Everyone has worked really hard this year, it’s been a tough year for sure so I want to convey all those feelings through my singing.

―― It's that time of the year where everyone is busy and needs to get all of their work done.

Instead of being super hyped or nervous I want my audience at the venue and all the live stream viewers to feel a sense of relief, “ah yes, the year is almost over”. My fans should be able to relax and detox, hopefully my live will be a source of energy for them to survive the last few remaining days of 2020, I guess I just want everyone to try and escape from busy reality. Hopefully I can make everyone laugh *laughs*.

―― Sounds great.

Since I am doing my live so soon after the album release I thought it would be fitting to use a hugelive house like Zepp as my venue, I wanted to invite as many people as possible and have them sprinkled all across the hall to keep everyone safe.

―― You are pretty much standing alone and separated from everyone else. The same was done for your previous live. Of course you have the band members on stage but still... During your Kalafina days you always had the other two members next to you and in FictionJunction you stand on stage as one singer among many. How is it to stand in the middle of the stage all by yourself?

Even before Kalafina I was part of a unit so this is truly the first time for me being all alone on stage. But I always feel like I am making music together with all the musicians, so I never really felt lonely.

―― Yes of course, the band members.

If I just had a backing track. Or if I hadn’t known the musicians behind me on stage, then yes, I might have felt alone. But we all worked together during my first live to create my solo music with as much care as possible. It was like having a session with my musician, so I really didn't feel alone.

―― I think you may try to perform at bigger venues in the future.

I think it’s okay to go step by step, slowly *laughs*. It’s totally fine to take very small steps.

―― So you are not eager to perform in bigger venues?

No. If anything, I want to have fun, this is my highest priority at the moment. How do I best enjoy music with my audience? This is what I feel strongly about.

―― I think that’s great.

Rather than thinking about producing a big live I just want to create a simple place where everyone can enjoy music together.

―― When I was listening to you album I got a strong jazz vibe from your song “Tameiki no Kieru Machi”.

Oh yes, it definitely has that sort of vibe.

―― Listening to you explaining all of your ideas, this song immediately came to mind when you mentioned the “session feeling”. You kept saying in this interview how very much you enjoyed the exchange between yourself and everyone around you, how everything has become some sort of team project, was everything like that?

Before recording my songs, especially in the early days before I had recorded "Hajimari wa" and "Ray", I wasn't used to recording with a new singing style so I was incredibly scared ... I vividly remember that feeling *laughs*.

―― So there were some terrifying parts as well?

To be honest, I was really scared. It was my first time using such a voice. It was unlike anything I had done in the past. Rather than just blindly providing my vocals we created my voice together, I would constantly be asking, “should I sing like this or maybe like that?”

―― I feel like it is very worthwhile to listen to this album, no matter how many times you listen you will always experience a new special flavour. Last but not least I would like you to say a few words to everyone who has been supporting you for a long time.

I've been working as a vocalist for Kalafina for 10 years but this time for the very first time I have created an album that’s made up of songs that I really wanted to sing. I would be happy if I could touch your hearts and find a way to connect with everyone through this album. Let’s end this year with a live concert! There is also a live stream available so please, let's spend some time together, I will be awaiting you ♪ Thank you for reading this interview.

#kalafina #keiko #my translations #my translation #keiko solo work #interview #spice interview #long text post #lantana #keiko 1st album #ughh #can't believe I almost spent my entire Saturday on this T_T #I was having a hard time focusing

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putschki1969 · 4 years ago

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Hi Sarah! How's everything going? ヽ(・∀・)ﾉ I wanted to ask you if you know of any interviews were Consolation (the song) is discussed. Also, what is your interpretation of the song? I was randomly going around YT and got to hear this amazing piece live by our utahimes and got curious about it. Hope I don't bother you, thank you in advance!~ヾ(・ω・)

Hi there!!

Sorry, my reply is long-overdue. This has been sitting in my drafts for a very long time. “Consolation” is hands down one of Kalafina’s BEST songs, I LOVE IT SO MUCH. Especially the live version from their 9+ONE tour. Everyone needs to check it out in case they haven’t yet.

Back when the album was released I wasn’t as involved in the fandom as I am now and my Japanese was also not that great so I didn’t really know of any interviews where they discussed the song in detail. I had also never really taken a close look at the lyrics before.

Oh well, I thought I would use the opportunity to dig a little deeper. After a quick search I came across two interviews that provide a bit of insight regarding the album and the title song. I also tried to delve into the world of the lyrics and see what I could come up with.

My simple interpretation based on my findings 〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

I believe the song is fundamentally about the dilemma of wanting two things that are mutually exclusive. On the one hand you wish to find peace, relief and consolation but on the other hand you are greedy and you cannot stop wanting more. Since it seems you can’t have both you resign yourself to finding solace in the suffering you are enduring while struggling to fulfil all of your desires.

Below the cut you can check out my interview and lyric translations〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

Repotama Interview

Re album title and concept: Humans are greedy creatures by nature. There is a constant struggle to fulfil one’s own desires and ultimately there is also a wish to feel a true sense of comfort and consolation. However, one can never reach a point of absolute satisfaction but we might find consolation in the fact that having needs and desires is the only constant in our lives.

Re song: Due to its “coined words chorus” the song becomes quite exciting for the listeners. Our three distinctive voices are heard very clearly, Hikaru expresses a “fierce energy and determination regarding the fulfilment of one’s desires” and Wakana changes the song completely with her soothing and comforting vocals conveying a sense of “finding consolation amidst your struggles”. The duality which is expressed through those two voices enables you to fully enjoy Kalafina’s singing power.

Animate Times Interview

Re album title and concept: Consolation, relief and satisfaction are usually seen as something that stands in glaring contrast to our desires but maybe true comfort and consolation can be found within the suffering we are enduring in our constant pursuit of happiness and our struggles to fulfil our desires.

Re song: ――The title song『consolation』 feels extremely passionate, hard and energetic. One of its charms is the use of rare words such as 「むごたらしい / mugotarashii / incredibly brutal」, something that might not work for other songs.

Hikaru：I sang this word with a sense of unease, like feeling trapped *laughs*

Keiko："This song is hard so you can’t just use ordinary words in it”, that’s what Kajiura-san told us smiling wearily, this was one of her main worries regading the lyrics *laughs*. The melody is dramatic and the overall sound feels hard and unforgiving. When we listened to the music track my first impression was, “oh my God, this is so hard, where am I gonna breathe?” Kajiura-san’s inspiration for the music is also heavily reflected in the lyrics so I guess that’s why she was seeking out words that are rarely used in everday life. She also opted to have lines that are neither Japanese nor English but instead Latin. We have had elements of Latin in our songs before but in this particular song we all thought that Latin would be a particularly perfect fit.

――The part where you sing ＜Quo Vadis Domine？＞ right? The passion of the song and the Latin really go well together.

Keiko：It means＜Lord／Where are you going?＞. Since this is the title song of the album I think that Kajiura-san chose the lyrics very carefully in order to encourage many different interpretations, the words are supposed to stretch one’s imagination. Initially I thought the words were very difficult but as time went by I realised that the words were actually quite simple and raw. People seek comfort and relief, in order to reach that goal we are living our lives filled with greed, always thinking, “I want this or I want to be like that”. Hikaru is the one embodying this determination, this bundle of desires with her fierce vocals. Wakana on the other hand is the one who is asking with her voice, “is there any relief or consolation awaiting me at the end of it all?” I think those two things come across very clearly in the song. It’s been about a month since we have finished the album production, after talking with Kajiura-san and singing the song together with the other two members as well as singing it by myself I think I can finally say that I understand the meaning of it. Also, I think the song was very difficult for you Wakana, wasn’t it?

Wakana：Yes. I sang this without any boundaries which was quite fun but it was also very hard. There are parts of the song that make total sense and other parts that are completely inconsistent, as such the song feels very raw and human.

―― There is a sense of “self-contradiction”“, like you are stuck having to choose between mutually exclusive alternatives. ＜Yet the greedy heart keeps reaching out / Unable to give up / Until it sleeps, satiated / It’ll take the darkest path＞. These lines very clearly express this sort of self-contradiction, on the one hand you are greedily seeking something while at the same time you are hoping to find peace and solace. I guess that’s a very human thing to do.

Wakana：Kajiura-san told us,"comfort and consolation are the opposite of desire, aren’t they?” People are motivated by their needs and desires "because comfort alone does not provide satisfaction”.

English Lyrics (taken from the Consolation booklet, with a few minor alterations)

Breathing alone won’t make wishes come true Please grant me tears and sorrow So I may go in deeper

Your God, so brutally beautiful Loved only those that were destroyed utterly and furiously

Quo Vadis Domine? A voice that can hardly be called a prayer I know one day your wishes alone will be answered

To the base of the taut sky We carry our burden And walked in haste as if to run away

Slowly, the first stars Shed light on your way Glittering in the pale depth of the valley

Quo Vadis Domine? One day I hope you will find consolation But if the heart remains wanting It will be unattainable

Yet the greedy heart keeps reaching out Unable to give up Until it sleeps, satiated It will take the darkest path

The soul that wants to devour all Spit out the dream it had clung to And shouted, “have mercy on me!”

Quo Vadis Domine? One day I hope you will find consolation When all has been burnt to pieces I believe you will finally reach your goal

#kalafina #consolation #reply #Anonymous #lyrics #my translation #random musings #song analysis #thank you for this ask #I now appreciate the song so much more

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putschki1969 · 7 years ago

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I read somewhere that a different composer might make new Kalafina songs and I'm kinda worried. Like yes Kajiura's songs were very formulaic but writing for a 3 piece vocal group is difficult considering the amount on instruments in each track. It takes skill. I wondered what your thoughts are about Kalafina getting a new composer since I'm very conflicted

Hey anon (´・ω・)ﾉ

I am happy to share my thoughts. This is Part 1 of my discussion where I address your question regarding a possible new composer. In Part 2 I’ll talk about Kalafina’s future in general.

Quick note: The recording industry has two kinds ofproducers with different roles: executive producer and music producer. Executiveproducers oversee project finances while music producers oversee the creativeprocess of recording songs or albums. In the following text I am exclusively referringto the role of “music producer”.Please keep in mind that these are my personal opinions

Withoutfurther ado, let’s get this thing started 〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

Firstthings first, as far as I can tell it doesn’t really say anywhere that adifferent composer might create Kalafina’s music from now on. This oricon article (which pretty much became the main source for all followingarticles) merely states that it is yet unclear who is going to be in charge of producingKalafina’s music in the future. “Unclear” as in => it could be anyone… INCLUDINGYuki Kajiura herself…I guess we shouldn’t get ahead of ourselves.

Let’s makethis clear, Yuki Kajiura leaving the agency isn’t the end of the world, she isnot resigning from work, she is not dying nor suffering from a terminalillness. She will continue producing amazing music as an independentartist/freelancer and I don’t really see any reason why she wouldn’t be able tocontinue producing/writing/composing/arranging music for Kalafina in thefuture…Being in the same agency is definitely not a requirement for that. Here’san example => YK has produced and composed a song for Aimer last yeardespite Aimer being managed by a completely different talent agency. There’snothing that speaks against YK doing the very same thing for Kalafina. One mightargue that Yuki herself would rather not continue producing Kalafina’s musicbecause she wants to do her “own thing” now that she is finally independent but I personallyfeel like Space Craft Produce have never stopped her from doing exactly that whenit comes to Kalafina’s music, especially in regards to the stand-alone pieces(obviously it’s different when you produce anime tie-ins since you have toconfirm to certain themes/demands). Judging from all of her self-liner notesand song discussions she has always been given creative freedom and I don’tthink anyone ever truly interfered with her work. Quite the contrary actually, itseems like the agency trusted her with the creative process and I don’t thinkthat has changed at all. So yeah, I believe Yuki wouldn’t be opposed to keepingher role as producer. As for the agency…what’s that saying? “Never change awinning team!” From a business perspective it would be unwise of Space Craft Produceto stand in the way of future joint work between Yuki and Kalafina.

Of course Iam not ruling out other possibilities. After all Yuki Kajiura DID say thatthere would definitely be some changes and while her wish to support Kalafinaremains as strong as ever she might not be able to provide that support in thecapacity she wants to. Maybe someone else will become Kalafina’s “main” musicproducer and Yuki will co-produce certain pieces. In the past Yuki has invited composerHiromitsu Ishikawa to work on various arrangements (Christmas arrangements inparticular but he has also been involved in the making of Yuki’s OSTs). Thisproves that she is definitely willing and capable of working together withsomeone else. And if you ask me, the results of such collaborations can bepretty awesome. Hiromitsu Ishikawa has done all the arrangements for theChristmas covers on “Winter Acoustic”, personally I thought they were the bestthing about the entire album. I mean, he managed to make an annoying song like “WeWish you a Merry Christmas” into the most gorgeous ballad ever and he turned a mainstreamsong like “Jingle Bells” into a unique jazzy tune. I wouldn’t say no to moreamazing outside influences like that. I am sure there are many talented composersout there that could add a lot to Kalafina (whether it concerns covers or originalsongs).

Now I knowmany of you don’t wanna think about the possibility of Yuki Kajiura NOT beinginvolved at all in the creation of Kalafina’s music but there is a chance it couldhappen and honestly, that is no reason whatsoever to abandon ship. So many ofyou talk as if Yuki Kajiura is the only thing that makes Kalafina great. Do youseriously think that is true? Of course this is just my opinion but Kalafina isso much more than just “Yuki Kajiura’s music”. Yes, Yuki’s amazing music is thefoundation of Kalafina and originally they were little more than a means tohelp Yuki in the process of bringing her music to life. However, throughout theyears Wakana, Keiko and Hikaru have become SO MUCH MORE. It’s THEIR voices,THEIR passion, THEIR dedication to their craft that bring Yuki’s music TRULY tolife, it’s their interpretations/world views/expressions/emotions that make thesongs special and unique. Maybe it’s just me but while I very much appreciate andadmire YK’s work I have always been more attached to the members of Kalafina. Withtheir OUTSTANDING talent and charismatic nature the three of them can turnalmost everything to magic. Their many cover performances are proof of that. Theyhave also managed to make me fall in love with so many of their own songs,songs I most likely wouldn’t have given a second listen if they had been sungby someone else. So what if someone else produces music for them? Would itreally be that bad? NO! Not really. I totally agree with everyone who issaying that it is not an easy task to write music for Kalafina but hey, it’snot impossible and I am sure there are many people out there who could doamazing things with Kalafina. Also, to all those who are scared Kalafina’s “style”would change once a new composer steps in, I am not exactly sure what you arescared of…First of all, more than half of Kalafina’s non-Japanese fanbase hasbeen complaining for years now that Yuki keeps writing the same “boring/generic/mainstream/trashy”songs (NOT my words and NOT my thoughts!). Shouldn’t a new composer make you happy then?…Secondly,in my opinion Kalafina’s style has never been “consistent” per se. Yuki haswritten songs of all kinds of genres, she has written utterly complex as wellas super simple pieces, she sometimes perfectly utilises the voices of allthree singers and other times she focuses on one singer while neglecting theothers. At the end of the day however, Kalafina made all of this work and theaudience/fanbase embraced everything so I don’t think it would be any differentif a new composer came in and used a “different” style. The girls are veryproud and protective of their work so they would make sure someone competent takesup Yuki’s role. They wouldn’t allow anyone to destroy what they have builttogether for the past ten years. But they certainly wouldn’t be opposed tosomeone expanding Kalafina’s horizon. And there’s certainly a lot of potentialfor expansion. There’s still so much hidden talent that hasn’t been exploredyet and personally, I don’t care WHO brings out those talents in our girls, Ijust want them to flourish.

Which leadsme right to the next part of my discussion. Kalafina could produce their ownmusic. Why do they even need a producer? I think they are more than capable ofcreating their own music. They have been working together with Yuki Kajiura formore than a decade now, they must have learned a lot from her. I am not surehow much technical knowledge they have when it comes to composing and arrangingbut it’s not like they can’t hire someone to help out a bit. My point is thoughthat after ten years in the business they should be able to be fully in charge oftheir own music. In the first few years they have never had much of a say inthe production of music. It wasn’t until “far on the water” when the girls finallytook up a more active role. But still, I don’t think Yuki ever allowed muchinterference. As weird as this may sound, cutting ties with Yuki Kajiura mightbe a good thing for Kalafina. And I am not talking about the group in general,I am talking about Wakana, Keiko and Hikaru individually. Like I have mentionedabove, for many years they just served as a means to bring Yuki’s vision tolife. In the beginning stage Yuki just borrowed their voices, nothing else.Then Kalafina started doing lives but it was still all about Yuki’s music, itwasn’t about the members themselves. That’s why all their earlier concerts (upuntil their Consolation lives actually) are very much reminiscent of YK Lives.Yuki doesn’t like elaborate stage productions, she doesn’t like choreographies,she doesn’t like the audience to jump around like crazy with penlights. Shewants the audience to focus on the music and she wants her singers to focus onsinging. Their first Budokan live was a critical juncture in that regardbecause that’s when a lot of things changed. At this point in time Minami Sasugacame into the picture and she is the one responsible for the above mentionedchanges. I am not sure if YK approved of all these changes but she at least letthem happen. Slowly but surely the girls got to introduce personal elementsinto their performances. They were finally able to express their individualwishes. That’s why their newer lives differ so much from their old ones and whyeach new live is totally different than the last. The girls are experimenting,trying to find their own style now that they have more freedom in that regard. Ifthey produced their own music they would have total freedom because they wouldn’tbe bound by anything or anyone. A quick thing I’d like to address in this context. Kalafina’s 10th AnniversaryLive was pretty much a throwback to the old Kala-lives. I think it waspurposefully kept simple. Mainly because all previous anniversary lives havebeen simple but also because that’s Yuki’s vision. She was in the audience, atthat point everyone definitely knew about Yuki leaving the agency so the girlsprobably wanted to make this performance special for her. And I am sure theydid, Yuki LOVES these kinds of lives.

Okay, that’s it for Part 1. I hope I was able to provide some some sort of reassurance. Part 2 will follow tomorrow night.

#kalafina #reply #yuki kajiura #space craft #my thoughts #long text post #thanks for reading #Anonymous #personal

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putschki1969 · 8 years ago

Text

Translation of your questions

It’s done! I just finished translating your questions for Keiko.

Thanks to @forionby, @uadudeloveswakana, @betta-chan, @sprinterxkyrie, @vagabon80, @seasonreaper, @sangaella, @deadxxxmoon, @symph0nia-pendragon and @audiojapanstyle for your contributions. I hope I didn’t miss anyone >_< EDIT: I am done translating all of your questions and suggestions. I added all of it to this post, feel free to check out the final draft.

A few days ago I made THIS post where people could submit their questions for Keiko. I offered to translate them and now that that is done, we just have to post them with the help of @erza-shidae ^_^ Keiko mentioned HERE that she would soon be replying to questions again so I guess it would be best to wait for that. No need in spamming her with questions right now.

Of course that means you still got time to send in some questions in case you haven’t yet. Maybe now that you have had some time to think about it you can come up with a fun/interesting question! (Please refer to my original post for some mini guidelines regarding the length and content!)

If you like, you can all take a look at my draft below the cut. I am calling it a “draft” because there are still some tiny details I need to work on (also still not happy with my Japanese) and of course I’ll have to change certain aspects of my text depending on the content of the blog post to which our questions will be submitted.

Keikoさん♪ こんばんは！Sarah/サラです。(・ω・)ノ

実は、初めてコメントします（*/∇＼*）オーストリアのKalafinaファンです。

一応お知らせしておきますが、海外ファンが理解できるように、私は３人のブログ記事を全て英語に翻訳しています。Kalafinaのブログを読むのが毎日の楽しみの１つになりました。素顔のKalafinaを見せてくれてありがとうございます。とっても親切なので、３人との繋がりが強くなりました。

連日のブログ更新と丁寧な回答本当にありがとうございます。♡

海外のファンたちの色々な質問を集まって、日本語に翻訳したんです。お忙しいところ申し訳ございませんが、お答えいただければ幸いです。<(_ _)>

【質問１＆２】１）最近、Keikoさんに強く印象に残ったアルバムやシングル（Kalafina関係ない）はありますか？２）また、好きな海外/洋楽アーティストやバンドがいれば、教えてください！『Best wishes』ベラルーシのファンから～

【質問３，４＆５】３）Keikoさん、一番大好きなアルバムやシングルの衣装を教えてくれたら、うれしいです４）KeikoさんもHikaruさんも着ていたピアノパタンのスカート/ショートパンツが本当に可愛すぎて、こんな感じのスカートが欲しいんですよ！ブランドを教えてください。５）皆さんのCROSS STAGEについての考えを知りたいので、WakanaさんにブログでLiSAさんとコラボについてお話してくれるように頼んでくださいね！『All the love for you, Wakanaさん and Hikaruさん』イタリアのBetta-chanから～

【質問６＆７】６）個人的に気になることなのですが...Wakanaさんの最新のブログ更新に関連して、Keikoさんはやかんや電気ケトルを使用しますか？７）Wakanaさんの家に泊まりに行ったことありますか？...３人でお泊まり女子会したことありますか？『With love』ウクライナのファンから～

【質問８、９＆１０】８）1日どれくらいの量の甘いものを食べていますか？(*^^*) そして、オススメなチョコレートブランドってなんですか？！９）海外一人旅ってした事ありますか？１０）最近見たアニメ/ドラマ/映画はなんですか？『Lots of love!』フィリピンのJaneから～

【質問１１】１１）アニメ黒執事とセバスチャンのこと、正直どう思いますか？『Hi Keiko!』海外のファンから～

【質問１２】１２）Keikoさんの今年の目標について、「可愛い女の子」を見つけましたか？『With love!』スウェーデンのファンから～

【質問１３】１３）Kalafinaはもう一度アメリカで出演する計画がありますか？もしそうなら、どの地域でしょうか？『From America with Love』アメリカのAdamとRobertから～

【質問１４＆１５】１４）Kalafinaの音楽が世界中の人々に影響を与えたということについてどう思いますか？１５）セットリストにどのような曲を含めるのは、どのように決定しますか？そして、なぜ特定の曲がほとんど含まれていないのですか？（sandpiperとかserenatoとか）『Hello and thanks for everything!』イギリスのファンから～

最後に【質問１６，１７＆１８】１１）KeikoさんとHikaruさんが時々洋服を共有していることに気付いたんですが、姉妹みたいですね！Hikaruさんに服を貸しているんでしょうか？（例えば、前述のピアノスカート♪）１２）スポーツウエア着いたKeikoさんはいつも可愛くてお洒落なんですよ！好きなスポーツウエアについて話してください！（色とかブランドとか...）１３）Keikoさんのお気に入りのアクセサリーは何ですか？（特定ベルトとかネックレースとかヘッドバンドとか...）『日本語下手でごめんなさい(/ω＼)』 Keikoさんが大好きな私から～

おしまい!！多くの質問を申し訳ありません。<(_ _)>

また更新楽しみにしていますね〜＼(^o^)／

Sarah/サラ

(海外で絶大な人気があるので、いつKalafinaは世界ツアーを行う予定ですか? o(^▽^)o)

Here are all the original questions. Please keep in mind that I had to make some slight changes (to make them easier to translate) >_<

forionby 1) Is there an album or a single (not by Kalafina) that has greatly impressed you recently? 2) Do you have any favourite artists or bands who sing in a language that you don’t speak? (Best wishes from Belarus)

betta-chan 1) Dear Keiko-san I would like to know which is your favourite Kalafina’s outfit of albums or singles 2) Dear Keiko-san since I really love your “piano-skirt” that you borrowed also to Hikaru-san and I would like to buy, could you please tell me the name of the brand or where is it possible to buy? 3) Dear Keiko-san can you kindly ask to Wakana-san if she can talk about her collab with Lisa-san in one of her next blog post? I would like to know her impressions too! [betta-chan => maybe it's better to ask Wakana directly? Erza could comment on her blog post!] All the love for you, Wakana-san & Hikaru-san (from Betta-chan, Italy)

uadudeloveswakana 1) Do you usually use electric kettle or “plain old one”? (From Ukraine with Love) 2)Have you ever stayed overnight at Wakana place? Or Wakana at yours?“ ^_^

sprinterxkyrie 1) May we know how much chocolates do you consume everyday and can you recommend us some brands? 2) Have you ever traveled alone outside the country for vacation? 3) What was the last anime/TV/movie you watched? (Lots of love from the Philippines, Jane)

deadxxxmoon 1) What were your thoughts and opinions on Kuroshitsuji and Sebastian Michaelis himself? Do you like him or dislike him?

seasonreaper 1) I’d like to know what her opinions are on the fact that Kalafina’s music has had an impact on people from around the world, including those who can’t even speak Japanese. 2)What kind of processes go into deciding what songs to include in a live setlist, and why are some songs very rarely included like serenato or Sandpiper? (Also I’d like to say hello and thanks for everything from the UK ).

sangaella 1) How is your New Year's resolution progressing?

vagabon80 + @symph0nia-pendragon 1) Will Kalafina perform again in the US? If so, what general area might they consider? (With love from America)

audiojapanstyle liked one of my many questions and wanted to know an answer so I picked that question for my top 3 list. I ended up with the following => 1) I’ve noticed you and Hikaru sharing the same clothes, are you just giving all of them to her or is Hikaru asking to borrow certain pieces from you? 2) Please can you talk about your favourite sportswear (brand/shoes/any particular outfit you like etc)? 3) What’s your favourite accessory (a certain belt/hairband/hat etc)?

#kalafina #my translations #translations #my translation #cakey questions #keiko questions project #ughhhh #why is my Japanese so bad? T_T #I don't know any Keigo #I forgot all the Keigo I learned at uni #this is all over the place >_<#oi #what's up with the formatting in this post #everything is screwed up

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